From Mediterranean classics and great value oysters to Asian-inspired dishes and vino worth travelling for, Beaconsfield Wine Bar – and its promising new head chef – does it all.
Australian$$
Globally, local wine culture presents in all sorts of ways.
In the varieties of grapes planted. In the styles of wine made. And in the names that local places of wine worship go by. In France, drinkers congregate at the cave du vin. Italians crowd into the enoteca. Publicans on Greek islands smile politely as tourists butcher the pronunciation of kafeneion.
But despite the many ways to say “wine bar”, the instructions that come with each variant are pretty much universal and have been since the advent of Ben Ean in the late 50s. You order wine. You order food to snack on. You drink and dine, settle the tab and then continue merrily on your way, freed from that most mundane of lodestones: “Whose turn is it to do the dishes?”
What has changed, at least in WA anyway, is the growing number of wine bars that have opened in suburbia rather than the inner-city: this state’s spiritual, pre-COVID home of the wine bar. And just as local cafes and pubs need to carry their genres’ greatest hits – avo toast, pancakes, chicken parmies – familiarity needs to on the menu at suburban wine bars too.
If needs be, Beaconsfield Wine Bar can be that approachable, something-for-everyone neighbourhood spot. Crunchy rosé and fruity chardonnay is dispensed by the glass. On the clipped menu: olives, cheese, crusty bread and other Mediterranean European hits that define wine bar cuisine. (Also: half a dozen freshly shucked oysters for $24? Surely some of the cheaper non-happy hour priced oysters in WA, no?)
If it’s a warm afternoon and the breeze is blowing, pride of place is among the white folding chair and table settings outside this born-again patisserie, watching the world and lucky locals that live in walking distance of the bar go by. (It’s worth noting that most of the bar’s 50 seats are outdoors and clustered around these compact bistro tables. While wine bars such as Casa and Wines of While are great for groups, this is a place best suited to date nights and smaller groups.)
Yet behind this innocuous wine-bar-next-door façade is an operation that ticks plenty of boxes for contemporary wining and dining destination. Owner and transplanted Londoner Matt Sharples values wines of provenance as well as the connections he’s made with producers while working in SA and WA. (Which explains why all the above are well represented on his wine lists.)
The resume of the bar’s Korean-born chef Kyo Kim follows a similar geographical route and includes Shobosho in Adelaide, Lulu La Delizia, and Madalena’s – where he and Sharples first crossed paths. For his first head chef gig, Kim has written a menu that explores the synergies that tie together northeast Asia, fine-dining technique plus wine bar food. His explorations have yielded a suite of familiar, personal dishes that don’t just chime with the casual, wine bar food ideal: they also suggest Kim has many of the makings of a cooking star of the future.
Consider his vegetarian tofu parfait. Starring three mushroom-hued domes crowned with pennies of floral sake jelly, it convincingly apes the richness and sweetness of that charcuterie board staple, duck liver parfait. Slow-cooked leeks shredded into confetti and blanketed with a bold XO sauce and toasted breadcrumbs are another win for plant-based deliciousness.
Not that Kim is averse to cooking with animals. He’ll gently pound out pieces of tuna loin and belly before finishing them with tomato dashi and a sprinkle of fizzy powdered sansho. If you were curious about the fuss surrounding itameshi food, this Japanese-Italian carpaccio would make an ideal gateway dish. Artfully arranged sang choy bao-style on a sturdy raft of radicchio, “seared beef” is a juicy mouthful of flash-fried cow that’s more tartare than T-bone and heavy in garlic and soy in the finest traditions of Korean barbecue.
As is commonplace with new-school wine bars, the “kitchen” set-up here (read: two induction cook-tops) is on the minimal side, so there’s a limit to how much hot food can be served. Then again, if Kim can imbue all of his handmade pastas with the kind of bounce he gets out of his tagliolini with earthy shaoxing wine – along with a mushroom udon, this Chinese pasta alla vodka is one of two “noodle” dishes on the menu – it’s hard to argue with his focus on quality over quantity.
Since opening in 2023, Beaconsfield Wine Bar has hosted many talented cooks including bagel-maker and Madalena’s alum Shauna Shapiro of Polly’s Bagels; Guy Jeffreys, the chef-gardener that captained Millbrook during its golden era; plus Drew Dawson prior to the opening of Cool Room Cafe.
All, however, were just passing through. Kim has committed to sticking around. And, as a result, Beaconsfield – courtesy of this prosaically named, owner-operated venture where the service is as breezy as the setting – has found itself cast as an unlikely key player in the national neighbourhood-bars-to-watch discussion.
Chalk it up as another – unexpected, delightful – way that local wine culture can shape the world around us.
The low-down
Atmosphere: all hail the modern-day wine bar! Especially if it puts smart small plates and tasty vino at the doorsteps of more West Australians.
Go-to dishes: seared beef ($10), tofu parfait ($18).
Drinks: approachable wines by-the-glass for all plus a compact, page-turner of a master list starring bottles with modest, neighbourhood-friendly mark-ups.
Cost: about $150 for two people, excluding drinks.
Good Food reviews are booked anonymously and paid independently. A restaurant can’t pay for a review or inclusion in the Good Food Guide.
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Max Veenhuyzen is a journalist and photographer who has been writing about food, drink and travel for national and international publications for more than 20 years. He reviews restaurants for the Good Food Guide.
