Merivale Laneway Dining at Ash St Cellar

I’ve been meaning to visit Ash St Cellar ever since the Merivale Winter Feasts launch. Then the urge was compounded after reading about visits by Jenius and eatshowtell (among others).
Well, my turn finally came yesterday. My delayed visit was caused in part by the weather reports – as Ash St Cellar is situated in a rather shadowy laneway between tall buildings, I made sure to pick a warmish day for it.

I needn’t have worried, as they have some pretty good outdoor gas heaters to warm up the area. The food is delightfully warming, too. We had the Winter Feasts menu, where you get 3 courses for $35 pp. This also includes a glass of house red or white wine or beer.

Glass of sauvignon blanc and shiraz.

Bread served with lovely fruity olive oil, salt flakes

I wanted to have the soup to start, after hearing rave reviews about the fennel soup that was on previous menus. This time, there was a cream of mushroom soup which sounded good, but the cured tuna belly sounded better (so much so that we both ordered it). The tuna looked a lot like prosciutto (a bit dried), but it went well with the accompanying salad of capsicum and mayonnaise.

Cured tuna belly with fresh capsicum and lemon mayonnaise

Next, my friend ordered the ocean trout (moist yet firm, nicely grilled), but I think my marinated chicken was better. The thigh meat had been marinated in rosemary and garlic, then grilled, leaving a gorgeous crusty coating. The flavours were great in this dish.

Ocean trout with zucchini, lemon and crouton salad

Rosemary and garlic-marinated chicken thigh with corn

I wonder if anyone ever orders all savoury dishes for their 3 courses? Personally, I would not want to miss out on dessert, and the poached quince sounded fantastic. It came in one of those Spanish tapas dishes, all cracked brown glaze and all. The cream underneath was flavoured with cinnamon and the homemade honeycomb was satisfying shatter-y and slightly burnt-tasting (in a good way).

Poached quince with spiced cream and honeycomb

Because it was so good, here's another picture of it:

All up, it was a great place to have a quick midweek lunch. This venue would be really pleasant in summer, as well, for a meal (or something) after work. I like that it’s away from the bustle and crowdedness of the ivy bars, though the laneway it’s in is not the most salubrious.

Also, the menu has changed from the previous months, so it’s worth visiting again even if you’ve been before. The Winter Feasts menu is available 12-2pm and 6-8pm.

Ash St Cellar is in Ash St, Sydney.

It’s behind the ivy complex, in the laneway between George St and the City Recital Hall in Angel Place/Pitt St. It doesn’t take bookings.