Captains goes to sea

Captains of Industry is a classy sort of joint. Up a set of rickety stairs off the requisite laneway well-dressed chaps with beards and tatts work in the collective space that’s part cafe, boot maker and barbershop. Now you can add fairly fancy restaurant to the list.

Like its dapper staff, the cafe’s menu has received a spruce up – the sugar bowls and sandwiches have been replaced by wine glasses and a daily rotating menu that focuses on fresh seafood. Don’t worry, you can still get coffee.

On the day my pal and I went the concise menu offered skate, duck, coq au vin, ocean trout and a chocolate tart, plus a sting ray special. We went for the the ray and trout, with a glass of pinot gris if you don’t mind.

The ray came out lightly fried and served with swirl of tartare and salad. Simply done, the generous slab of ray had a consistency somewhere between chicken and fish, rather delish. The house cured trout was the winner though – handsome, delicate cubes of fish offset with tart, crunchy radish and orange. A tasty, light lunch that won’t make you feel guilty about ordering dessert. So I did.

If you’re a fan of the end of the week and mollusks, Captains are also doing oyster shucking every Friday. And if  you’re a fan of being pampered you might want to bookend your meal with beard trim at the barbershop.

CAPTAINS OF INDUSTRY
1/2 Somerset Place, Melbourne
9670 4405
Mon – Fri 8am – 5pm
Bistro dining in the afternoons and evenings Tues – Fri
Sat 10am – 5pm
captainsofindustry.com.au