Eat, stay, love

It’s not just a meal, it’s a destination.

Regional hero: a suite at Brae. Picture: Colin Page

BRAE, BIRREGURRA, VIC

It's the morning after the night before and Dan Hunter's crushed-gravel car park is groaning under the weight of one Porsche, two Audis, a Ferrari and a couple of BMWs. Less than 100m away, staff from his restaurant are foraging in the vegetable patch - near the dam, not far from the hens and fruit trees - for ingredients for the day's lunch and dinner.

Hunter is a hero of regional food in Australia, a force behind the gentle morphing of the south-western Victorian town of Birregurra into a food and tourism destination at the gateway to squatter country. And the luxury jewel of this region is Brae, Hunter's upmarket, much-awarded restaurant set on 12ha in rolling hills by the Otway Ranges and, beyond, the Great Ocean Road.

The award-winning restaurant. Picture: Colin Page

Eating devastatingly well at a place that's been named No. 65 on the World's Best Restaurants list of 2016, with a billion frogs blurting in the distant wetlands, is a noble idea.

But as the restaurant is about 90 minutes' drive from Melbourne, a key to its future success will be the accommodation on the property, introduced in February this year.

The six suites, each sleeping two people, can be booked along with a lunch or dinner sitting, and are naturally in great demand.

As the car park attests, Brae's patrons are likely to arrive in style. We rise to the occasion at the wheel of a Ferrari California T, a 325km/h black beast of a thing that could have been life-changing were it not for the need to hand it back after a few days.

In the restaurant building - an original brick farmhouse and weatherboard extension with subtle modern touches - we sit down for a degustation menu that includes crayfish and shiitake mushrooms with farm egg yolks, meat broth, seaweeds and oysters. The menu changes frequently in line with the best available produce from the onsite gardens, local farms and Victorian producers.

The luxury suites, clad in shearing shed iron, brick and timber, are tucked behind a raised garden. Picture: Colin Page

Eating at Brae is an adventure, the biggest danger being the postprandial walk across the courtyard to your suite. Or maybe falling off the bed. The luxury suites, clad in shearing shed iron, brick and timber, are tucked behind a raised garden.

Think Soho meets Sunday Too Far Away. Inside, the floors are heated slate, the bricks are recycled, the artwork is modern, the bed is king size and the bath is too. A skylight means stargazers can lie down, chart the constellations and sleep off the degustation menu, which is crafted not to overwhelm but to satisfy. This would work if it weren't for the monumental wine list.

For those seeking even more food and alcohol, a shared plate is available for the evening following a lunch booking; the in-room, house-made breakfast features oven-fresh pastries, sourdough bread and other farm produce; and in your suite is a stacked wine fridge whose contents can be bought.

The final question is the manner in which one arrives and departs.

Here, the luxury sports car is a bit of a cliche. Sure, it's a world of fun roaring across the Otways in a Ferrari, but true one-upmanship might come in the form of a helicopter. A 40-minute flight from Melbourne is possible, but the pilot will need to steer clear of the vegie gardens and find another piece of dirt to land on. A small logistical hitch, surely, for the FIFO diners of Brae.

Brae’s menu changes frequently in line with the best available produce. Picture: Colin Page

PERFECT FOR: Couples seeking a gastronomic adventure.

MUST DO: Eat, drink. Broaden your horizons and arrive or depart via the Great Ocean Road. Drive south to Forrest and hit the mountain bike trails.

GETTING THERE: Brae, via Birregurra, is 130km southwest of Melbourne; about 90 minutes' drive, or three hours via the ocean road. 

BOTTOM LINE: Accommodation for two (adults only) can be booked with a lunch or dinner reservation. Lunch Fri-Mon, dinner Thurs-Sat. Suites from $425 for Monday night to $615 for Saturday. Saturday night is booked out until the end of the year.

The degustation menu is $190 a head plus $125 for matching wines ($220/$130 from December 1). braerestaurant.com

Brae is about 90 minutes' drive from Melbourne, or three hours via the ocean road.