EVER turned up for a party too early?
Well, my wife “Special K” and I arrived a full day before Young George’s 10th birthday celebrations.
They had a cool party planned with three chefs, a pig and some truffles.
But we were there for the Wednesday pizza/pasta night.
You can get some excellent deals if you are willing to brave the cold and go out mid-week in Fremantle.
The bottomless mussels at Benny’s is a great example – $35 for mussels with three different sauces.
But if you’re on a super-tight budget, Young George’s pizza or pasta and a glass of wine for $18 is hard to beat.
A great price for a sit-down evening meal in the heart of the ritzy East Freo.
The interior of Young George is like a jazz club meets European bistro – dim atmospheric lighting, demure decor, and polite pop playing in the background.
There’s also some cool table lights that look uncannily like dumbbells.
It makes for a great ambience and the service was en pointe too – polite, friendly and informative.
Some eateries have offers and then when you arrive, they bury them, but there was no sleight of hand here.
The deal had a choice of three pizzas – beef, salami and olives; lamb, feta and spinach; and the veggie tomato and basil pesto – or one pasta dish – lamb ragout with penne rigate.
The accompanying glass of wine was no clear-skin dross, but a very pleasant red with a smooth and fruity bouquet.
It wasn’t long before my wife was tucking into her pasta.
“It’s a great serve for the money and the lamb is super tender and has a lovely rich sauce,” she said. “The peas add a bit of freshness, breaking up the strong flavours, and the pasta is al dente.
“A lovely dish that goes really well with the red wine.”
My lamb and feta pizza was a high quality affair.
The whole pizza was covered in a thin layer of spinach leaves and pine nuts.
It helped refresh the palate, and when I combined it with the creamy feta, it was a delicious medley of flavours.
If I’m being super picky, I would have liked slightly more lamb on the pizza, but it was very enjoyable and the crust was light and airy.
On a whim, we got some pork croquettes ($15) from the entree menu.
The finely minced pork filling was delicious and it came with an indulgent truffle mustard aioli dip, but I was expecting at least three croquettes for the price.
The restaurant was busy on a Wednesday night, proving that if you offer a well-priced quality meal, the masses will come (there was people sitting outside in the biter cold).
Proof that even the glitterati of East Freo like a bargain.
Young George
48 George St, East Fremantle
younggeorge.com.au
by STEPHEN POLLOCK