bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

moreOnThisArticles

urlAlias

commentCount

sponsorType

authorLocations

authors

paywallTypes

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

socialHeadline

headline

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

publishedDate

additionalInfoBoxes

images

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

createdDate

sponsor

factSheets

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

copyrighted

customTimezone

liveContents

SCMP Reporter

Jaccs

20 Staunton Street, SoHo

Tel: 2522 6061

Open: Monday-Friday 11am-3pm, 6pm-11pm, Saturday and Sunday 10am-11pm

Walking down Staunton and Elgin streets while trying to decide where to eat is difficult. It's not through lack of choice but rather because with so many of the restaurants there, it's a matter of 'been there, tried that'. With too many of them, the food is mediocre, the prices high, and to make things worse, servers don't have much knowledge about the food.

So we were pleasantly surprised at the friendly greeting we received at Jaccs when we arrived without a booking. As with so many other restaurants in the area, a waiter tried to entice us inside when we stopped to examine the menu. What made us step inside was that he knew about the ingredients and the dishes being served, taking the time to explain the specials.

The menu is mostly Australian and Italian with a smattering of other influences, listing Moreton Bay bugs alongside the pastas. To start, we decided to share the chicken and avocado wrapped in tortilla ($65) and spinach koftas ($65). The former dish was light and healthy, filled with well-dressed salad greens, avocado and chicken breast, but they should re-think the wrap. Cold tortilla tastes like cardboard, but warming it would have wilted the greens.

The spinach koftas were flavourful and surprisingly delicate. They came with two dipping sauces, one eggplant, and the other an unidentifiable greenish-grey. It didn't at all resemble the guacamole the waiter claimed it was, but it tasted good with the koftas.

For her main, my guest chose the tea-smoked salmon ($105), which had great flavour although it was slightly overcooked and dry. It was served with potatoes, broccoli, carrots, green beans and cauliflower. My main of lamb chermoula ($125) consisted of tender, nicely marinated lamb loin (again, slightly overcooked) served with rice, warm pita bread and hummus, and the same vegetables served with the salmon. Both mains were huge and the friendly waitress apologised for not warning us to order less.

We wanted something light to finish and on our server's advice, shared the bananas with caramel sauce and vanilla ice cream ($45), instead of the baked meringue with wild berries. The hot bananas were not too sweet despite the generous drizzle of caramel sauce.

There's a short wine list, as well as beer and cocktails. Although there are only two wines by the glass, they were, like the food, some of the most generous servings I've ever seen. Dinner for two, with one glass of wine and genuinely friendly service, was $501.



Thefussyeater