The Standard – Bar, Kitchen & Garden Northbridge

Perth has exploded with small bars and hip dining spots. I meet a friend, Renee, at one of the newest and most-buzzed about venues – The Standard Bar, Kitchen and Garden – in bustling Northbridge.

Arriving at The Standard, with its retro-industrial fit out, we are met with some surprisingly delicious smells. Freshly baked bread isn’t something I’d usually associate with a bar – but this is a bar with a reputation for exceptional food. We are warmly greeted by our waitress and request a table in the garden area. There are vibrant murals and greenery in what would otherwise be a concrete jungle.

There’s a second bar outside – housed in a shipping container. We head upstairs to the top of the container and grab a sort-after table on the deck, for a stunning view of the city skyline. The Standard is sophisticated, yet relaxed. Polished, yet gritty.

There is a wide range of international wines on the drinks menu. I ask our waitress if they happen to have any preservative free wine. Without missing a beat, she suggests the Jamsheed “Le Blanc Plonk”, a Gewürztraminer / Riesling blend from South Australia. It is ordered by the bottle ($48), though she is happy to open it, just for a glass. It is a fruity drop and thankfully I don’t have the preservative-induced wine headache the next day.

The menu is mostly made up of dishes to share. With no item costing over $27 it is very well priced. In no time our food arrives. We smell our garlic clams ($19) before we set eyes on them. The fragrant clams are tender – poached in a sauce of cider, whole garlic cloves, cream and chives which is mopped up with the fresh sourdough we smelled earlier.

A tasty fish burger, made from blue groper and fresh prawns ($21) is on a buttery brioche bun – the best type of burger bun in my opinion! There are sweet potato crisps and minty peas on the side.

The lamb belly is my favourite dish. It is a mouth-watering cut of meat, nicely fatty and so flavoursome. The accompanying sweet and sour eggplant salad is almost identical to the crisp eggplant salad ($18) we ordered. If we’d have realised that, we would have forgone the individual salad for another dish.

It’s quite a spread!

The sun sets and we enjoy a beautiful view of the city lights by night. The light is fading fast and I quickly order our desserts, so I can get a half decent shot of them! Oh the silly things we bloggers do! haha

The delightful desserts are full of theatre. The rich dark chocolate ganache ($14) is paired with scrumptious toasted coconut fudge. It tastes just like a Bounty chocolate bar. A spiced rum is sprayed as a fine fragrant mist over the dessert, which gives a hint of rum with every bite.

The panna cotta ($14), served in a stemless wine glass, is dotted with vanilla bean specks. It is topped with sweet and tangy red berries. Our waitress pours a strawberry liqueur over the berries, then the glass is topped up with house made lemonade from an old school soda siphon which creates a unique cocktail-dessert fusion.

The Standard is an excellent place for a drink before catching a show at the nearby State Theatre Centre. A pre/post show menu is available. Head Chef Chase Webber has created a menu with innovative and exciting food. It is also deceptively simple, with a lot of technique involved. There is certainly nothing standard about The Standard

**First published in the Post newspaper**

At a glance

■ The Standard

28 Roe Street

Northbridge

Phone 9228 1331

■ Opening times

Mon – Thur 4pm – 12am

Fri & Sat     12pm – 12am

Sunday       12pm – 10pm

■ Rating

food 4

service 4

ambience 4

value for money 4

■ style – Modern Australian

■ wine – well thought out list,

with an international feel.

■ Chef – Chase Webber

■ Owner – John Parker

■ feel – sophisticated, yet relaxed

and unpretentious.

■ wheelchair access – yes

■ cost –

Plates – $4 – $27

Dessert – $12 – $14

■ all in all – well cooked food,

excellent drinks list knowledgeable

staff – a quirky hang out with

views to die for.