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To elevate a regional shopping strip to destination status is no mean feat, but Messmates has done just that. Sitting between a pharmacy and a bank, the restaurant glows like a beacon. Inside, neutral tones – tan linen curtains, camel coloured banquettes, beige porcelain tiles – are punctuated by big wooden tables and shelves holding progressive wines from nearby.

Restrained plates are calmly consigned from the terrazzo-topped kitchen-island pass. An acid-driven stack of Portarlington mussels on toast perches at the fatty-tart nexus. Lemon lifts the celeriac sauce for a cheesy pie packed with Swiss chard from the owners’ dad’s organic farm. And sticky-sour rhubarb brightens a nutmeg-dusted custard tart.

Exceptional service redefines country hospitality, from the bright greeting and anecdotes delivered while your glass is filled to the wooden wine boxes overturned to hold handbags.