The Panama Dining Room and Bar, Fitzroy by Obelix

The Panama Dining Room has one of the best views in town of the Melbourne skyline.  It's up a steep flight of stairs to work up your appetite.  The food is very well executed too.  View + good food = I Love Melbourne.

For starters, the three of us decided to share our orders.  We had the following (apologies in advance for the photos, it was very dimly lit inside. But that's not to say this was a negative in anyway - it was very atmospheric).

Freshly shucked Pacific oysters with a Cabernet sauvignon vinegar and shallot dressing.  The dressing was deeeelicious!  Could have sculled that on its own.  The oysters were $4 each.  They weren't big but they were fresh.  FYI - The Panama has a special between 6pm - 7pm - $1 oysters.  Next time, I shall get there a bit earlier!

This is the fried baby calamari salad with harissa.  This would have to be my pick of the starters.  Imagine eating a salad with bits of crispy spicy calamari with every bite...if only every salad tasted this good...

Zucchini flowers stuffed with cheese filling.  This was one of their specials.  I normally love a stuffed zucchini flower particularly if it is deep fried.  However the calamari salad stole the show.


For mains I ordered the slow roasted Western Plains pork scotch fillet with Jerusalem artichokes, grilled pine mushrooms, parsley puree and buttermilk.  It was so tender, I had had dentures, I could have left them at home.  The pork fillet had a lovely smokey bacony taste.  Mmm... Don't let that white buttermilk froth put you off....very delicious.

My friends ordered the balsamic glazed organic lamb rump with barley, carrot and brown butter puree, caperberries and fromage frais.  

And my other dining buddy ordered the chargrilled wagyu (marble score +7), with porcini, truffle and confit garlic butter, duck fat chips and waterscress salad.

I had a little taste of everyone else's dish.  Whilst the lamb was very well executed, the chargrilled wagyu was the winner of the mains.  It was so succulent and melt in your mouth.  And duck fat chips - really, say no more.  

Speaking of chips, we also ordered a side dish of hand cut fries to share.  

For drinky-poos we had a 2010 Meerea Shiraz for $46 for the bottle - a fairly good price.  We also had a couple of beers each.  

Verdict: we loved it.

Overall

This is not my first time at The Panama and definitely will not be the last time.  The above meal totaled $251.  The mails were between $26 - 34.  The starters and entrees were under $20 and sides were in the vicinity of $8.  We were too stuffed for dessert but they were $15 each.  

It appears they also do set priced menus for high days.  It's going on the bucket list.