We shared a tasting plate for two (AU$26). On the plate was prosciutto, chicken liver parfait (piped appealingly onto the plate Mr Whippy style), freshly fried juicy sliced sausage, olives, homemade dip, feta and crispy wood-fired flat breads. There was plenty on the plate, nicely presented, and we were glad there were four of us to share it.

For her main course, Jac ordered one of Portofinos wood oven baked pizzas – the rustica (AU$26), which is topped with tomato, mozzarella, prosciutto, mushrooms, crumbled feta and sundried tomatoes. It was lovely, with a crispy yet chewy base and perfect amounts of the two cheeses. My only complaint about the pizza was the same complaint I have about most pizzas with mushroom – needs more mushroom!

Jay ordered the seafood platter for one (AU$42). It was an impressive seafood feast featuring tempura prawns, oysters natural and Kilpatrick, smoked salmon, panfried salmon fillet, salt and pepper calamari and fish and chip-style fried fish with a wonderfully crispy batter. Unfortunately, Jay unsuspectingly tasted the mashed potato (and why should anyone be suspicious of mashed potato on a dinner plate in a restaurant?) only to discover rock salt hidden beneath had made it incredibly salty! Mashed potato was not mentioned on the menu as being part of the dish and it was odd to serve mashed potato on a seafood platter, but since it was on the plate, Jay thought he’d eat it. A bad decision, as it turned out. By the looks (and ugh, taste) of it, the chef had first placed the oysters on rock salt, but then added a blob of mashed potato for better traction, inadvertently booby trapping the mashed potato. This is not the kind of thing you want your restaurant to be remembered for.

It was good we didn’t have the Christmas set menu – Juji and I would’ve missed out on the twice cooked crispy skin pork belly, served with apple puree, braised cabbage and scallops on a skewer (AU$36). The scallops were tender but barely seared as described on the menu – they could’ve been amazing but lacked caramelisation and spring. The pork was simply magnificent – buttery rich, soft and tender fatty meat with delicately thin and crispy skin. We didn’t need our knives at all. The pork belly was a carnivore’s delight that tempted even the most generous of diners to become greedy and selfishly quiet – to keep it all to herself! Two blobs of mashed potato on either side of the pork made me conclude that the chef has a penchant for using mashed potato to hold food in place on the plate. And no, the menu didn’t mention mashed potato as being part of the pork belly dish either. It wasn’t a problem, just seemed a little quirky.

We also shared an excellent Caesar salad (AU$8) – no frills or embellishments, just a tasty Caesar salad.

Juji chose the tiramisu ala Portofino (AU$12). It was served in a glass and topped with dark chocolate curls. Tiramisu traditionalists may be dissatisfied with its composition – mostly marscapone with just a suggestion of sponge finger. But we enjoyed it and scraped the glass clean – it was lusciously light and creamy with a beautiful coffee flavour.

I chose the citrus creme brulee with lychee sorbet (AU$12). The brulee had a cracking good toffee crust that we took great pleasure in tapping then breaking with our spoons to reveal the citrus aroma of the silky custard beneath. The lychee sorbet sat on a bed of powdered chocolate with a crisp nutty biscotti. Both brulee and sorbet were delicious and beautifully presented, but didn’t complement really each other – every mouthful of citrus brulee rendered the next spoonful of lychee sorbet tasteless (the phenomenon of sweetness cancelling out sweetness). And chocolate powder and lychee sorbet, while individually delightful, are not great partners either. I wondered whether chocolate powder was the mashed potato of desserts. :)

It certainly wasn’t cheap – the price of a beachside location and ocean view I presume – but the food was great, apart from booby trapped mashed potato. We initially detected a hint of a strange, unpleasant smell in the restaurant which we think was from air conditioning in need of a good service. The odour was a little off-putting until the food arrived and distracted me but if the smell had been any stronger it would’ve had a negative impact on my appetite. It was a shame the windows did not open to let some of the natural sea breeze in.

Next to the restaurant and function centre is Portofinos Cafe, open for breakfast and lunch 7 days from 8.30am to 4.30pm.