Good Food Guide: Worth The Journey
In the new edition of The Advertiser Food Guide, our team reviews more than 150 restaurants, with many appearing for the first time. Here are some of our favourites, with categories to suit all tastes and budgets.
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In the new edition of The Advertiser Food Guide, our team reviews more than 150 restaurants, with many appearing for the first time. Here are some of our favourites, with categories to suit all tastes and budgets.
Appellation
Having forged an admirable reputation at the pinnacle of Barossa Valley dining experiences, Appellation continues to impress after a touch up in the dining room’s design and rejuvenation of the senior and floor staff who bring a smart combination of knowledge and approachable manners to each table. The regularly evolving menu concentrates carefully on South Australian produce from gulf and Southern Ocean seafood to top-shelf beef and lamb with Barossa regional elements highlighted in complex yet tightly woven dishes. Citrus cured blue fin tuna loin with orange segments and jelly, green olive and avocado mousse is deliciously balanced and generously plated. Lamb cut from the leg, finished on charcoal with garlic and rosemary puree and confit fennel is sensitively creative comfort food. Complex desserts follow, again well thought out and seasonally responsive. A 500-plus wine list curates local to global cleverly.
THE LOUISE, SEPPELTSFIELD RD, MARANANGA
8562 4144
- OPEN D 7pm-late daily
- BILL E/M $19-$45; Tasting menu (5 courses) $115 +$55 wine matching
- OWNERS/CHEFS Chef: Ryan Edwards Jamie Wall | Owners: Jim and Helen Carreker
- WINE Corkage $25/bottle By the glass 25 @ $10-$35 Bottles $45-$1800
The Barn
Surrounded by prime grazing pastures a short drive out of Mount Gambier, The Barn is a great regional find, where the surprises come thick and fast. Let’s start in the enormous dining room that’s a little bit country, but really quite posh, and fills quickly with big bands of locals, alongside a smattering of tourists. Order the pancetta-wrapped scallops, cooked perfectly, to start, if you’re game, but be warned you’ll need a farmer-sized appetite for one of the steaks that are the calling-card here. Minimum weight is 400g, for a piece of rump that re-affirms its place as a prime cut for flavour, and up to a crazy 800g in a ribeye special. The meat all comes from local Hereford herds, served with an excellent slaw and baked potato. For dessert, an apple galette is based on a lovely, buttery pastry. The wine list is outstanding, with a logical focus on reds and plenty of older vintages at reasonable mark-ups.
747 GLENELG RIVER RD, MOUNT GAMBIER
8726 8250
- OPEN D 6pm-late Mon-Sun
- BILL E $7.90-$18.90 M $29-$65 D $13.90-$14.50
- OWNERS/CHEFS Chef: Alfons Couldrey | Owners: Cleves family
- WINE No BYO By the glass 19 @ $8.50-$14 Bottles $34.50-$3900
d’Arry’s Verandah
There are few rural restaurants with a setting to rival d’Arry’s Verandah. Husband and wife team Peter and Jo Reschke – him in the kitchen, her at front of house – have over the past decade established d’Arry’s as a destination restaurant and its reputation is well deserved. Dishes reflect a thoughtful approach to local produce, giving classic dishes like duck and pork belly a lift with Asian-influenced elements like radish cake served with duck, a pork bun with slow-roasted belly and chicken with a lemongrass coconut broth and rice balls. Don’t miss the sublime lobster bisque entrée with prawn and crab ravioli and two generous medallions of lobster on top. For dessert it’s hard to go past the long-time house favourite, the passionfruit soufflé. Share dessert to leave room for the excellent selection of cheeses. Choose from an extensive range of d’Arenberg wines or their impressive list of imports.
OSBORNE RD, MCLAREN VALE
8329 4848
- OPEN L noon-3pm daily D by appt
- BILL E $22-$25 M $33-$37 D $17-$18 (cheese $25 - $30)
- OWNERS/CHEFS Chef: Peter Reschke | Owner: d’Arenberg Wines
- WINE Corkage $20/bottle By the glass 40 @ $6-$25 Bottles $30- $340
Elbow Room
Chef Nigel Rich has truly come to rest at this dream location, next to Shingleback’s cellar door. Warmed by light timber and wide-open glass walls, Nigel applies the Elbow Room ethos: a “feeling of space, where you can sit back, relaxed and satisfied’’. The message sits comfortably with a sense of occasion driven by good linen, plain-set tables and light formality in the friendly service. On summery days, the seasonal menu is built for sharing and lingering in the sun. For weekend dinners the focus turns to more hearty meals. Stretch the palate and sample richly flavoured lamb brains uncommonly pretty on these plates. The steaks carry the smokiness of being cooked on the red gum grill, and the soft-shell crab with sambal and green papaya salad fits lighter meal demands. Leave room for dessert, the creamed rice with coconut ice cream, lemon curd and lemongrass froth a magnet for your spoon.
CORNER STUMPHILL & MAIN RDS, MCLAREN VALE
8323 8686
- OPEN L noon-3pm Daily D 6pm-late Fri-Sat
- BILL E $17.50-$24 M $29-$38 (sides $8) D $17-$24
- OWNERS/CHEFS Chef/Owner: Nigel Rich
- WINE Corkage $15/bottle By the glass 12 @ $9-$13 Bottles $40-$290
FermentAsian
Chef Tuoi Do and her wine specialist partner Grant Dickson deliver one of SA’s best dining experiences. Outstanding, zinging-fresh Vietnamese and South East Asian fare, with much of the produce grown by Tuoi’s parents, is complemented by one of the best wine lists in the country. Start with the sticky caramelised Berkshire pork wrapped in fresh betel leaf. The delicate and fragrant Hanoi spring rolls are among the best you’ll find anywhere. Succulent grilled SA squid is served with fresh coconut salad; duck breast with banana flowers. A mild beef and peanut curry, using prime Wagyu, makes a nice segue into dessert where it’s a toss-up between the sweet-sharp, lime bruleé or black sticky rice with caramelised banana. Dickson’s 68-page list will provide hours of reading for wine buffs. If overwhelmed ask for the abridged “Vino Espresso’’ version listing 100 wines tailored to the food.
90 MURRAY ST, TANUNDA
8563 0765
- OPEN L noon-2.30pm Thu-Sun D 6-9.30pm Wed-Sat
- BILL E/M $8-$33 D $11-$12
- OWNERS/CHEFS Chef: Tuoi Do | Owners: Tuoi Do, Grant Dickson
- WINE Corkage $15/bottle. (No BYO Fri and Sat nights). By the glass 21 @ $9-$24 Bottles $26-$4400
Fino
Under the guidance of chef David Swain and maître d’ extraordinaire Sharon Romeo, Fino remains one of Australia’s finest regional restaurants. Everything is more than it seems: the cosy white washed cottage has tables spilling into the garden, seemingly straightforward dishes sing with complex flavours and the small, ever-evolving wine list is always a delight. Local snapper might be brined and steamed with finely shredded cabbage and salted celeriac to produce a light, fragrant, almost creamy dish. A funky 70s Don Dunstan recipe, baby carrots cooked in butter, brandy and sugar, gets a contemporary twist with char-grilled leeks and sorrel mayonnaise. Leave room for pudding, perhaps an olive oil brioche with quince ice cream. In 2015 Fino fans will be doubly blessed when sous chef Sam Smith and Sharon head to the Barossa to run a new Seppeltsfield off-shoot.
8 HILL ST, WILLUNGA
8556 4488
- OPEN L Noon-3pm Tue-Sun D 6.30pm-9pm Fri-Sat
- BILL E $18-$21 M $28-$36 D $14 ($65pp/5-course)
- OWNERS/CHEFS Chef: David Swain | Owners: David Swain, Sharon Romeo
- WINE BYO by arrangement By the glass 16 @ $9-$15 Bottles $43-$165
Hentley Farm
Restaurant of the Year in this guide last year, Hentley Farm is more captivating, more convincing and more in tune with its surrounds than ever before. The young kitchen crew, led by the talented Lachlan Colwill, pay regular visits to the table, to scatter over a rubble of puffed rice on mussels and raw mulloway in a pool of smoked buttermilk that’s drain-the-bowl good; to nap a silken piece of ox tongue with mustard and apple sauce; and to pour water into a camp oven of oysters and rosemary so a herbal fog blankets the table. Yes, there are a few tricks but they are backed by rock-solid technique and a strengthened connection to the Hentley property and the Barossa as a whole. A shorter “menu du jour” will give you a taste of the potential here, but it’s worth investing the time and money in the full Discovery package, each course matched with the elegantly styled wines available to take home from the nearby cellar door.
CNR GERALD ROBERTS AND JENKE RD, SEPPELTSFIELD
8562 8427
- OPEN L noon-2.30pm Thu-Sun D 7pm-9.30pm Fri-Sat
- BILL Set menus $100/$170 ($140/$235 with matched wines)
- OWNERS/CHEFS Chef: Lachlan Colwill | Owner: Keith Hentschke
- WINE No BYO By the glass 7 @ $9-$15 Bottles $39-$360
The Lane
Established at the top of the list for Adelaide Hills dining with a view – be it a misty winter’s day where the nearby vines are as far as you can see, or a clear day, when, well, yes, you can see forever. A new design has moved the cellar door to a separate zone on one side, with winery’s flights and kitchen’s morsels available to match. The restaurant space is freed up and feels more relaxed because of it. The deck remains a breathtaking experience; so remember to look up from your glass and plate every now and again. Small tasting plates like wagyu bresola or house-made chicken liver parfait provide great snacking beside a very smart set of estate vineyard wines. The major menu is short and snappy, packing multiple on-trend ingredients into each dish, riffing between Asian – see a Korean kimchi powered “twice cooked beef short rib“ – to more Euro focused roast root vegetable based pork belly.
RAVENSWOOD LN, HAHNDORF
8388 1250
- OPEN L Noon-4pm daily
- BILL E $15-$23 M $28-$39 D $6-$16
- OWNERS/CHEFS Chef: James Brinklow | Owners: John and Helen Edwards
- WINE No BYO By the glass 17 @ $9-$35 Bottles $40-$165
Leonards Mill
The old flour mill at beautiful Second Valley is back on the food lovers map. Husband and wife team of Brendan Wessels and Lindsay Durr have quietly tracked down their chosen producers and developed a signature style that is incredibly detailed. You can eat simpler fare such as a golden-topped pie and roasted poussin, but it’s the ambitious “Taste of the Fleurieu” menu that is turning heads. Strips of yuzu-brushed kingfish sashimi with daikon pearls, grilled squid and a bonito aoli, for instance, brings Japan to the regional doorstep. Pork belly from a few hills away at Parawa is partnered with celeriac puree and remoulade, apple and a crumble of black pudding. Balls of barely-set buttermilk cream are adorned with three types of apple (caramelised, jelly and dried), an oatmeal crumble, honeycomb and honey sponge. Leonards Mill is one of this year’s great surprises.
MAIN SOUTH RD, SECOND VALLEY
8598 4184
- OPEN L noon-3pm Wed-Sun D 6pm-9pm Fri-Sat
- BILL Two courses $65 Three courses $80 Tasting menu $125 ($185 with wine)
- OWNERS/CHEFS Chef: Brendan Wessels, Lindsay Durr | Owner: Alan Greig, Jane Mitchell
- WINE Corkage $18/bottle By the glass 11@ $7-$15 Bottles $31-$120
Pipers of Penola
In a pretty little converted church in Penola, husband-and-wife team Simon and Erika Bowen run one of our most appealing regional restaurants. Everything in the dining room is just-so: the fresh-cut flowers, spotless glassware, every napery crease and piece of cutlery in the right place. Simon’s cooking shows great understanding of his customer mix – familiar ingredients, nothing too “cheffy”, but exemplary technique and enough clever, contemporary touches to make this a special night out. Yes, you can have steak and garlic mash (and mighty fine it is too) with a bottle of the region’s fabulous cabernet, but the menu is also dotted with farro, kale and even truffle. A piece of seared red snapper beds down with the seductive sweetness and lush textures of roast fennel, onion and a cauliflower cream. For dessert, a trifle-ish concoction of layers of vanilla crème de patisserie and poached rhubarb is terrific.
58 RIDDOCH ST, PENOLA
8737 3999
- OPEN D from 6pm Tue-Sat
- BILL E $17-$20 M $30-$37 D $15-$22
- OWNERS/CHEFS Chef: Simon Bowen | Owners: Simon and Erika Bowen
- WINE Corkage $10 (first bottle, $20 after that) By the glass 9 @ $8-$22 Bottles $25-$650
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