The Alcove at Joondalup Resort

The Alcove at Joondalup Resort Review

One of our favourite restaurants was Clarke’s of North Beach. I say was, as sadly Stephen Clarke decided to close his multi-award-winning restaurant last year.

After a short stint in Perth city’s QT hotel, Stephen Clarke was appointed as a culinary consultant at The Joondalup Resort in June.

It was a no-brainer for us to try out the food curated by such a good chef. So to celebrate our wedding anniversary, we booked in at The Alcove – Joondalup Resort’s signature restaurant.

The Alcove has a great setting overlooking the large swimming pool and the golf course. Inside, it has floor to ceiling windows amid wood and brick décor as well as lots of greenery.

The menu was very Stephen Clarke focusing on fresh West Australian produce and seasonal ingredients.

We were very tempted by Stephen’s Gin and Tonic Sorbet ($10) but decided to have an entrée instead of an appetiser. My husband went for the Crispy Leeuwin Coast Akoya ($6.50 each). Each dish was beautifully presented – a hallmark of Stephen Clarke’s dishes. Frank chose four crispy oysters, which were drizzled with ponzu and accompanied by cucumber and Donnybrook apple. The Akoya were savoured and pronounced delicious!

My scallops (3) were topped with lemon myrtle, pepperberry and citrus butter. I enjoyed the scallops but felt that the delicate taste of the shellfish was slightly lost in the intense pepperberry topping.

Next up were mains – South West Black Angus flat iron steak ($44) for Frank and Crispy Linley Valley pork belly ($40) for me. Frank’s steak was accompanied by chimichurri, watercress and shallot. The steak was perfectly cooked to medium rare, rested well and was very tender. Frank loved the chimichurri and although not a huge fan of healthy eating even enjoyed the watercress salad.

My main was advertised as crispy pork belly and it really was crispy, which is presumably why I was given a steak knife to cut it! The pork meat was tender, just melted in my mouth and so delicious. The meal came with two croquettes, wilted fennel, Calvados compressed apples and miso – a very tasty combination.

Other menu items include Roasted Cauliflower, Tasmanian Salmon and Mount Barker chicken.

Only two sides were on offer – Crispy Pemberton royal blue potatoes with rosemary, celery salt and mayonnaise ($13) or Seasonal greens, smoked almonds and pangratto ($14). We decided on the crispy potatoes which were excellent. No meal at The Alcove would be complete without these morsels of tasty goodness.

We were too full to order dessert but other diners were keen and we saw lovely chocolate tarts, lemon mousse and cheese boards coming past our table.

Service was excellent with staff very knowledgeable about the menu as well as being friendly and efficient.

I thoroughly recommend The Alcove at Joondalup Resort for dinner and judging by the amount of people dining on Saturday night – don’t forget to book!

Address: Country Club Boulevard, Connelly

Phone: 08 9400 8888

Reservations: Yes but walk-ins are welcome

Opening hours: Every day – Breakfast: 7am-10: 30am, Lunch: 12 noon-3pm, Dinner: 5pm-9pm

Gluten-free options: Yes

Vegetarian options: Yes

Restrooms: Inside the resort – clean and accessible

Parking: Plenty of parking at the resort and just a short walk downstairs to the restaurant

Website: www.joondalupresort.com.au/dining-bars/#alcove

About Hazel Broomhead

My name is Hazel and I am a Perth senior!

Originally from Edinburgh in Scotland, my husband and I moved to New Zealand with our children in 1974. As my husband is in the oil business, we moved to several other countries including the Sultanate of Oman, the Netherlands, Singapore, the Philippines, the USA, Russia and Kazakhstan during the next 36 years before retiring to Perth.

We have six grandchildren and two great-grandchildren who live in different parts of the globe – New Zealand, Scotland and Colombia - which makes a great excuse for us to travel and visit.

My career background is in radio and print journalism in Scotland and New Zealand as well as public relations in various other countries.

We love to eat out, walk, travel and enjoy the wonderful lifestyle here in Western Australia.