Sleek, chic and shiny, East of Norman is the new addition to Sturt Street right in the CBD. This establishment offers a modern Australian menu for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
The venue features a modern industrial décor filled with natural light. The use of a subdued colour scheme and light wood tones really makes the place feel like it would be appropriate for so many occasions. Pre-work breakfast, corporate lunches and date night dinner and drinks, East of Norman is covering all bases.
A stand out feature is the impressive drinks list, which features some truly fantastic South Australian grown Italian varietals with some equally interesting European options. Grand Casino Barossa Valley Fiano ($11 glass/ $46 bottle) is our recommendation. With crisp acidity and flavours of nashi pear and lychee it perfectly compliments the food offerings.
There is something for those who are not wine inclined (I guess you guys exist somewhere?) with an extensive spirits list and wonderful selection of both craft beers and local favourites. Our eyes lit up at Brooklyn Larger.
Charcuterie Boards
We were treated to samples from the dinner menu, which consists mostly of small plates and pizzas that are designed for sharing. Using native Australian ingredients in restaurants certainly seems to be the trend du jour in dining recently, and East of Norman is another that has taken this innovative approach when creating most of their dishes. The plates range in price from about $15 to $20 each and a couple of diners with expandable stomachs (that’s us) would be satisfied with around 4-5. There are also very decent sized charcuterie and cheese boards available. When we say decent sized we mean it! They come out on paddles that look slightly similar the cricket bats. Snaps to the waitress that very elegantly brought them out.
Kangaroo Tataki
One of the memorable dishes of the evening was the kangaroo tataki, enoki mushrooms and warrigal greens with aioli. Tataki refers to a Japanese technique of lightly searing fish or meat and thinly slicing for serving after briefly marinating in rice vinegar. The kangaroo was perfectly charred and served on top of cooked enoki mushrooms and wilted warrigal greens, also known as native spinach for those playing at home. The texture of the kangaroo meat perfectly complemented the chewiness of the mushrooms and the aioli added just the right amount of umami flavour.
A Selection of Pizzas Available
Now let’s talk pizzas as these guys know their stuff! The bases where thin and chewy, the toppings liberal and fresh and the selection on offer was tailored to all tastes. The prawn, zucchini and mint pizza was fresh and light. A white sauce was used on the base instead of the traditional tomato based sauce, which really give the prawns an opportunity to shine. The pizzas are also available for home delivery though the mlkman app. They range from $15-$23 which is very reasonable for the quality we tasted. One pizza would be adequate for one person.
Touched Homemade Marshmallow
To finish we were treated with three of the four desserts available. Our personal favourite was the touched homemade marshmallow with meringue crumble and summer berries. The marshmallows sweetness was cut short by the tartness of the summer berries. The meringue added the required crunch and the mint used as a garnish added a refreshing after note, which helped us forget how much sugar we were consuming! The chai panna cotta also deserves a special mention for its smooth, creamy consistency. One of the best panna cottas we have tried in recent times!
East of Norman is open every day for breakfast, lunch and dinner, making it easy for visitors to come past and try the medley of cuisines available at this modern Sturt Street venue.
Photography by Anthony Reninger
