Creating fresh and rustic seafood dishes is what Angelo Proestos does best. Ask any seafood lover in Canberra who he is, and they could tell you he’s been doing it for years. His latest restaurant endeavour, White Bait in Manuka, adds a fresh seafood injection into the Manuka dining Manuka, an element long missing.
A Canberra local, Angelo Proestos has been in the industry for over 20 years, and cooks by some simple rules.
“If I won’t eat it, I won’t serve it. I’d rather use the best of the best.”
Since opening late last year, the restaurant has been highly popular and buzzing with the happy patrons, most days of the week.
“Seafood has always been well-liked, lots of people know it is good for you, but a lot of restaurants around here serve pizza and pasta. So I thought I would try doing seafood here, to open something different, to make a difference,” Angelo said.
Having said that, White Bait also offer a plethora of non-seafood Mediterranean dishes like the hearty lamb souvlaki, lamb cutlets, traditional Mousaka, stuffed vegetables (Yemista) and much more.
“It also helps that White Bait is in the right place, on the right side of the street. Manuka is the place to be, the place where people choose to have dinner on any night of the week.”
With the way the economy is at the moment, you would be excused for thinking that the restaurant industry is suffering the most, but according to Angelo, that’s not the case at all.
“When the big crash happened overseas, all the businesses around here just died, but a couple of weeks later the customers had come back and it was like normal again. But at the end of the day, the restaurant industry being as unpredictable as it is, who knows what will happen in a months time.”
Fresh seafood delivered daily keeps the customers satisfied, and with nothing on the menu over $30 – except the whole lobster – there is nothing pretentious about White Bait or the food.
“This restaurant is seafood. Nothing fancy, just nice clean salad, chips, and grilled fish. That’s what we do.”
