FoodMeUpScotty: The Alliance Hotel - rise of the Gastro Pub

http://www.thealliancehotel.com.au/

I really didn't know what to expect when we caught up with some mates for dinner at the Alliance Hotel in Spring Hill. Being a denizen of the city, I am well aware of some of the more recent history of the Alliance and on the whole it has not been great. I mean, this is a hotel that used to have a nightclub attached to it called the Hellfire Club!

Originally built in 1888, the Alliance is one of the few remaining 'old school' pubs left in Queensland and has not had great luck with successful ventures and it had been empty since the last failed venture until late this year when the new owners with a vision decided to turn the Alliance into a Gastro Pub.

In deciding to check out the Alliance SC and I immediately thought of our good mates DD, AT and MT to come along and dine with us. We arranged to meet at 7pm at the Alliance and were surprised that our dinner guests had beaten us to the venue (this is a rarity as the guys are usually 'a bit late' when we catch up!). We immediately noticed a huge difference between the front bar area and the bistro just behind, with a grand sweeping staircase and cool art on the walls, this was definitely a departure from the Alliance of old.

Once seated and with drinks orders away, we noticed that the menu was quite eclectic, with some traditional pub fare, but also some interesting departures from what one would normally associate with a pub. My entree of Crispy Skinned Pork Belly, Scallops and an asian salad could have been considered pub food, but its also on many menus around town so I had high hopes of a brilliant start. My plate consisted of two very large scallops, large square of pork belly and thin slices of apple that constituted the asian salad and it looked very pretty. However, there were some major problems with the dish. The scallops, while tasty, were severely under cooked and were raw in the middle and the pork belly was also severely undercooked, so much so that the fat had not rendered at all. The pork was tough to cut through, the skin was not 'crispy', it was cold on the bottom and the fat was hard and gelatinous and not very pleasant to eat. There were great flavours with the asian salad which would have worked well with the dish if it was just cooked more.

The rest of the group fared much better than I did with their entrees. SC opted for a starter for her entree, which was Duck Spring Rolls with hoi sin and coriander pesto which was well presented and quite a large serving for a starter. The spring rolls were very well cooked and the duck was moist and full of flavour. There was a bit of a spice and heat to the sauce with the duck spring rolls and added a nice complexity to the duck. DD and MT chose oysters natural with red wine and nahm jim, which were fresh, plump and completely delicious. AT also chose a side to begin with and went with some Onion Rings. The onion rings came out in a cool little basket and were lovely, with crispy batter and perfectly cooked onion inside. At this stage, everyone else was super happy with the start of the meal.

There were a number of specials attached to the menu and the 450 gram Rib on the Bone with Kipfler Potatoes, Asparagus and Swiss Brown mushrooms caught my eye. This was a massive plate of food! I asked for my rib to be cooked medium rare and this and it was delivered just right. The meat itself was tender and quite tasty, but a little bloody (needed to rest for a while longer). The asparagus were nicely cooked but the real stars for me were the swiss brown mushrooms, which added a rich earthy flavour to the meat. Kipfler potatoes are always nice and these were cooked well, nicely seasoned and plentiful. Unfortunately, there was quite a bit of fat and gristle on my steak, which was quite unpleasant. I think I would have liked this rendered down a little more, or removed completely from the steak. Overall though, it was pretty nice and quite filling.

SC and AT chose Piri Piri Chicken with Sweet Corn Salsa and Acocado Cream and it looked to have been the pick of all the dishes. The chicken was well cooked and had retained all of its moisture during the cooking process, but still had lovely crispy skin. The Piri Piri had just enough bite to make it interesting without over powering the subtle taste of the chicken. The sweet corn salsa was a welcome addition and provided some texture and contrasting flavours. DD had less luck with his main selection in the Spaghetti with Local picked Sand Crab, Chilli, Garlic and Italian Parsley. I had a big taste of this to help DD finish it off and it was not a good dish. The pasta was undercooked (and tasted like packet pasta) and was too firm, but worst of all was the balance of the dish. The garlic and chilli simply overpowered everything else, there was no taste of the crab at all (unfortunately). MT chose the 200 gram Eye Fillet with Blue Cheese Souffle, wilted English Spinach and trussed Cherry Tomatoes, wich looked great and MT assured us also tasted great.

After contemplating if we should finish or go on for dessert, MT and I decided on dessert and DD and SC decided to share a cheese platter. I felt like something a little lighter and refreshing so chose the Hazelnut Meringue with Vanilla Cream and fresh Mixed Berries. This was a simple dessert delivered in a martini glass with layers of cream, meringue and fresh berries. The cream was sweet and creamy and was a great contrast to the hazelnut meringue, wich was a little bitter, and combined to have nice mixed texture. The lots of strawberries, blue berries and raspberries included which added another level of tartness to the sweet cream. I very much enjoyed the dessert.

Dinner was finished and naturally we discussed the highs and lows of the meal. We all agreed that there was a great menu at the Alliance and there was huge potential for the bisto, but were surprised with the prices of many of the menu items. The Alliance is marketing itself as a Gastro Pub / Bistro, but we found many of the prices to be closer to what you would expect in a Fine Diner, with some of the mains in the $35 to $39 range. The entrees were more reasonably priced around the $18 mark, but creeping up to $25. I wouldn't mind paying these prices, but the quality and consistency of the food would need to be much higher than we received on the night.

We went for dinner on a Wednesday night and it was encouraging to see the bistro area packed out, with no spare tables. There was a great vibe in the dining area and the service was really good. It is interesting to see that the kitchen area is open so you can see the chefs at work and the care that has been taken in putting together a dining area that is cool and retro but does not take away from the natural charm of such an old pub. I think that if the consistency of the food was a little better and the prices come down just a little bit, this is the type of 'local' I could see myself spending quite a bit of time in.

@FoodMeUpScotty

Lovely fresh and plump oysters with a spicy Nahm Jim sauce

The Onion Rings were superb, crunch on the outside and sweet onion on the inside

Unfortunately the pasta was not great. The balance was out with the garlic and chilli completely overpowering
the dish. The Crab as lost, which was a shame

Expertly cooked eye fillet with a blue cheese souffle and yummy tomatoes

The flowerless cake looked a little different to what we were expecting. It was more like a muffin and was missing
a really rich chocolate flavour.

The cheese selection was cheddar and brie, wich SC and DD loved. There was a slight pear taste to the cheddar
but the brie was creamy and tasted great with the accompaniments