The Ginger Room
(02) 6270 8262, Old Parliament House, Queen Victoria Tce, Parkes. ACT 2600 www.gingercatering.com.auOpen Tue-Sat dinner from 6pm; Licensed; AE MC V EFT, Seats inside 60, Private room
Chef: (Daniel Flatt, 2010-2-12) Owner: Janet Jeffs (28-10-09)
Mietta's Review
Janet Jeffs cut her culinary teeth with Cheong Liew during the Dunstan years in Adelaide. Her previous restaurants in Canberra have born the name Juniperberry. Now she has teamed up with Ginger Catering and they have graced Old Parliament House with a very elegant restaurant. This promises to be a great addition to fine dining in the nation's capital. In 2011 Ginger Room was awarded Savour ACT Best Fine Dining Restaurant and Catering and inducted into the Best Wine List 3 glasses Hall of Fame.
Other Published Opinions
Canberra Times Eat Out Cath Lawrence, 28-10-09 Score: 14.5/20
Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide 2010 Score: 12.5/20
Gourmet Traveller 2010 Australian Restaurant Guide "An orange light on the hill shines brightly, bathing the rear entrance of Old Parliament House. Inside is a classy Deco space forged from the prime minister's former private dining room"
Sydney Eats 2009 minor "The food matches the classy ambience here, with such entrees as duck rillette with pickled ginger, cucumber and crusty sourdough"
Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide 2009 Score: 135/20
Gourmet Traveller 2009 Australian Restaurant Guide "Could there be a more 'Canberra' restaurant than this welcoming room in Old Parliament House? With its white-clothed tables, attentive waitstaff and previous life as the Prime Minister's dining room, one would expect a little inflation in the cost"
Canberra Times Michael Brissenden, 5-03-08 Score: 14/20
Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide 2008 Score: 12.5/20
Gourmet Traveller 2008 Australian Restaurant Guide "Circumnavigate the flood-lit historic Old Parliament House until you spot the glowing pink light panel through a darkened window"
Sydney Eats 2008 "As part of three courses for $59, favourite mains include rare spicy tuna with roasted capsicum aioli or honey and soy pork belly with green tea noodles"
Canberra Times Bryan martin, 29-03-06
Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide 2007 Score: 14/20
Gourmet Traveller 2007 Restaurant Guide "It's a bit of a wander to find the converted Members' dining room in Old Parliament House, but spot the shimmer of crimson lighting and you'll find yourself at Canberra's smartest looking dining room."
Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide 2006 Score 14/20
Gourmet Traveller Australian Restaurant Guide 2006 "The Ginger Room might be one of the rooms at the back of the Old Parliament House, with all the 20s public architecture that implies, but you're greeted by an enormous backlit pink feature wall, engraved with a crisp illustration ofa full-grown ginger plant. Chef Janet Jeffs was never shy ofa bold gesture in her time at Juniperberry, and the same is true in this adult, smartly appointed space."
Sydney Eats 2006 "As you'd expect, given its location, this restaurant is in an elegant room, built in the 1920S. The new fitout includes plush chairs in an adjoining bar area, while the entrance welcomes with backlit orange glass panels etched with ginger plants."
Sydney Morning Herald GFG 2005 Score 14/20
Age AGE AGFG 2005
Sydney Cheap Eats 2005 "At last, good food, good service and a special dining room. The entrance is enticing with orange backlit glass panels etched with ginger plants. The gorgeous art deco lights are still there, and the new fit-out includes plush chairs in an adjoining bar area (with bar menu)."
Gourmet Restaurant Guide 2005" A Eurasian aesthetic is threaded through the entire experience. ... It makes for fine dining, although greater consistency of quality across dishes would be in keeping with other elements ofthe package. These include the stunning fit-out, polished service and a sophisticated wine list of great depth and very reasonable mark-ups."
Sydney Morning Herald, goodliving,29/6/04,Matthew Evans,Score 14/20