Our friends at Bar Savarin – a super-chic restaurant and wine bar close to our Heatherton quarters – share a favourite, effortless dish from their menu.

These local legends know their food: they're all about sourcing high-quality produce, while using interesting flavour combinations with just the perfect wine accompaniment.

This dish is a simple starter that champions simple ingredients to impress your tastebuds, as well as your guests.

Don't let sardines intimidate you if you're not familiar with them – it's a divine mix worth a try.

Sardines On Toast

Serves 2

Ingredients

• 1 tin sardines in olive oil
• 1 sourdough baguette
• 1 orange
• 1 garlic clove, peeled

Drizzle olive oil on baguette, and cook face-down on a chargrill, barbecue or hot skillet. Note: chargrill lines are your friends here if you want that lovely texture and appearance.

Once cooked, rub garlic clove across the bread until aromatic.

Load up each piece of bread with your sardines, being sure to include oil from the tin.

Squeeze orange cheek on top – and devour.

This dish works well with a salad of fennel and radicchio for a larger meal, as opposed to a snack.

Notes

Spend the extra – get your hands on a quality tin of sardines from Spain or Portugal that comes in quality olive oil.

Anchovies in olive oil is a perfect substitute to sardines. Bar Savarin recommends Ortiz.