We were the only Asians at a packed Hearthe on a Sunday morning not long ago, not counting the two in the kitchen, and thus the only people to have their very good congee, though more on that later.
The first item that arrived was the salt bush scone with dessert lime marmalade and cream ($14). The scone itself was savoury, with a light, chive like flavour do them that suberverted expectations of a wholely sweet-spectrum dish.
The cream, whipped well, is always a welcome addition to any scone dish, whilst the “dessert lime marmalade”, which I can only assume is a play on words based on the “desert lime” its made of, was a less sweet, more bitter concoction. My wife enjoyed this dish more than me.
The ham and cheese scroll ($9) was up next. Though plucked from the display cabinet, it was served warmed up, semi-gooeyfying the relatively large high density of cheese within this pastry.
The layers of the scroll were very buttery and dense, contributing to an overall sense of luxury to this scroll, though again, similar to the marmalade, there was an overall hint of bitterness to it.
The rice congee with paperbark smoked barramundi, with karkalla, samphire and finger lime with a toasted croissant crouton ($19) was completely different to everything else on offer at Hearthe. The croissant “crouton” functioned much like a youtiao, though tasted a bit burnt and was on a whole less good than the traditional alternative. The native greens (karkalla and samphire) weren’t that tasty, and the finger lime was not able to be found or tasted.
Looking past the croissant and native greens, the dish as a whole was an extremely traditional rendition of a Chinese congee. The flavour was umami and warming, and just as a classic congee, not overly rich. The flakes of barramundi within the bowl were perfectly proportioned, and permeated through each spoonful. It did a really good job as a congee, much better than many Chinese restaurants we’ve been to, and despite the superficial attempt of being fusion, was deeply traditional in its overall execution, tasting more of shallot and fish than it did of native things. It’s a shame we didn’t see any of the other (non-Asian) patrons ordering it.
The unforgettable cake ($10 for a small slice), was actually much more forgettable than Hearthe proprietor Christopher Thé’s original claim to fame, Black Star’s strawberry watermelon cake. Though it was built in a sandwich like construction featuring jelly and cream between multiple layers of sponge, I didn’t feel that this really made up for the relatively uninteresting and subdued flavour, and it ultimately ended up seeming like too much structural effort for little flavour pay-off. At least it wasn’t too sweet.
The paperbark cake ($10) had a nice, floral and peppery top layer, with a honey-drenched mimille feuille centre and a rich, chocolatey, dense mousse-like base. This was probably the most “native Australian” tasting item on the menu, though overall too sweet for my liking.
UPDATE –
We found our way across the bridge to a community cultural event, where Christopher The was doing some live baking with his kids whilst one of his other kids played music.
We were served these very unassuming tarts with kiwi and mango pearls on arrival.
The music was intermitted by these fresh-out-of-the-oven blueberry cupcakes, which had a taste of self-raised flour. I reiterate add at this point that the whole thing was one professional baker and his kids, who are definitely not professional bakers and just there to do their best to help out.
The cherry strudel with fresh and sour cherries, anise myrtle, and a coffee and wattle seed ice cream turned out to be quite good, despite Christopher leaving his dry flour at home. We enjoyed the tartness of the sour cherries, and that it was overall not too sweet.
A surprise showing of a work-in-progress next generation strawberry-watermelon cake. I think it would be better with less sweetness.
OVERALL
Despite criticisms, I enjoyed my meal at Hearthe, and the little Australian twists present in most dishes. It almost felt like what BUSH should’ve been, and it just happens to have some of the best fish congee around.
If you’re really into classical guitar and live North of the bridge, the live-baking thing could be a thing too.
Hearthe
16 Douglas St, Stanmore NSW 2048
