45 Flinders Lane, Melbourne
Phone 03 9650 1445
Many have waxed lyrical about the delights of Cumulus Inc, and I must confess it has taken us a while to eventually make it there. But make it there we did, and oh, what an awesome little feast we had.
Located in the increasingly fashionable arts and crafts district on upper Flinders Lane, the semi-industrial space is open and inviting, though a little bit noisy when the crowds descend (which they certainly do!).
We started with some oysters from Moonlight Flat in Batemans Bay (ranging in price from $3.5 to $4.5). We tried a number of varieties, including the Clair de Lune, Moonlight en Surface and a Rusty Wire. Dan prefers his au naturale, but I love mine with a small squirt of lemon.
We followed with further seafoody tastes; scallops wrapped in speck with a raisin and caper dressing on a cauliflower puree ($5 each). I don’t think I need express how great a partnership all these individual elements made.
The kitchen charcuterie selection ($21) is a good way to sample some of the specialities, including the wagyu bresaola with sweet immature celery leaves and parmesan, spicy sopressa with green tomato chutney, delicate shavings of prosciutto di parma and a guinea fowl terrine with prunes. Good sourdough on the side helped to get it all down.
The seafood escabeche of red mullet, mussels and scallops ($19) was a lovely acidulated mix of seafood, sweet braised carrots and herbs. We had to ask for more bread as I didn’t want to waste any of that dippable olive oil/vinegar mix.
Lastly, we had a mixed tomato salad with sumac, shanklish and organic Nolans Road Olive Oil ($14). The tomatoes varied from your regular reds, to Russian blacks and yellow cherries, and the shanklish, a Lebanaese cows milk cheese spiced with zaatar and thyme was a wicked accompaniment. Sweet pickled sliced red onion crowned the summery mess.
Unfortunately our date at the movies got in the way of me and those gorgeous baked-to-order-lemon-curd-filled-madeleines, but I’m sure I’ll be back to sample them.
New blog post: Cumulus Inc http://tinyurl.com/dzhacc
Oh, MELLIE. Your photos are so beautiful, especially the one of the escabeche. Your oysters look like a modern art installation.
Glad you loved Cumulus! I know I’ve rabbited on about them ad nauseum, but you’ll have to go back for the madeleines. I just got home from a dinner at Andrew McConnell’s Gertrude Street baby, and I’m in love with his cooking. Sigh!
Hey Claire – thanks for the comment! But really…the art is all in the food. I’m just there to snap a quick photo before I eat it
I must go back to Cumulus and soon…even for a breakfast. And yes…Cutler and Co I must go as well (dang…it rhymed!)
Just found your lovely blog, really like your photos and your writing style. I travel to Melbourne quite a bit and am newly inspired to try some new places..yummo
Ha! When I went to Cumulus Inc and had the escabeche we had to get extra bread for the delicious saucy juices. We were given house made white sourdough (as a fellow sourdough maker, I was very very impressed) and Baker D. Chirico multigrain. Magnificent!
If only I could force myself into the CBD for breakfast and sample what looks like the best sardines on toast the world has yet seen…
Hey there yummystuff – welcome to the blog! I hope you find a bit of inspiration here – I know how hard it is to find good eating spots when travelling. I yearn for a good food blogger in Canberra (where I find myself travelling for work quite often!)
Hi New Epicurean – aah, I see you are a person after my own heart. I adore good bread, and especially something delicious to spread on it or dip it into
I too have been meaning to get to breakfast as well. Hmm..must make that a priority!
Everything looks so good! I’ve wanted to go to cumulus since it opened, but never got the chance to go along. At the moment I can read and look at your photos and dream lovingly until the day I get there myself!
Hey Mellie, firstly how was the long weekend holiday?
I too have been meaning to go to Cumulus for so long. The one time I went there was a two hour wait and I had something else to get to so couldn’t wait.
Which oyster type did you like best? I’m trying to notice the oyster types now as they really do produce a different flavour. Oyster appreciation is going the way of wines almost I think. I absolutely love oysters so am trying to learn more.
Hi there Maria – well, you must certainly make the effort. It is worth it.
Hiya Thanh – ahh, the long weekend was awesome – I’ll report back shortly on the blog. I really liked the Moonlight en Surface, just because it was really delicate. I normally don’t like those really irony types (ie. Sydney Rocks), but this was just divine.