Hilton Hotels Australia are doing a monthly theme ingredient to highlight whatever is currently in season and this month it's olives. Mitchell's Grill in the Hilton on Mitchell Street are doing an olive dusted NT caught snapper for their feature dish, but if that's not your kind of thing I counted at least half a dozen locally sourced seafood dishes on the menu - they're probably one the biggest proponents of the 'Support NT Caught' campaign. It was a quiet night, everyone else was busy letting off firecrackers, which meant we had a very quiet and relaxed meal with attentive service. The soft piano music playing in the background along with the subdued lighting make for a peaceful ambiance. We sat at one of the little booths where little Miss Alice likes to jump up and down on. A lovely piece of complimentary bread with dukka and olive oil came out first then we ordered the local caught grilled jumbo prawns with spicy mayonnaise ($15), grilled haloumi ($10), wild mushroom risotto ($24) and the olive dusted snapper ($24). The chef also whipped up a spaghetti bolognaise upon request for junior foodie, it turned out pretty nice too. The grilled prawns were sensational, the meat super fresh and tender and the so called 'mayo' which tasted more like a dried shrimp sambal but with the creaminess of mayo. Don't care what it's called - it's music to my taste buds! The grilled haloumi was as expected, a little on the small side, but the sweetish paw paw salad on the side made a nice compliment to the salty cheese. Mains came out not long after that. My wife thought her wild mushroom risotto a little salty, but I didn't notice. I did note that it wasn't a particularly large serving, or perhaps the giant plate made it look small... The mushroom flavour was excellent however. And finally to the dish I was invited along to try out - the snapper. Now I'm not the biggest fan of snapper, I prefer the moistness and tender goodness of a barra any day of the week, but this was quite nice. The flesh white as snow and fresh as a fish can be without it breathing. The olive dust was a first for me and was intriguingly working somehow. I was actually left wanting for some more olives - whole ones the side or a few larger pieces on top, I wouldn't complain either way. Special note to the avocado salad with little sprinkles of herbs - it was wonderful. Fantastic presentation and attentive service make Mitchell's Grill a great spot for a quiet dinner, dinner date or just to unwind in peaceful surrounds. The prices are upper mid range but quite reasonable all things considered. Hidden gem this one.

Contact details

Address: 32 Mitchell Street, Hilton Darwin Phone: 8982 0000 Open: 6am to 10pm, 7 days a week.