Dining Review | Wil & Sons, Cooks Hill

Welcome to Wil & Sons, formerly known as the Hop Factory. Father-son team Phillip and Toby Wilson bought it in April and have been making gradual changes to the look and feel of the building and menu ever since. The name change in October was the final tweak.

The space in Cooks Hill is open, with lots of plants, wood, and a new blue outlook. Open for breakfast, lunch and dinner, it’s a hive of activity at all times of the day. Drop in for a coffee at the front window, sit outside for an afternoon beer or book a table inside for a full meal. 

Drinks are given a lot of attention. Little Street Roasters coffee is handled with care by barista Ricky Reece, the wine is predominantly local and loved and cocktails cover the classics with a few new twists. Craft beer is thankfully still treasured and there is a wide selection of great golden brews on tap. 

The menu has altered as well, with a sprinkling of sophistication mixed in with old faithfuls. Nibbles tie in nicely with drinks - grab a charcuterie board or HunterBelle cheese platter, olives or chunky polenta chips with chilli jam and tzatziki for dipping. A smooth, rich and meaty duck liver pate comes with piquant house pickles (carrots and fennel) and super-thick pieces of crusty olive bread. It’s a rustic approach and the flavours meld well, but the silken spread would work on thinner, smaller slices too. 

Pork spring rolls mix comfort and a little adventure. The rolls are thick and brimming with chopped tasty pork, the pastry encasing is super flaky and hot. A dark, stewed and pureed home-made apple sauce adds the perfect amount of sweetness to dip into; an addition of dukkah and peppery nasturtium provides unexpected flavours, but work well against the sweet meatiness. 

Listed as sides, but tempting in their own right, is the miso-roasted eggplant with puffed rice, labne and pomegranate molasses or chicken skewers with a sweet corn puree.

Vegos and vegans will find the fried cauliflower with dukkah, pickled fennel and cauliflower puree more than acceptable. 

True to form of a place with a dedication to beer are the burger offerings. A katsu chicken burger is crispy and fresh with carrot slaw; there’s a Vego burger with hummus, red pepper, cos and a whole lotta mushroom; and a classic beef burger – nothing fancy, just beef, cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion, house pickles, mustard, aioli and plenty of yumminess. It’s not the number one burger in town, but it’s pretty damn good. All are served with hot, thin French fries.  

If you’re after more of a knife-and-fork affair, there’s a range of mains to tempt. I’m really keen to try the kingfish and avocado ceviche with smoked almonds, but I’ll have to wait for a return visit as there are others that have caught my eye. 

A big bowl of gnocchi is piled high with steamed and crispy kale covered in shaved Manchego. The fat, panfried pillows sit in a lovely mix of peas, sautéed onion and pureed sweet potato. There’s an option to add chicken, but the original version is enough to stop any hunger in its tracks. The dish leans towards sweet, but with the cheese it’s brought back to centre. 

A market fish (in this case, snapper) presents in a pool of yellow curry, vegetables and puffed grains. The fish is beautifully cooked, really moist flesh and crispy on the outside. While the flavours and subtle heat of the curry coating the fish and vegetables is lovely, I’m a bit overpowered by the saltiness of it all. Perhaps it’s a ploy to get me to drink more of the Tyrrell’s sav blanc (which I do) but it would be better to ease back on the sodium. 

Sous vide chicken breast is flavoursome and soft with a pan-seared skin to give it some bite. The bird comes with its own fun crispy skin crackling, the creamiest corn puree I’ve ever tasted, broccolini and pops of heat and colour from cherry-red kiss peppers. It has taken the obligatory chicken dish into new territory and it’s nice.

A smart bar with good food will always find a place on the dining scene. Wil & Sons is a welcome addition to the Newcastle food family. 

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