If you love The Henley Brook, be sure to head to The Mallard Duck! The Swan Valley spot has recently been taken over by the same management. “The Duck” and “The Hen” are both popular venues, with The Duck being geared more towards adults. It’s strictly “adults only” on weekends.
We stopped by for lunch on a stinker of a summers day. What I was surprised to find at The Mallard Duck, is that it is exclusively an outdoor venue. An un-airconditioned temporary marquee-style dining room has lots of tables, though we opted to sit outside where it was cooler. It was lovely sitting under big, shady palms, overlooking ducks swimming on the dam.
The Duck has plenty of chilled vibes, a decent drinks list, with a focus on cocktails. The menu is designed to share, with small plates and more substantial dishes. Much of the menu caters for those with gluten intolerances. The pancetta and manchego croquettes ($4 each) served with dill ranch were delicious and surprisingly gluten free.
I enjoyed a gluten free alternative to the soda bread, served with lashings of chicken skin butter.
A stand out share dish is the pork belly bites ($17), with a bbq caramel glaze and crispy fried shallots. The pork was SO tasty!
A more substantial share plate, the bbq beef brisket ($26) with smoky bourbon glaze is served with focaccia and a chicken skin butter.
There are a few salad and vegetable dishes to choose from. I’d recommend the charred baby courgette ($15), with butter leeks, broad beans, peas, asparagus and a fresh gremolata. (gf)
I do love a bowl of chips and the hand cut chips ($10), with smoked paprika aioli and kimchi ketchup was generous. (gf)
I’d definitely duck into The Duck on a cooler day, for the excellent food and lovely setting. Great for groups, it’s well worth checking out.
Find The Mallard Duck at 10 John Street (corner West Swan Road), Henley Brook.