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11e Cave

Wednesday: 5:30 – 10:30 PM
Cnr Eyre and Kennedy Streets, Kingston, ACT, 2604
Phone
0424 894 763
Website
onzieme.com.au
Instagram
@11e_cave

Read time 3 Mins

Posted 08 Jul 2024

By
Michael Harden

A busy scene inside Canberra bar, 11e Cave

Named for one of Paris’s coolest neighbourhoods, this suave subterranean wine bar cleverly channels classic France and contemporary Australia in creative cocktails and lo-fi wines.

Why you goThough it can’t compete with its namesake in terms of landmark neighbours (Paris’s grungy-chic 11th arrondissement includes Place de la Bastille and acclaimed Septime restaurant, while the Père Lachaise cemetery is nearby), 11e Cave does a sterling job of channelling a French cellar-bar vibe in the heart of Kingston. The compact, low-ceilinged, concrete-floored space below popular street-level restaurant Onzieme avoids any tricolore decor clichés, though, instead letting an admirable, mostly Australian and French list of minimal-intervention wine and standout snacks do the talking. Candlelight and switched-on service from enthusiastic and knowledgeable youngsters add to the charm that can make leaving here a wrench, even if you’re only headed upstairs for dinner. Chances are you might find yourself headed back downstairs for a post-dinner nightcap.
11e Cave is a moodily lit bar in Canberra
Why you stayMinuscule signage, a bright red street-level door set in a wall of shiny black tiles, and then a careful climb down a steep set of stairs make for a drumroll of an entrance, one with the sensory effect of transporting you to another place and time. The concrete walls and ceiling with its exposed utilities, red-painted bar and 30-ish capacity, with punters perched at high tables or on banquette seating adds to the attractively clandestine and thoroughly welcoming atmosphere that makes it impossible to resist settling in. The staff are quick with a helpful suggestion should the wine list of mostly small and often obscure makers bamboozle you, or the menu of creative house cocktails leave you paralysed by indecision. A surprising variety of snacks – from oysters to kingfish skewers served with citrusy yuzu sambal – make it easy to build dinner, a further incentive to hang around longer.
What drink to orderEchoing Onzieme’s minimal-waste approach, 11e Cave’s cocktail list makes good use of the typically binned likes of lemon rinds, fig leaves and plum pits in syrups and infusions that add both interest and seasonality (the list is frequently refreshed) to the mix. You might find the fig leaves infused into gin or vodka and then served in perfectly chilled Martinis, or they might pop up in a Pineapple & Macadamia Gimlet, adding a subtly sweet herbaceous note to the general fruitiness. For those after something a little darker, the Walnut & Cacao Manhattan should be your go-to when available, a rich and powerful mix of rye and oloroso sherry given further depth with the addition of cacao butter and green walnuts.
Behind the bar at 11e Cave in Canberra
What to pair it withFans of Onzieme’s cult-favourite potato galette – delicious little crisp-edged cubes of layered potato topped with a dab of Philly cream cheese and salmon roe – will be ecstatic to know you can score these downstairs, too. But there’s plenty more good stuff where that came from, including blue-cheese arancini rice balls teamed with a basil aïoli and oysters served with a zingy Aussie-forward mignonette dressing flavoured with finger lime and pepperberry. The cheese here is definitely worth more than a passing glance, too, especially the northern hemisphere stuff that might include a Spanish blue, an aged English cheddar or the soft French crowd-pleaser Brillat-Savarin.
Looking at the bar in 11e Cave in Canberra
Why we love itDespite 11e Cave’s indisputably cool vibe, the complete absence of pretentiousness is really what gives this bar its edge. Novices to the world of minimal-intervention wine are treated with as much care and respect as the well-travelled food and wine crowd by a staff who seem to be genuinely invested in making sure everyone is having a good time. It gives the space a kind of clubhouse feel that’s welcoming to locals and out-of-towners alike.
Who to takeCanberrans hosting out-of-territory visitors dubious about the national capital’s eating and drinking credentials should make a beeline for 11e Cave and watch smugly as the preconceptions vanish. It’s also a great first-date venue, with the French vibe and hidden location burnishing your credentials as an in-the-know sophisticate.
image credits: Lean Timms
Authour image
Michael HardenAfter 25 years writing about wine and food, Michael Harden is getting the hang of it.
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