El Estanco review, Barossa Valley best restaurants | delicious.SA: Regional 50

Complete with cactus patch out the back, El Estanco’s Greenock property is the perfect backdrop for its home-style Colombian cooking.

Breakfast at El Estanco in the Barossa Valley.

23 Murray St, Greenock

0438 006 552

elestanco.com.au

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Finding the cactus patch out the back was the clincher. The prickly plant is their symbol after all.

Abby Osborne and Julian Velasquez, the owners of El Estanco, had been watching the property across the road in Greenock for some time and jumped when it became available.

Taking over a ramshackle cottage, general store and outbuildings, they have turned the property into a jaw-dropping combination of dining space, bar, pantry and courtyard.

Walls and ceilings have been stripped to expose old brick and pressed metal. Tin sheds have been rebuilt. Recycled materials including stone and galvanised iron have been brought from Abby’s Eden Valley farm.

Those cactuses, believed to be more than 100 years old, have been surrounded by pathways and expanses of lawn that look made for a picnic rug.

It’s all a wonderful backdrop for the home-style Colombian cooking of Julian and team who make good use of two adjustable wood-fired grills in an impressively equipped kitchen.

Earlier in the day, this might mean “molletes”, Latin America’s version of beans on toast, topped with melted cheese, or the delicious corn cakes known as “arepas” with skirt steak and avocado.

The choices expand for lunch with sweetcorn empanadas, pork ceviche and a special of ribs with “quiquirimichi”, a sauce made by scorching spices including paprika and cumin with hot beef fat.

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• Hours: B Daily L Daily D Fri
• Bill: E $17-$21 M $22-$28
• Wine: Wine list
• Chefs: Julian Velasquez