TasWeekend Indulge: Divine inspiration for hyper-seasonal eatery at Maylands Lodge in New Town
From trophy mansion to the HQ of the god squad, Maylands Lodge has had a chequered history. The 130-year-old landmark is now about nine months into its latest incarnation as a high-end hotel and “hyper-seasonal” eatery, writes LIBBY SUTHERLAND
Taste Tasmania
Don't miss out on the headlines from Taste Tasmania. Followed categories will be added to My News.
From trophy mansion to a home for neglected girls and the HQ of the god squad, Maylands Lodge has had a chequered history since first conceived by celebrated colonial architect Henry Hunter in the mid-1880s.
And now the 130-year-old New Town landmark is about nine months into its latest incarnation as a high-end hotel and “hyper-seasonal” eatery, with former Saffire sous chef Mark Wilson at the helm.
I was lucky enough to dine at Maylands Lodge earlier this year thanks to a friend who supplies the heritage property with Cape Grim sparkling water. When we visited, it was open to in-house guests but not the general public.
Our party of five convenes in the guest lounge while waiting for our table in the dining room. Given it is a warmish evening, the doors to the mosaic-tiled veranda are flung open to catch a cooling breeze. The hydraulic floor that lifts to reveal stairs down to the sandstone wine cellar is also open but I resist the urge to venture below.
As we sip gin and tonics, staff member Jo Tsui runs us through a potted history of the property, designed by Hunter for John Pearce, a convict’s son who amassed quite a fortune.
Pearce’s widow sold the property in 1912 to another local mogul, department store owner Augustus Spencer Brownell, of Brownell Bros fame, and it later became the Hobart Girls’ Industrial School, taking on young ladies at the request of their families or as wards of the state. In 1945, the building was handed over to the Salvation Army to run as a girls’ home. By the time it sold in 2016, it had become the church group’s main office in Hobart.
The latest custodians are the Gardner family, who have spent two years repolishing the time-wearied Victorian Italianate gem into an opulent 12-room hotel.
Fast forward to today, and the restaurant is finally taking outside bookings, allowing the wider public to experience Wilson’s paddock-to-plate ethos in one of Hobart’s grandest old homes.
Named Restaurant Deodara, or divine tree, after a century-old cypress in the one-hectare grounds, it seats a maximum of about 30 people in a refined atmosphere complete with marble fireplace, ornate cornice and supremely comfortable blue velvet chairs. Opting for the chef’s menu, we start with a summery tomato salad with chive oil, mopping up the tangy juices with a thick slice of sourdough bread.
Next comes beef tartare, given a Japanese twist with the addition of nori salt, rice crisps and shaved rounds of peppery radish, and then gnocchi dumplings in a bacon broth. Both so good.
Another highlight is the crispy skinned trumpeter atop vivid romanesco and tarragon sauces with rounds of yellow zucchini. The grand finale — strawberry cheesecake with a milk crumb, honeycomb and a chocolate marquise — is particularly memorable thanks to the playful addition of popping candy.
On a more recent return visit, I note the menu has taken on a more autumnal tone. The very last of the tomatoes have been married with pickles and bean leaf oil, while the fish is now topped with brassicas including curly kale and toasted pumpkin seeds and bathed in a mushroom broth.
The strawberry cheesecake has given way to a “kind of apple crumble” made from green apples sourced from the chef’s own garden.
Wilson, who has also worked at the upmarket Islington in South Hobart, endeavours to add these personal touches to all his dishes and is looking forward to sharing his culinary talents with a wider audience.
The size of the eatery means he can be spontaneous with the menu, allowing an agile and hyper-seasonal approach. He takes his lead from small, local producers as well as an on-site kitchen garden and what he grows in his own garden at home.
“It’s always changing, it’s always evolving,” he says. Much like Maylands Lodge itself.
RESTAURANT DEODARA
Maylands Lodge, 40 Swanston St, New Town
Breakfast daily, from 7.30am to 10am; Dinner Thurday to Sunday evenings, from 6pm
Bookings essential, fully licensed
maylandslodge.com.au; 6169 2777
Gourmet farmer dishes up all the dirt on soil in his new book
Former food critic and now farmer Matthew Evans is on a mission to educate people about a vital part of our world that goes largely unnoticed but is vital to keeping the earth, and us, healthy
Authentic Afghan experience serves up community spirit
Moonah’s Zafira Fine Foods not only gives locals the chance to sample Afghani food but also acts as a community hub for the approximately 300 Hazara people who have settled in Hobart