Geronimo

186 Charles Street
geronimorestaurant.com.au

Sitting proudly near the pinnacle of Launceston’s mountain of dining experiences, Geronimo has been a favourite of ours since we moved here in 2020. (My only critique to date is that the restaurant's name is missing an exclamation mark. I can’t look at it without thinking of someone leaping out of a plane.)

This is what Jess looks like when I suggest it might be her turn to drive.

This visit was for a quick summer afternoon tea. Unusually for us, this time around we were ‘with vehicle’, which, as Jess says, ‘sucks balls’, though it’s far less problematic for her because she invariably appoints me designated driver. One margarita was all I got, sipped not chugged.

An afternoon-tea session doesn’t inspire one to go the whole dining hog, but as Geronimo veterans we can attest that the snapshot of dishes we chose that day was truly representative of business as usual. In short, superb.

The beef carpaccio ($22) was as good as we’ve had anywhere, served with black garlic and olive oil jam, and rather generous for a small plate. The braised beef empanadas with onion jam ($5.50 each) were like a gourmet toasted sandwich – simple stuff but with a rich and complex flavour combination. And of course, oysters. We fluked a time of year when Tassie oysters ($4.50 each) were as good as I’ve ever had them. These were served with a pepperberry mignonette that highlighted the flavour of the oyster instead of overwhelming it, as is sometimes the case with creative oysterly enhancements.

For us, the shared carpaccio plus an empanada and three oysters each were plenty for a light meal.

Beef carpaccio and empanadas.

A quick peek at the dinner menu on the website right now (Feb 2022) reveals that the beef carpaccio and empanadas are still on offer, as well as other small plates like oyster mushroom skewers and crab ravioli, among half a dozen others.

The pricey but impressive mains list comprises an imaginatively curated mix of vego, seafood and meat dishes. Tomato and polenta gnocchi and an eggplant and white bean tagine, fish and lobster, plus some hefty sounding beef and pork dishes. There are only nine mains in total, a good compromise between choice, originality and focus. I can say with confidence that whatever you choose will be world class in quality.

Currently they’re offering ‘experiences’ for dinner, where the diner pays between $70 and $95 per person to be fully fed. If you’re not a big eater you can get away with tasting a few different dynamite dishes for quite a reasonable outlay. Still, I’d check at the time to see if you’re being locked in to a set menu (always our non-preferred choice as often it’s too much for us).

Desserts? As usual we didn’t get that far. We did get that far last visit and … wow. Don’t miss it if you have room in the gullet.

There’s an excellent range of cocktails and a terrific wine list. You’re looking at $75-plus for a bottle of wine, but hey, this is one of the best restaurants in town.

The dining space is roomy and elegant and the service always tip top. There are a few tables outside on the footpath, which can be lovely on the rare occasions that the weather is perfect. There’s a nice courtyard too, not a bad place to suck on your evening’s final cocktail.