Isis Brasserie
446 Brunswick Street This was WNSC’s second outing to Isis and was visited with the express condition of answering that long debated question; which is better Isis or Urbane?
I immediately like the atmosphere and decor in Isis, it has a great feel and the lighting is perfect. But forget that, lets get onto the food! We were immediately offered drinks which were quickly followed by an Amuse Bouche of Tomato and Seafood bisque.
The Entrees were possibly the highlight for me this time. Grande and I had crab and zucchini cannelloni with a gazpacho salsa and yellow rouille. The waiter pointed out that no pasta was involved as the zucchini acted as the pasta. It was a generous serving and up there with Il Centro’s Sand Crab and Avacado Salad as my favourite entree in Brisbane! The Dictator plumped for the special of Carpaccio of Kobe Beef with mustard seeds, rocket, parmesan and red onion jam.
We ordered three different mains, which is a rarity for us. I had Lamb Rump with Jerusalem artichoke risotto and pumpkin seed gremoulata. Tasty although the risotto was a little sloppy for my tastes. Grande had venison with a white bean, creme fraiche and coco nib cassoulet and savoury chocolate sauce. He kicked himself afterwards for going for the chefs recommendation of “rare” as he doesnt enjoy meat cooked that way. Anyhow, I tasted it and it was fab. The Dictator was the controlling benchmark for us all. Last time we eat at Isis the three of us had buffalo fiillet, caramelised brown onion broth with Gruyere dumplings. Let’s just say it passed the test with flying colours!
Following on the theme from Montrachet we ordered two cheeses and two deserts. Grande was pleased that Isis had obviously been following his blog and that both cheeses were served at room temperature. We had two goats cheeses; the Valedon, a blue from Spain and Cambrino Rosso from Holland.
One desert was excellent, the other a little disappointing. The Cookies and Cream parfait was a little too much like Haggen Dass, and it was well and truly trumped by the Lemon and Ricotta cheesecake.
So, to go back to the original debate, who wins………….
Urbane, by a whisker.