Rustico Rockingham review: Popular wine and tapas bar brings Spanish vibes to the southern suburbs

The pintxos bars of San Sebastian are heaven on earth for food lovers. The Spanish seaside city known as Donostia in the local Basque dialect, is arguably the hottest of the world’s culinary hotspots, boasting Michelin-starred restaurants and an old town jamon-packed with exquisite eateries. Rockingham is not San Sebastian, but the southern suburb does have one tapas and wine bar that delivers Spanish-inspired dishes by the sea — well, the Indian Ocean. (Si, si, I know buffet-style pintxos is different to tapas, which is usually served to order, but I wanted to brag about having been to Donostia.) Back to the Ham That Rocks and the restaurant in the spotlight, Rustico Rockingham — not to be confused with Rustico at the Hay Shed Hill winery in Margaret River. They once shared owners, but no longer. Ask someone what’s the best restaurant in Mark McGowanland and, if they don’t try to send you to the infamous Swinging Pig for a laugh, they’ll recommend Rustico. During a weekend sojourn in the southern suburbs for a friend’s shindig, my family dined at the popular tapas and wine bar. We quickly realised why the bayside diner was so busy on a pre-Christmas Friday evening. Put simply, while Rustico is unlikely to attain a Michelin-star any time soon, the food by English head chef Chris Varndell in this brightly decorated diner is very good, the service sociable (if easily distracted), and the vibe ebullient. There was a real buzz along this stretch of Rockingham Beach Road, with bars and restaurants brimming with happy folks. We can recommend a pre-dinner cocktail at Minibar a few doors down from Rustico. Rockingham has really evolved, even if the alfresco area offers a view of the CBH Kwinana Grain Terminal. Dinner began with a glass of refreshing chilled sangria for me, a sparkling wine for my wife, Myra, and softies for the kids, all delivered with festive cheer by our Irish waiter. Helpfully divided into styles, the wine list boasts 29 wines by the glass plus sangria, Pimm’s jugs, gin and tonics, and other cocktails. Appropriately, there are also Iberian sherries and ports. The menu is split into snacks, “favourites” and “seasonal tapas” ranging from Abrolhos Island scallops done in parsnip cream with crispy jamon ($9.50 each) to house-made vegetarian gnocchi ($26) and braised beef cheek with carrot cream and potato crisps ($38). There’s caviar, oysters, a 300g Black Angus sirloin, and even a mixed paella that will set you back $75 and takes 50 minutes to cook. There are also set menus for four or more people. While it’s nice to let someone else make all the decisions, that’s not how we rolled in Rockingham, so we kicked off with a few so-called snacks. The fried goat’s cheese with orange blossom honey (four small cubes for $22) offered pleasing contrast between the sweet, citrusy honey, and tangy queso de cabra. The four small lobster tostadas ($27) were lovely, fresh hits of sweet cray with chopped tomato, coriander, cucumber and chives, plus a squeeze of lime on a crunchy bite. Varndell really hit his stride with the Dardanup beef carpaccio ($27), a must-have plate of raw meat cut slightly thicker and closer to room temperature than your usual carpaccio, topped with grated parmesan and anchovy aioli for lingering saltiness. This had a depth of flavour thanks to the beef not coming straight out of a cool room. I’ve had carpaccio that’s so cold you could just about snap the slithers of meat. The sweet corn croquettas with aioli ($17 for four) were so simple as to defy review. A dish for fusspots who shun flavour. So far, very good thanks to a series of share plates, our chatty Irish waiter, and the interesting light reds she (eventually) brought to our table. No complaints about her overall service. She expertly divided our meal into three sections, ensuring we didn’t have too many dishes hitting the small table at the same time, and those that did complemented each other. For example, the patatas bravas ($15), which came with a chipotle aioli with lingering spice, were handy for mopping up the sweet, smoky sauce accompanying the superb Spanish meatballs ($22). The latter dish is substantial. Eight meatballs served with aromatic sofrito — a staple of Spanish cuisine made by braising garlic, onion and capsicum in oil — plus whipped feta. Smoky, tangy and warming, this is another hit on the Rustico menu. We also had the initially toothsome salt and pepper squid ($25), which had a crunchy coating and dissolved after a few decent chews. This came with a delightful dill mayo. The chef’s condiment game is on song. My daughter Rosanna had her heart set on the roast pork belly served with spiced apple sauce and a Pedro Ximenez jus ($30) — an excellent choice featuring big chunks of pork belly with soft but not stringy flesh plus bang-on crackling. The apple puree was sweet, especially when combined with the Spanish wine reduction. The pork went perfectly with the seasonal vegetables ($24), which were different coloured and sized heirloom carrots with a dressing made from capers, pine nuts and raisins. One or two of the bigger carrots were a little undercooked, but this side dish could almost stand on its own. After all that, churros served warm with chocolate and white chocolate dipping sauce ($22), which could have been less runny, was enough dessert for the four of us. A little glass of Pedro Ximenez or port, and that was that. An excellent dinner. No one expected our Spanish inquisition of Rockingham to be quite so enjoyable. We were “pintxosing” ourselves. Rustico Rockingham OPEN Wednesday-Sunday, midday-late. CONTACT 9528 4114, rusticotapasrockingham.com.au BOOKINGS Yes. THE VERDICT If one restaurant can single-handedly turn Rockingham into the San Sebastian of the South Seas, then Rustico is it. Generous and flavoursome Spanish dishes made to share with fun wines and good cheer at this swinging joint. 15/20