In the lead up to Christmas I had a trip to Union Dining in Richmond, a place I had driven past many times before but never paid a visit to.

Tuesday night was a perfect night to sit on the terrace at Union Dining. Watching the sun set over the rooftops of inner city suburbia and be part of the unveiling of the art competition “Two Years on the Wall” run by restaurant owners Nicky and Adam, along with Tarra Warra wines.

Ocean trout croquettes & Piedmont style beef tartare, pecorino and horseradish on baguette toast

Baby Gureilla was the competition winner, winning a $9000 prize made up of $7500 cash, a $1500 dinner at Union Dining restaurant, and a space on Union Dining’s terrace wall to display the winning artwork for two years

Baby Guerilla trained in fine art but ignored the success she was gaining as a gallery artist, finding the environment too claustrophobic. Moving to the streets gave her a freedom she craved and found rewarding as she was able to connect to a wider audience, and more importantly an audience who weren’t necessarily looking for art.

We were fortunate enough to sample the new menu on the terrace, along with matching wines from Tarra Warra. The table decorations were food themed which were not only gorgeous but made for a good conversation starter. The food itself was all fantastic. Stand out dishes for me were the baby spatchcock with otway mushrooms, and the chargrilled cuttelfish.

Chargrilled cuttlefish salad, raisin & anchovy relish, pangrattato & tomato vinaigrette. 

Artichokes barigoule, soft egg, borlotti beans, parmesan & parsley

Spatchcocked baby chicken, Otway shiitake mushrooms, creme fraiche & confit shallots

Pickled & roasted Spring vegetables, parsley cream, walnuts & Meredith goat curd

Abbacchio of Spring lamb with oregano, green chilli, pecorino & broad beans

Roasted zucchini & black quinoa, whipped goat curd, raisins in verjuice, red witlof

Tamarillo & pistachio trifle with zabagilone

Dessert was a tamarillo and pistachio trifle with zabaglione. I’m not too sure how I feel about tamarillo. Everyone else on the table loved it but I’m not sure if I loved the sourness of it.

It’s a gorgeous spot, with some fantastic food. Definitely worth adding to your list of places to try.

Iron Chef Shellie dined as a guest of Union Dining thanks to Run Forrest.