In Short: Mr & Mrs P offers exceptional food, in a fantastic atmosphere, with a warm, neighbourhood-bar feel. You can’t go wrong with any item on the menu, but make sure you order the kingfish sashimi and the signature cocktail!
These days, Melbourne is another home for half the Coco & Vine team as we spend lots of time down here with clients for our other ‘serious’ business i.e. the one that pays the bills! In between the serious stuff, we always leave time to explore this country’s foodie mecca to discover what new places this oh-so-awesome city has dreamt up.
Now, I have a particular attachment to the name Mr & Mrs P, which might be fitting considering this place was built on a love story. All of our friends when we were growing up referred to my parents that way (much easier than trying to pronounce our long italian surname!) and my sister, a school teacher, adopted the name Mrs P for her students (for the same reason!) and we cheekily call her husband Mr P. Now, I can definitely add Georgia and Greg, to the list of pretty awesome people we refer to as Mr & Mrs P (even, if I am slightly bias!).
Irrespective of my bias, you can’t ignore that this place is definitely unforgettable and puts the funkiness of the back laneways of CBD Melbourne, right into the heart of Brighton. There is elegant simplicity, yet incredible attention to detail, not just in the fit-out but the food as well, that elevates the experience here. In the hands of Georgia and Greg, partnered with the incredibly talented Executive Chef Matthew Butcher, Mr & Mrs P delivers on their passion project and injecting love in everything they do.
Mr P hosts us this long and lazy Friday afternoon, and expertly starts us off the way all weekends should begin, with cocktails. And, there’s no better prelude to the food to come than to be introduced to their signature Mr & Mrs P. This magical and sophisticated combination of flavours delivers a Vodka, passionfruit, and white chocolate martini, that goes down so smooth, it’s too hard to stop at one!
It completely makes sense to partner the signature cocktail, with none other than Romeo and Juliet. Made with AIVY Vodka, muddled strawberries, mint and all topped with ginger beer, this refreshing drink will have you declaring your love (even if to the drink itself!) in no time.
Our degustation starts with the delightful, subtle flavours of the kingfish sashimi. Layered with wasabi avocado, soy, and candied wakame, this dish is incredible and is both robust with flavour, yet so light.
The spicy prawn tacos are also amazingly light yet packed with unique and distinct flavour combinations. Perfectly moist and juicy prawns encased with avocado, and yuzu seeds, kick in some sriracha for punch, served up in a crunchy iceberg ‘shell’, and you have a winner.
I love my salads, but add beetroot, and you can guarantee it’ll be on my order. The awesome beetroot salad here at Mr & Mrs P does not disappoint. It’s simple, with all the best ingredients; candied walnuts for crunch, sweet perfectly cooked beetroot, and creamy, salty goats feta. I could have easily devoured 5 of these!
We were pleasantly surprised with the chick pea fritters. Steve is known in our family as the chickpea king (don’t ask!), so you can imagine his delight when these chunky-style chips came served with truffle mayo. I was lucky enough to manage to get my hands on at least one of them – he had these demolished in seconds!
Steve also loves a good pork belly and I could see him completely eyeing the generous chunks glistening on the plate. The crackling outer skin gave way to a tender and moist meat, with hints of satay and kohirabi, and was paired with the sweet and smoky charred corn.
To round us out (literally, we practically rolled out the door) were the lamb ribs. The quality of the lamb was outstanding, melt-in-your-mouth perfection, and deliciously served with a chipotle glaze and the freshness of compressed cucumber.
A quick thanks has to go to our good friends, Paul and Lou (and fellow purveyors of great places to eat) on insisting we visit one of their favourite places in Brighton. Having now lingered here a little longer and had the full foodie experience, we can totally see why this is on your list.
Mr & Mrs P, you are certainly living up to your promises of mouth-watering dishes. Don’t change a thing!
*Coco & Vine dined as guests of Mr & Mrs P. However, all opinions and photos are our own.
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