Big Easy Group’s Oliver Brown is the first to admit that House of George in Adelaide’s East End wasn’t working.
It was the hospitality group’s second iteration of the space, initially opened as contemporary Greek taverna Yiasou George in 2019 before revamping as House of George four years later, which allowed the venue to draw on culinary influences beyond the Med.
Now, the team has thrown out the “big plates thrown in the middle” schtick completely and reopened as Tarantino’s, a New York-Italian-inspired bar and grill that blends old school nostalgia with contemporary flair.
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“The style of dining people like now is experience-focussed … more elevated,” Brown tells Broadsheet.
Driving that approach to the food is executive chef Shane Wilson, whose kitchen wizardry stems from his fine-dining roots in restaurants such as Bistro Dom. He joined Big Easy Group upon the expansion of Anchovy Bandit in Prospect from pizza bar to restaurant in 2020, and was instrumental in the opening of sister venue Bandit Pizza and Wine in Unley. Late last year, he shifted focus to the group’s Stag Public House and House of George sites, and soon began the groundwork for Tarantino’s.
“The vibe is old-school American-Italian, but the food isn’t restricted to that cuisine,” Wilson says.
“Asian food is some of my favourite to eat, so you’ll see little pops of it here and there. We’ve got a little take on the classic Italian pork-and-veal meatballs, but it’s done as Japanese tsukune on the grill.
“We’re doing a pork-and-fennel sausage pasta with kimchi, and I season that with oyster sauce, finished with butter and parmesan in the end. It’s got a hot and sour vibe to it.
“It’s an opportunity to do some food that’s a little more refined than Anchovy Bandit, which I love.”
Other contemporary spins on the familiar include stracciatella topped with an Italian-ish crispy chilli oil (think Lao Gan Ma-style chilli oil spiked with Italian spices), served with a mini focaccia loaf; beef carpaccio with smoked eel tonnato-style sauce; housemade fettucine alfredo with Adelaide Hills truffle; and T-Bone cooked on the open hearth, served with beer mustard.
“The main focus is the open-hearth grill,” Wilson says. “That style of cooking was something that I wanted to do. We’ve got the wood fired oven and hearth in the front kitchen, which is all open, so people can watch us cooking.”
The star dessert is a tiramiso (tiramisu with miso caramel), which will soon be joined by a retro bombe alaska.
The team – which is also behind La Louisiane and Bottega Bandito – has painstakingly repainted the space, swapping out coastal blues and whites for warm yellows and reds, while local artist James Brown of Studio 2049 is behind the “art takeover”, mixing black-and-white photographs with expressive colour works. Crisp white tablecloths and table lamps are an ode to Italian restaurants of the ’70s and ’80s, and add to the sense of occasion.
“While Anchovy is your neighbourhood diner, this feels like an occasion restaurant,” Brown adds. “The experience starts the moment you’re greeted at the door, with the option of a mini Negroni. It’s a modern twist on the nostalgic.”
Tarantino’s
30 Vardon Avenue, Adelaide
0484 934 791
Hours:
Wed to Sun 5.30pm–late
tarantinosadl.com.au
@tarantinosadl