Rubbish Eat Rubbish Grow

For years, I walked past it.

Claypots Evening Star sits at the tip of South Melbourne Market. The edge. The spot most people drift by on their way to somewhere louder. I did the same, for a long time.

Then last year, I finally sat down. This trip, I came back. Not out of habit. The food stuck with me. That is the only reason I ever return.

Of all the restaurants in Melbourne I’ve returned to, very few have earned a second visit on seafood alone. This is one of them.

Here is the idea. They buy from the market. Same building. Same morning. Whatever the sea gave up that day, they cook it live. The menu is chalked onto a blackboard, rewritten daily. What you read is what came in fresh. Nothing frozen. Nothing pretending.

South Melbourne Market carries serious seafood. Lobsters. Oysters. Mussels. Sashimi laid out on ice. You can eat it raw, standing at a counter. Or you can sit down here and have it cooked properly. I prefer the second.

Let’s not waste time. Here’s what’s actually good.

The Whole Grilled Squid

This is the dish. The one I came back for twice.

Around fifty-five dollars. A whole squid, laid over open flame. The char was light. Just enough to mark the skin and lend a little smoke, never enough to turn it bitter. That balance is hard. Most kitchens push the fire too far and lose the squid underneath.

Not here.

The flesh stayed tender. It gave a clean, gentle resistance and then let go. It tasted like it had been in the water the night before. Probably it had.

This dish shut me up for a moment.

The Grilled Octopus

Served kebab-style, threaded and grilled.

The outside was slightly tough. A firmer bite than I wanted at the edges. But the inside held its juice. That contrast worked in its favour. You chew through the char and reach something soft and warm underneath.

Not perfect. But honest and worth ordering.

The Vinegar Potatoes

I did not expect to write about potatoes.

Chunky, not mashed. Cut rough and dressed in vinegar that cut clean through the starch. The sourness woke the whole thing up. They kept their shape, kept their bite, and carried the acid without turning sharp.

One of the best potato dishes I have eaten. I mean that.

The Grilled Barramundi

Fresh fish, grilled well. The skin took the heat and crisped. The flesh stayed white and moist beneath it.

Simple. Done right. Sometimes that is the whole story.

The Baked Barramundi

They also do it baked, laid over vegetables.

It was fine. But it sat quieter than the grilled version. The flame does something the oven cannot. It brings edges, smoke, a little life. If you order barramundi here, grill it. Skip the baked plate.

The Tempura

Clean and light. The batter was thin, barely there, not thick with flour the way lazy kitchens leave it. It let the seafood underneath stay the focus.

Done properly. That is harder than it sounds.

The Garlic Fronds

Unremarkable. Nothing wrong with them. Nothing to remember either. They filled a corner of the table and did their job.

Why It Stayed With Me

I have eaten seafood in a lot of places. Singapore included. My benchmark is high and I do not lower it for anyone.

Even at home, sea-to-table this fresh is rare. Most kitchens buy through a chain of hands before the fish reaches the flame. Something is lost along the way. Here, the distance between the market stall and the grill is measured in steps, not days. You taste that. You cannot fake it.

There was no performance to any of this. No plating built for a phone. Just a blackboard, a flame, and whatever the sea offered that morning. A kitchen cooking what is fresh, the way it should be cooked, and trusting the food to carry the rest.

It did.

I hear they have live music at night. I have not stayed late enough to catch it. Next visit, maybe. I’ll sit a little longer, order the squid again, and let the evening run its course.

Because that is what a place like this asks of you. Not a queue. Not a photo. Just time, a table at the edge of the market, and the patience to eat something that was alive yesterday.

If you find yourself at South Melbourne Market, walk to the tip. Claypots Evening Star. Read the board. Order the grilled squid.

Then sit down and eat it while it is still warm from the flame.

Good food needs no explanation. This was one of those meals.