The CIT restaurant offers real-world experience to the next generation of culinary superstars. Photo: Kazuri Photography.
It is Thursday night, and we are thankful we booked early at CIT Restaurant in Reid. It is filling fast. In fact, our server tells us the restaurant is fully booked until August!
CIT Restaurant has been operating since 1988. The front-of-house students are studying for a Certificate III in Hospitality, a 6-month full-time course, while the back-of-house students are studying for a Certificate III in Commercial Cookery (a 12-month full-time course). Teachers are on hand to guide them and support them through this hands-on training.
Nicole Dixon, head of department for CIT Hospitality, Culinary and Tourism, says that the students come away with valuable experience working in both the more formal restaurant environment and the more casual feel of the CIT Cafe.
“The menu is reasonably priced – $35 for a 3-course dinner in the restaurant,” she explains.
“We are a training institute, and therefore, we appreciate when guests understand that the students are practising their skills and mistakes could be made. The students are gaining skills, knowledge and confidence in a safe environment – the tools to become job-ready in the hospitality industry.”
All the students we interact with, from the initial welcomer at the door to our mixologists and our server, are friendly and engaging. Our server, Matthew, knows the menu well and readily offers recommendations.
And voila! Cocktail deliciousness! Photo: Kazuri Photography
We begin dinner with a $10 cocktail each. I order an espresso martini and my friend opts for a grasshopper. The heady aroma of freshly brewed coffee is the first thing that hits us as we share sips from my espresso martini. It is neat and tasty, but the grasshopper is my kind of cocktail: creamy and sweet with several fun flavour layers. Think boozy mint chocolate Aero – so fresh with a big choc mint hit. My friend and I end up swapping cocktails; she adores coffee, and I cannot resist the choc mint deliciousness of her grasshopper.
For dinner, we order salmon tartare and ricotta gnocchi as entrees, beef sirloin and duck breast for mains, and jasmine tea crème brûlée and coconut tapioca for dessert.
Full disclosure: I only order the tartare because I know my friend is keen to try it. It is silly, but the thought of tartare being ‘raw’ has always put me off; I place the blame squarely on Mr Bean struggling to hide his steak tartare.
The salmon tartare comes out, sitting prettily on a slice of Nashi pear. The salmon is delicate and fresh, absorbing the sweet, tangy flavours of the pomegranate vinaigrette. While the tiny cubes of salmon are rich in texture, the dish is light and fresh. It is a fabulous entrée, so I am glad I ventured out of my comfort zone.
The ricotta gnocchi is mostly ricotta; its mellow smoothness harmonises with olive tapenade and confit tomatoes, and silken strips of golden zucchini.
The duck is a fine dining portion: juicy, tender slices with sweet pops of pickled grapes and a curl of endive and a delicately balanced sweet/citrusy jus. The flavours captured in the duck are wonderful, smoky, umami – we just want to keep eating it. We guess that it has been sous vided to make it so tender.
Juicy, tender slices of duck with sweet pops of pickled grapes on a curl of endive. Photo: Kazuri Photography
The smoky char on the beef sirloin is beautiful, and there are some intricate cooking techniques on show here. A mushroom mousse is the absolute star of this dish, smooth and glossy. It is mouthfuls of incredible umami heaven. Rustic polenta chips bring a big crunch, giving way to a fluffy interior. Mouthfuls of sirloin pulled through the mushroom and jus has to be one of my favourite taste sensations this year.
Jasmine tea crème brûlée arrives with strawberry and jasmine salad. I love the thick caramel crackle on top; the jasmine tea-infused pudding is soft and smooth and not too sweet.
Our coconut tapioca basil seed is delicate and summery, the gelatinous slurps of tapioca merging with sweet coconut flavours.
Jasmine tea crème brûlée. Photo: Kazuri Photography.
We finish feeling satisfied and quite in awe of the variety and execution of techniques on display.
CIT Restaurant is located at 37 Constitution Ave, Reid. It is open on Thursday night for dinner and Friday for lunch during school terms.
The café is open Thursday and Friday for lunch during school terms.
“We will have a new, state-of-the-art restaurant when we move to our new CIT Campus in Woden in 2025,” Nicole says. “It is very exciting.”
Check out CIT Restaurant’s menus and information on their website.
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