Dishes like the pork parmy pop with a balance of bitter greens and melty cheese. Photo: Merry St/Instagram.
The South Coast of NSW is fast becoming a genuine foodie haven, with exciting, independently run restaurants, cafes and bars adorning towns from Kiama to Eden. One such restaurant is Merry St, in quiet Kioloa and run by Brooke and Luke Bow.
Joining the South Coast’s thriving hospitality community has been a big part of Merry St’s success.
“We’ve seen a lot of city chefs moving down here, and there’s just more people overall visiting and living on the coast,” Luke said.
“I think having Rick Stein opening up at Bannisters in Mollymook around 15 or 20 years ago really made a difference too. Lots of local chefs spent time there, and there was a culture that came out of it. It’s viable now for all these little restaurants in these little towns.”
The Merry St space is beachy chic, with white walls decked out in artwork of swimmers relaxing by the pool, a multicoloured surfboard, and a quirky oyster painting. Visiting on a late-winter weekend, we found the space was comfortably full with several families – there’s a dedicated kids’ menu – and we overheard an older couple (clearly regulars) offering to drop off bunches of rhubarb from their garden.
Brooke and Luke Bow are the team behind Merry St. Photo: Merry St/Instagram.
Settling into our seats, we perused the menu and were immediately struck by the onion rings on the list of appetisers. A far cry from the oily fast-food staple, these were perfectly lightly battered, sweet on the inside and elevated with a burnt-onion sauce, delicate slices of jamon and topped with fresh, grated horseradish.
Brooke tells me that the onion rings have been a winner since the day the venue opened, almost exactly one year ago.
“We tried to take them off the menu once and there was a bit of outrage! But we like to change the menu seasonally so people don’t get bored,” she said.
“We have a great local community garden, so we also use seasonal produce from there as well.”
Onion rings are an unexpected delight – and popular with regulars – at Merry St. Photo: Lucy Ridge.
I ordered the pork scotch parmy, and my friend had the pan-fried gnocchi with charred greens. The pork was fall-apart tender, and hearty with a mortadella, cheese and tomato sugo topping. An accompanying salad of bitter, fresh greens and mustard seeds cut through the richness and balanced the dish nicely. The gnocchi was delightful, with extra depth added to the dish with delicious romesco sauce and plenty of roasted hazelnuts.
On the side, we enjoyed the serious crunch of beef-fat roast potatoes, and green beans dressed in a tarragon vinaigrette.
The drinks menu was compact but serviceable. We enjoyed a refreshing gin and tonic before grabbing a glass of Tempranillo (to accompany the gnocchi) and pinot noir (to go with the pork).
For dessert we enjoyed two scoops of freshly churned ice cream: a delightful fig and honey, and a scoop of vanilla malt, which conjures up memories of childhood milkshakes and spoonfuls of sticky malt from the tin.
A beachy chic interior creates laidback vibes and is complemented by impeccable eats. Photo: Merry St/Instagram.
Rather than relying solely on the seasonal influx of tourists, Merry St also captures the attention of regulars during the off-season with its weekly Around the World dinners on Thursday nights. The idea was sparked by Matt Upson, from Gwylo in Mollymook, who had done a similar thing during his previous tenure on site. Recent themes include Japanese, French, and an evening of Vietnamese food, inspired by the Bows’ mid-winter holiday.
“One of our biggest goals was to appeal more to the local community rather than tourists or the holiday trade,” Brooke said.
”We wanted people to feel like they could come back to us weekly, and now we have regulars from up near Ulladulla/Milton, all the way south of Batemans Bay.”
Merry St isn’t reinventing the wheel, but it’s a proper family restaurant serving up genuinely good food with friendly service and providing a gathering space for locals and visitors alike. Add it to your list of dining options next time you’re down the coast – you won’t regret it.
Merry St is at 3a Merry Street, Kioloa.
It is open for lunch Friday to Sunday and dinner Thursday to Saturday.
Follow Merry St on Instagram or Facebook.
