The words “fusion food” can cause alarm,but dishes at Bansho are thoughtful and accomplished enough to quell any ensuing panic.

Take the salmon tartare,a jaunty but luxurious handheld snack. The fatty,finely chopped fish reads French,but seasonings of ginger oil and pickled plum nod to Japan. Chicken mousseline roulade is tempura-fried,served atop kombu-dashi bechamel. Chawanmushi is studded with spanner crab and finished with celeriac vichyssoise,the variations in silky savouriness like gentle but persistent ripples.

The curved lines,booths and brass railings of the welcoming room seem a little art deco,but there’s also Japanese print wallpaper,natural stone and a counter for exquisite sushi (including vegan versions). Bansho goes to show that fusion isn’t always a dirty word,particularly when it’s done with sensitivity and purpose.

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Melbourne’s Southern Suburbs

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