Southside Drive
Hillarys Boat Harbour
ph: 9246 4700
fax:9246 9645
www.portofinos.com.au
It's a concoction of comfortable contradictions: dedicated service in a relaxed and casual atmosphere, first-class food without the extravagant price tag and the clever ability to cater for countless individual tastes with the one venue and menu, where anyone and everyone can feel welcome and at ease.
Brothers James, Steve and Dave, together with their mother and father, Mary and Norm, have owned and run it from the get-go, slowly cultivating Portofinos into the fine coastal institution it is today. This is the family's original venture; they've since opened Centrofinos in Perth's busy CBD and are due to open their third restaurant in Quinns Rock in summer 2007, and yep, you guessed it, it will be right on the beach.
Balconies sweep across the entire front of Portofinos restaurant café, clearly designed for punters to soak up the bustling atmosphere of the harbour and its colourful happenings. Inside, there are cosy fires and plenty of nooks and niches to hide out or celebrate with a huge bunch of your closest friends.
Portofinos is fully licensed, open 7 days a week for lunch and dinner and also for breakfast on Saturday and Sunday, 8am to 11am . Functions for 16 guests or more have the option of their amazing set menus that offer serious vale for money (see www.portofinos.com.au )
The extensive seasonal a la carte menu offers WA's finest steaks, seafood (apparently the epic Seafood Platter for Two is legend in these parts), salads, pasta, wood-fired delicacies and pizzas and desserts. The menu has a predominantly Mediterranean style incorporating our finest WA produce. Don't you hate that feeling when you arrive at a restaurant for the first time and you paw over the menu and nothing jumps out? Well you won't have that problem at Portofinos! Conversely, you'll no doubt need 'just a few more minutes' to decide what you're going to go for.
From the starters, through to the desserts, there's a plethora of hearty standards with exciting new dishes bound to tickle your taste buds. From the traditional wood-fire pizza oven (they have a completely separate, trained chef for this section), try garlic bread, bruschetta, grilled sausage, Turkish bread with dips (that aren't randomly obscure!) or the best bread I've ever tried, my beloved 'Pizza Bianca': a thin wood-fired pizza base with sea salt, olive oil and rosemary - c'est magnifique! A guaranteed hit with anyone I can assure you.
James came out with a dozen (freshly shucked) mixed oysters for Scott and I; four natural, four Kilpatrick, four with sweet chilli and lime and last four with extra virgin olive oil and a red wine vinaigrette drizzled over them. Now I've had many an oyster but these were plump, creamy and salty; the stuff dreams are made of. James explained Portofinos oysters are usually Sydney Rock oysters from Port Stevens in NSW, are delivered live and always shucked fresh on the premises every day. On busy nights, they're shucked out the front and used to treat and tempt their guests.
For entrees, there's always a delicious soup made daily on the premises, Sizzling Garlic Prawns, a Portofinos Burger, Chilli Mussels (someone near me asked to take away their leftover sauce!) and a chicken, avocado and Swiss cheese focaccia. Scott and I were served the Sea Salt Baby Squid and the Filled Mushrooms.
The mushrooms were fleshy, chubby and not drowned in the roasted capsicum infused olive oil. The light salad of greens and cucumber balanced out the substantial spinach and ricotta filling. The aioli (garlic mayonnaise) just topped it all off. I loved the squid: lightly fried pieces that looked almost like big gnocchi served with gourmet greens and a sweet lime chilli dressing. It's the best I've had in ages, due mainly to its non-rubbery texture and crispy, salty-crusted coating. I also like the fact that they were bite sized and I didn't have to use my knife.
For mains, we shared the Duck Risotto and the Tandoori Chicken Salad. The salad was a mix of cherry tomatoes, onion and cucumber with a light mint yoghurt dressing. The Tandoori-marinated chicken breasts were placed on top with a piece of toasted Turkish bread. And well, what can I say except I think Ghandi would have broken his fast for that!
However, the dish that won my heart was the Duck Risotto - tender duck meat, shredded off the bone was pushed through a risotto of wild mushrooms, onion, jus and parmesan shavings. The risotto wasn't gluggy and heavy like risottos sometimes can be. Instead, it was light yet still substantial and very tasty, made possible in large by the thick dark jus spooned around the plate. If you're a risotto fan, then this one's seriously a match made in heaven.
And of course, being from the Mediterranean themselves, the family really knows how to drink, umm, err... I mean which alcohol is best served with food. Portofinos has an extensive wine list, including reserve wines and of course all of our best home-grown WA drops. Spirits, beers, ports, cognacs and cocktails - if it's got alcohol in it and its drinkable, they've got it.
If you have a sweet tooth, you won't be disappointed with their dessert range and if it's coffee you're after, Portofino 's baristas (despite their numerous university degrees) have been brewing coffee there ever since it opened, they love it! In fact, at the risk of sounding like a complete cheese ball, you get the feeling that the staff are like one big happy family - and that's nice to see.
So if you're hungry or thirsty, worn out and weary, young or old, or just in the mood to watch people watch people, then pop down to Portofinos inside Hillarys Boat Harbour for some quality food and drink in a relaxed, inviting seaside atmosphere. For more information, visit www.portofinos.com.au
