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It’s been a while since I’ve eaten at a Michelin Hat restaurant and also a while since I’ve discovered a new restaurant with gluten-free options.  My husband took me to Da Noi (on Toorak Rd, South Yarra) to celebrate my recent 30th birthday.  It was recommended to us by friends (thank you!).  Da Noi specialises in Italian food but the service has a twist: you can select an “a la carte” menu or the defustation menu for which you don’t have a say in the dishes.  You tell the service staff what foods you dislike or cannot tolerate and you then get what the chef decides to cook for you.  Now I’m open to new tastes but I can be a little fussy - I requested “gluten-free”, no shell-fish and no mushrooms as my absolute must-not-haves.  But I also dislike offal and one or two other “delicacies” and so was a bit worried about what we would be served.

I had no need to worry.  In fact, we were service five delicious dishes and sent every plate back thoroughly cleaned.  The food was light, tasty and served with minimal delay.  The first course was a mixture of small portions of vegetables served in pairs (eggplant with pecorino cheese, roasted capsicum, grilled zucchini), and small fish bites.  Second course was a delicious chick-pea soup (which was declared favourite by the both of us and probably a gluten-free alternative to the pasta dish).  Third course was a polenta “cake” with a strong cheese and truffle-oil sauce.  Fourth course was slow-roasted goat on roasted vegetables.  And dessert was vanilla bean pannacotta with a balsamic reduction, orange icecream, and a slice of flourless chocolate and hazelnut cake.  All absolutely delicious.  I accompanied this with a glass of probably the best white wine I’ve ever tasted (or at least, the most pleasing to my tastes!) and we followed with tea.

We will definitely return to Da Noi some time in the future.  The narrow, long Victorian building, with high ceilings, the bizarre mixture of art, soft lighting and relaxed music made for a cosy, and somewhat romantic evening and we left satisfied (but not over-full) and relaxed (quite unaffected by our position next to the long, narrow stairs, up which dashed wait staff every few minutes).

Da Noi does not have a website but you can find them at 95 Toorak Rd, South Yarra (03 9866 597).

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Since being gluten-free, and also being very sensitive to MSG, I’ve found Chinese and Japanese foods to be mostly off-limits. Particularly due to their love of soy sauce, which almost always contains wheat. However, I was very thrilled to find out at a family dinner that many of the yum cha items at the Oriental Tea House are in fact gluten free - including some of their dumplings! And they were so delicious. I loved the Honey Pepper Eye Fillet Steak and the Chicken dumplings the most. The staff were very helpful - you need to ask which items are gluten free but they’re happy to list them for you. So, if you fancy something a little different in a relaxed, calm atmosphere, head down to Chapel St and order yourself some dumplings. However, you best book first because they’re very busy.

You can download their menu from the website. They also sell teas and a variety of gift packs as well as having a Chinese medicine practitioner in-house.

455 Chapel Street, South Yarra.
New store opening December in 378 Little Collins Street, CBD.
www.orientalteahouse.com.au