West Leederville-based Besk strives to think globally while serving local communities

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Quiz: Which eatery is impossible to get into on a Tuesday night in Perth?

A secret, intimate Japanese eatery in the suburbs, accessible only by reservation, where guests eat what they're given? Pasta bar in the western suburbs who counts legendary chef Marco Pierre White as a fan? The queue for Are tickets for the weekly Big Don's Smoked Meats event being given away?

As it turns out, the place in question was none of those, but the flamboyantly designed Besk in West Leederville. Opened in 2019 by Elliott Moore of specialty bottle shop Mane Liquor and architect Ben Braham, the Besk is, to quote the website, “a proud homage to the brothels of the world.” Also known as a pub. Just don’t expect one of those quaint, tiny pubs with carpets, Guinness mirrors, and weathered patinas you see in the movies.

For starters, Besk is big. On paper, the idea of ​​a cavernous, 200-person, exposed-brick fortress might seem like a big deal, but dividing the space into smaller rooms makes it feel less like a beer barn and more like a well-planned theme park of cosy spaces, all served by the same open bar and kitchen. Like any pub, guests can camp out in a variety of spots – the public bar, the heat-lamp-warmed courtyard, the outdoor tables – but the restaurant is the place to be. Or at least, on a cold August weekday evening. When was the last time an online booking system broke the news that you couldn’t get a table on a Tuesday night at the pub after 7pm?

Besk doesn't hide his pub-loving nature.

At first, I assumed that this lack of tables was simply a midweek safety measure put in place by management so they could close the kitchen early when things inevitably quieted down. Further guesses included that we’d simply show up, find the place empty, and then pick one of the countless empty tables around us. I assumed wrong. It turns out that Besk’s dining room was indeed full of couples and groups. And if it weren’t for two friends who decided to sit at the bar (for customers only) and give up their table, we wouldn’t have gotten the last seat in the restaurant.

As I said, Besk makes no secret of its beer-centric nature. As well as the aforementioned bar and dining room, the space also houses one of Perth’s best bottle shops: a happy place for those stocking the drinks fridge or wanting to open something special to share with mates. (Every bottle of wine and can of beer, with a corkage fee added to the takeaway price, can be enjoyed on-site.) Then again, given how interesting Besk’s drinks list is, most guests shouldn’t have any reason to seek out a bottle.

Just as sommelier Trent Everitt and bartender Jack Turnbull-Goggins have assembled an impressive lineup of wines, beers, cocktails and non-alcoholic options, Chef Tom Harper’s cooking also covers a lot of ground, starting with the pub’s must-haves. So naturally, there’s steak (Black Angus fillet, $44). There are chips with aioli ($12). There’s also a wood-fired cheeseburger ($20), whose MVP is a grass-fed patty (naturally) blessed with a juiciness and controlled char rare in Publandia. If the kitchen can right the wrongs of the skimpy salad and the unfortunate shrinkage—I pity a burger in which the bread outshines the beef—P-Town could have a new contender in its burger wars conversations.

Are punters ready to embrace the taco as a staple in Australian pubs? I’m not sure. But I do know that if the Mexican government teamed up with Harper and rolled out his “crispy shrimp tacos” ($10) nationwide, it would speed up the naturalization process. The name made me think we were getting into a tempura shrimp and soft tortilla situation. Instead, the taco was a hard tortilla stuffed with sweet, barely cooked seafood. On the side: a tart cocktail sauce that tasted like a student mixed up bottles of Sriracha and Thousand Island dressing. In a good way.

But perhaps well-seasoned dishes and a love of spice are just how this kitchen works. The savory steak tartare ($24), electrified with a burst of salty, Big Mac-like acidity, confirms that theory, as does the flaky snapper fillet in green curry ($38). Served over rice, the uncompromisingly spicy curry—it’s rich and buttery, not sweet and creamy—would be perfect. Here, unfortunately, it smothers such a delicate fish.

Luckily, the shrimp and lobster in a bun ($28) cleverly highlights the seafood. Likewise, Besca’s riff on the Catalan classic “pan con tomate” ($8) celebrates the kinship between bread, garlic, and tomato (peeled, finely chopped, much like bruschetta). Pan con tomate isn’t usually topped with Oligasti anchovies, but this is one departure from tradition that works.

As a caveat: Not every solution works, or is the right one. As inspiring as it is to note the robust vegetable section of the menu, I’d hope that other dishes would be more compelling than the “tart,” a baked filo shell filled with warm, fried cauliflower ($28). Unless you’re going for the $75 a la carte, your meal may unfold according to the whims of the kitchen (“plates are sent out as they’re ready”) rather than in a logical dinner sequence, with appetizers arriving before larger plates. Some of Besk’s systems—you order at the bar and are given a table number holder—do little to dispel any sense of being a cog in the machine, as does the rude service from disinterested staff.

But then, the next time you walk into a bar, you’ll be greeted by a smiling face who understands the meaning of the word “hospitality.” And as cool as it is to pour obscure wines, mix clever cocktails, and stand behind guaranteed desserts like the sumptuous bittersweet flans ($15), the measure of a pub isn’t (just) the drinks and food it serves, but how it treats its guests.

Besk, like any hospitality job, is not infallible. But over the last five years, I’ve had more good nights than bad. And in the context of the current hospitality climate, the venue tracks well. As it has from the beginning, the Besk team works hard to create a sense of community. Not just in terms of guests, but also in terms of the producers and organizations that Besk supports. Yes, it can be a tough place to get into at times, but everyone is invited to the party.