Allegro at The Westin

Overlooking Swanston and Collins St on the first floor of the Westin Hotel this comfortable room is the venue for a Jazz Lunch on Sundays.
The square wood tables with a serviette in place of a cloth or place mat and good quality heavy silver plated cutlery and comfortable seating is a good start. The black garbed waiters go about their work quietly and professionally.
The meal begins with hors-d'oeuvres. We were presented with a tortilla style slice of omelette covered with a layer of spinach and topped with roast cheddar which looked good but was overcooked and rather dry, This was followed with another dry offering - a mini pizza. This was followed by an even drier spinach pakora and next came a mushroom pate on bread which was pleasant enough with a bit of extra seasoning.
The entree was another attractive looking trio, a slice of Chorizo with a tomato salsa, a pea wonton and a roll of smoked salmon on a blini. The tastes failed to excite
The main courses are shared. Of the five on offer we chose honey glazed salmon on rice, prawns on rissotto and lamb chops on polenta. The other two choices were an Indian samosa vegetarian dish and a chilli spiced spatchcock. Once again presentation was appealing but now the food was as good as it looked. The salmon lightly cooked, went well with the honey glaze, the rissotto with a tart lemony taste was pleasing and the chops prepared with a gentle hand.
There is a large cheese and bread table and a reasonable smorgasbord of desserts freely available and the meal ended with coffee or a large beaker of tea.
There is a background of a bass played quietly with a young lady singing from Porgy and Bess
Price $75/person includes a glass of Snow Road nv pink bubbly or a beer. Wine by the glass is around $10 or $50 up for a small range of bottles
Comments This is a sort of value added lunch designed for a relaxing afternoon, but somehow it fails to excite
Score:13.25 /20