Will You Be Drinking Still, Sparkling or Triple-Filtered Vortexed Tap Water With Us Tonight?

The Hot List is the definitive guide to Melbourne’s most essential food and drink experiences, updated weekly. Learn more.

It’s barely a year old, but the Hot-Listed Carnation Canteen, a small 20-seat restaurant in the backstreets of Fitzroy, has the kind of following restaurants spend years striving for. Carnation’s devoted fanbase loves the diner for its warm service and casual excellence. But chef-owner Audrey Shaw works hard to make it look it so easy.

Everywhere you look in Carnation, evidence of Shaw’s past life as an architect – and the fastidious eye for detail that came with it – is on display.

It’s there in the space Shaw and her husband spent two years working on – from the bare walls and marble countertops to the careful lamp placement. It’s there in the food menu and drinks lists, which change weekly and hero a considered selection of local producers.

And it’s there in the water. Last week Carnation posted about its “Whole Home triple water filter with a premium structured water rose quartz vortex unit”, which produces water where “every drop is clean, mineral-balanced and structured”.

The post drew a mix of admiration, confusion and (slight) bemusement. So what is triple-filtered and vortexed water? Is it that different from usual tap water? And is Carnation the only restaurant in town doing it? After all, the drink that keeps us alive is by default the most popular beverage at any restaurant. Maybe we should be taking it a bit more seriously. We caught up with Shaw to talk about what her restaurant’s water tastes like, and why they’ve spent so much effort – and money – on it.

What water filter do you use at Carnation Canteen?
All water on-site – from the kitchen to the bathrooms – is filtered through a Whole Home Triple Water Filter with a Premium Structured Water Rose Quartz Vortex Unit , so that we can have the best possible water.

How does it work?
Basically, where the water enters our property along our boundary we have installed a quite substantially sized filtration and vortex unit, which is mounted on the fence. The filter intercepts the mains, so the whole property has treated water.

What does the triple filtration do?
Sediment filtration removes dirt, rust and particulates; carbon filtration reduces chlorine, volatile organic compounds and unpleasant tastes and odours; and heavy filtration minimises contaminants like lead, copper and mercury.

And what does the vortex do?
The vortex unit restructures and energises the water to mimic the natural movement of springs and rivers. So the thinking is that, in nature you’re always taught to take water from a moving stream – you would never take it from a stagnant pond. So the vortex creates “structured water” – or sometimes it’s called “living water”. We believe it tastes better, is more hydrating and is easier for the body to absorb.

When did you first come across vortex water?
It was at the end of a very long dinner party, maybe eight or nine years ago. And we were all sitting around in my friend’s lounge room, and she had a small vortex. When I tasted its water I was so taken aback because the taste was so recognisably different. Ever since then I’d wanted this water filtration – but they’re a little bit excessively expensive for home use. So I was thrilled back when we used to live above Carnation Canteen, because we had it all the time. Now I only really drink water that comes from the restaurant, even though we’ve moved out.

Is offering this kind of water common practice in the industry?
I’m not sure, but Jody, the guy who runs the place we got the filter from, told us that he didn’t know of anyone – any restaurant – who had it in Australia.

Why go to all this effort?
I think my interest in water is no different to my approach to all aspects, particularly produce, at Carnation Canteen. We’re always in pursuit of excellence. For us, it feels like the logical conclusion, if you follow each ingredient to its highest form. We’re trying to simplify and get at the essence of these things, particularly when they are so fundamental. If you get the basics right, it’s kind of hard to fuck up. The same way we receive vegetables – we want to do as little as possible with them to make them taste as close to the thing that they are. It’s all part of the same philosophy.

What do customers think of Carnation’s water?
The first question we ask when people come to Carnation is whether they want a glass of champagne or a Martini. And the second question is whether they want still or sparkling water. Water’s so important to us that we prefer to spend our restaurant’s budget on filtration over furniture – the chairs were from Facebook Marketplace, but this was one thing we just had to have.

But we don’t really lecture people or tell them about our water. It’s just something that, once you discover, you’re like, “Oh that’s a nice touch”. So we’re happy to do it, whether people know about it or not.

The Hot List is the definitive guide to Melbourne’s most essential food and drink experiences, updated weekly. Learn more.