This is an extract from the Broadsheet hardcover book Travels, published by Plum. The book is available for $54.99 at shop.broadsheet.com.au and all good book stores.
Brae, VIC
Birregurra is a tiny town out the back of Victoria’s lush, fern-riddled Otway Ranges. Everyone’s heard of the place now – because of Brae. Dan Hunter and Julianne Bagnato’s restaurant is internationally recognised, thanks to its ambitious set menu (oyster ice-cream is arguably its most famous dish) that moves with the whims of the on-site organic farm. Expect to taste the property’s fruits, vegetables and nuts alongside its own honey and wheat (baked into bread in the wood oven, of course). Travellers can book stays in one of six carbon-neutral guest suites, complete with organic bed linen, Thorens turntables and skylights for stargazing.
Ates, NSW
Centred around a 150-year-old hearth that kisses almost every part of the banquet menu, Ates enlivens the Blue Mountains with cooking that’s technically sharp but grounded by warm country sensibilities. Weekends see slabs of focaccia, galettes, tarts and brownies on display for the bake shop, while the likes of slow-cooked sirloin, charcoal king prawns and house-made jersey-milk ricotta characterise the restaurant menu.
The Agrarian Kitchen Eatery, TAS
Rodney Dunn and Séverine Demanet first launched the Agrarian Kitchen as a cooking school, but when the chance came to restore the Bronte Building at Willow Court in 2015, the pair leapt at the opportunity. The result is a restaurant, just 35 minutes from Hobart, where high ceilings, airy windows and pressed-metal ceilings complement a menu that revels in pickling, jamming, fermenting and curing, putting flavour and their own produce first. Don’t miss their weekend kiosk, either.
Pipit, NSW
While 14-seat Fleet has made Brunswick Heads an essential culinary destination, Ben Devlin and Yen Trinh’s Pipit is doing the same for nearby Pottsville. Just 30 minutes from Byron Bay, the family-run restaurant sees chef Devlin bring a from-scratch ethos to bear on hyper-local ingredients, from hand-harvested pipis to organic vegetables from Boon Luck Farm. Fire fuels the cooking, drinks are all-Australian and the mood is light and elevated.
Glenarty Road, WA
Margaret River has no shortage of big-ticket destination restaurants, but Glenarty Road keeps things personal. Set on a regenerative sheep farm, complete with vineyard and vegetable garden, the place has a rustic, country air complete with a menu that digs into the restaurant’s own larder. Things might start with house-made charcuterie and crudités from the garden before a plate of wood-grilled lamb, reared on the property, arrives for mains. Add tours, wine tastings and a grazing menu, and you have a base from which to explore the region.
Tedesca Osteria, VIC
Chef Brigitte Hafner’s dream of running a regional restaurant complete with luxe accommodation is playing out on Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula, with help from wine whiz and co-owner James Broadway. Lunches are long and generous, with fresh pasta a mainstay alongside impeccable produce, largely grown on-site. The setting, meanwhile, with an open kitchen, brick hearth and charming finishes, is pleasingly warm and rustic. Then there’s the art gallery and the accommodation – Graceburn House – stocked with fresh eggs, bread, jams, cheese and charcuterie to go with bottled cocktails.
Igni, VIC
You’ll smell the sweet smoke of Igni before you arrive at its barely there, dark timber facade in Geelong’s backstreets. In Latin, igni means “fire”, and almost every dish at this 28-seat, tasting-menu-only diner gets a lick of flame. Chef and co-owner Aaron Turner bats for the little guys, filling his pantry and larder with things they grow, raise and catch. This means Igni has access to the region’s best produce, but it also means there’s never quite enough in Turner’s shopping basket for everyone – more often than not, you’ll be eating differently to the table next to you. No matter – it’s all superb.
