13.08.13

The Grain Store Opens on Flinders Street Melbourne

Winter has wrapped her frosty tentacles around Melburnites and it doesn’t look like she’ll be letting go any time soon. This isn’t all bad though. Frigid weather does have its perks - take woolly jumpers and couch snuggles for example. But the biggest win of the winter season has to be the deliciously rich winter fare that burrows into menus around town. Flinders Lane’s newest and brightest resident The Grain Store, is helping to loosen winter’s grip one dish at a time with the launch of its new winter menu; lovingly and thoughtfully prepared by Chef Ingo Meissner and always reflecting the best that the season and its produce has to offer.

In case you weren’t sure; The Grain Store is a new Melbourne café situated at the sometimes ‘unfashionable’ west end of Flinders St. But it has a food philosophy with a difference... One of only a very small pinch of Melbourne café’s working with a strict sustainable and seasonal manifesto, The Grain Store’s menu is constantly evolving to reflect the changing of the seasons – hence the changing of the menu guard. Ingo and front of house managers Annika Kreusel and Melanie Slope believe strongly in reducing food miles and sourcing produce from suppliers with a sustainable philosophy wherever possible. This attitude is inclusive of their list of almost entirely local beers and wines from the Yarra Valley, Heathcote, Mornington Peninsula and even far flung Werribee just to name a few. Reducing your impact on the environment by slurping down a stunning glass of wine made from Victorian grapes – yes please! The result is a hands down win for diners- anything that emerges from Meissner’s kitchen has been carefully considered and beautifully crafted by the kitchen team. A delight to eat and kind to the planet; surely it doesn’t get much better than that?

Full of big winter flavours and using ‘low and slow’ cooking techniques, Meissner.. sources the ingredients for his dishes from a range of ethical and sustainable suppliers and only uses what’s in season – no sign of out of season asparagus flown in from Peru here. Think Milawa free-range chickens, Glenora Heritage produce based out of Toororac, Istra smallgoods from a small town near Daylesford, CERES grown fruit and veg from their Brunswick farm, saltbush fed lamb from Victorian suppliers and Snapper and Wild Cod plucked direct from Bass Strait. This is a supplier list that you’d be more likely to see from some of Melbourne’s top (and equally as expensive) restaurants – Ingo and his team are producing restaurant level fare at café prices.

Just some of the new menu items include:

• Coq au Vin Milawa free range chicken with silky mash potato, double smoked Istra bacon and wintery mushrooms ($27) •
• House made Nicola potato gnocchi and locally sourced tomme style cheese, mushroom talleggio cream, brown butter and broccoli ($21)
• Saltbush Lamb confit cooked for three and a half hours, served with sweet potato, bok choy, long pepper and a violet mustard ($28)

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