It’s hard to comprehend a hot brunch menu without a shakshuka. Elevating baked eggs to exotic, spice-laden heights, Australians have come a long way since the days of only knowing Middle Eastern cuisine to be dried-out pucks of falafel, or the occasional late-night kebab.
A firm Northcote favourite, Tahina Bar is an ode to the simple and soulful nature of Middle Eastern cuisine, and it has just opened a Fitzroy outpost on Brunswick Street. A joint venture between considerably talented Israeli chef Roy Sassonkin and partner Natalie Powell, Tahina Bar celebrates the food Roy grew up with… but he’s made it all about the vegetables (case in point: their carrot 'hot dog' made entire from carrot).
What Sunday brunch at Tahina Bar would be complete without authentic shakshuka? Source: Tahina Bar
“I’d always worked in restaurants cooking food not of my culture,” he says, citing popular restaurants Chin Chin and Hellenic Republic as former places of employ. “I think if you ask a lot of chefs, there’s just something about cooking with the flavours you grew up on that makes you feel connected,” he muses.
As with many Melbourne gems, Fitzroy’s outpost seems innocuous from the front: a humble, albeit cleanly modern take-away façade. But step beyond the kitchen and you’ll find a sun-soaked courtyard. Resplendent with whitewashed walls and blue details, you feel like you really could be sitting in someone’s family garden in Jerusalem. At night, twinkling festoon lights bring the party vibes to dinner, but night or day, the menu is full of bright, balanced dishes that showcase the beauty of vegetable-driven food that feels entirely complete, without meat.
There are red and green falafels (the former spiced with roasted capsicums and chilli), which are stuffed inside pillow-soft pita pockets alongside creamy hummus, Israeli salad, pickled cabbage and tahini. There are substantial salads packed with all-killer no-filler, such as the “monkey salad” of tender quinoa, roasted sweet potato, charred corn, broccoli and avocado, topped with crispy spiced dukkhah chickpeas and a dill-spiked tahini dressing.
But Roy’s favourite is the shakshuka platter: free-range eggs baked in a classic, richly-spiced tomato base. There’s also a green version with charred broccoli, avocado, zucchini and chilli, scented with thyme and rosemary, and a white version showcasing mushrooms, fennel and Jerusalem artichoke. “Shakshuka is special to me because I grew up with my dad cooking this for us at least once a week,” says Sassonkin. “He was the one who really taught me how to cook, from a young kid I used to watch him in the kitchen and from him I fell in love with cooking.”
The falafel salad is not to be missed. Source: Carmen Zammit
Try the roasted eggplant with zaatar kale chips and tahini. Source: Tahina Bar
With this much love and soul on a menu, Tahina Bar is destined to become a Fitzroy favourite in no time.
362 Brunswick Street, Fitzroy, Victoria
(03) 9417 4510
Open daily, 11am – 9pm
