Tom Cooper may not be a household name, but if you’ve dined at any of Melbourne’s top restaurants over the last four decades, you’ve almost certainly encountered his work.
He’s supplied top chefs, including Andrew McConnell and Frank Camorra of Movida, with cured and smoked seafood since the eighties. Cooper originally imported goods from his native Canada and eventually began producing his own wholesale range of smoked and cured seafood and other products.
“I gave Frank his first smoked tomato,” Cooper tells Broadsheet. (Camorra’s signature Movida dish is smoked tomato sorbet on anchovy).
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SIGN UPCooper’s new venue Tomm is his chance to showcase his extensive knowledge directly to the public. He’s joined by Jason Willey, former co-owner of Tom Pockett Cellars in Glen Iris, who oversees the drinks.
The two describe the food as “more than tapas, but less than a restaurant”. The changing dishes may include house-cured salmon caviar on smoked cauliflower puree, Scandinavian-style prawn salad sandwiches and Cooper’s signature gravlax (Nordic-style cured salmon). There’s also a wall of tinned fish that can be turned into snack plates along with Pane e Pizzico ciabatta, smoked sea salt and pickles.
Beyond seafood, you may find house-made duck prosciutto, meatballs with tomato sauce, and smoked chicken marinated in a nutmeg and tea brine served with cinnamon mayonnaise.
All curing and smoking is done on-site using custom machines Cooper designed earlier in his career, and various styles of wood he imports from Canada.
“For fish, I use a mixture of maple, beech and birch,” he says. “I’ve got cherry wood that I use for tuna, hickory that I use for fowl and vegetables, and applewood that I use for pork.”
Beverages have been designed to emphasise the flavour profiles of the various woods, rubs and marinades Cooper uses. The focus is mostly on Victorian wine, though Cooper will soon launch his own range of gin, which he also uses for curing.
The fit-out follows the maritime theme, with paintings of seascapes on the walls and fish-shaped silver platters on the front counter.
Tomm
180 William Street, Melbourne
Hours:
Tue to Fri midday–7pm
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