Swallow Bar | Petite Perfection

Pissaladiere en Croute - Swallow Bar - Maylands

The once sleepy, railway-bisected, foodie ignored, Maylands is no more.

Watley Crescent and nearby lanes now hum on the weekend with some fab and, er, not so fab foodie destinations.

Luckily we have inside knowledge and on a perfect Saturday afternoon we squeezed, literally, into Swallow Bar. The place is long but only about two metres wide, so navigation on a busy day is tricky.

Luckily the petite, gym-enhanced, Uber Blonde cut us a path to the cute little rear courtyard. Its early afternoon and the vibe is quiet but buzzy. Nice.

Now this is a French food and wine lovers paradise. French whites and Rose's, Spanish reds and quality locals nestle at around $10-13 a glass.

I kicked off with a House Cava ($10) from Spain and the Blonde quaffed a French Grenache Blanc ($12). Try getting those prices at Heritage!

And they were both lovely drops, the big bubbled Cava in particular.

The food menu, like the wine list, is brief but reflects the two French chefs love of provincial Franco cuisine.

It's also a seasonal list so the stunning meatballs we had here last winter were obviously missing - come on July!

We saw the first item on the starters menus, Pissaladiere en Croute go by, so we could not resist ordering it.

A Provencal staple, Pissaladiere is basically a small open tart typically made with onions, anchovies and olives on a light tomato paste.

At $12 for four they are a total steal. Punchy olive tang with the sweet caramelised, onion blending beautifully with the tart fish. Perfect beer food.

The hum from the bar was increasing and two patrons were drinking from a very strange looking apparatus, dispensing what appeared to be Midori. Weird.

But that's Maylands.

True to Swallows seasonal tone, the blackboard special, Ocean Trout was an absolute winner. Simple, rustic and beautifully cooked the fish was moist and melted in your mouth.

Perched atop a delicious farmhouse style potato and sliced radish salad, this was French provincial cooking at its best.

We hovered, briefly over the desert menu but not today Josephine.

Swallow is a rarity - quaint, good service and excellent food. It's a Sunday must...