TasWeekend: Satisfying your mountain munchies

Fern Tree Tavern chef Steve Cumper says he likes to cook “simple, tasty food that I would like to eat myself” – and it’s definitely a winning formula.

thE duck and porcini risotto. PictureS: PATRICK GEE

IT takes almost an hour to reach our lunch destination. We’ve chosen the scenic route, leaving the car at the Waterworks Reserve and hoofing it along the Pipeline Track to the Fern Tree Tavern.

Steve Cumper, formerly of the Red Velvet Lounge in Cygnet, took over the kitchen at the tavern in March.

ON THE MENU Vegetable tagine with almond couscous and harissa, $25; children’s grazing plate, $12; cakes with Meander Valley Cream, $8.50; and doughnuts and muffins, $4.50.

Choices range from small meals, such as a cheese souffle, fried calamari, and garlic croquettes — perfect if you’re out walking or riding and want a snack — to larger plates including fish and chips, a lamb pie with mash and pasta dishes.

Cumper describes his food as honest and unfussy. “I just like to do simple, tasty food that I would like to eat myself,” he says.

The Fern Tree Tavern’s infamous mountain parmi was taken off the menu when its new owners took over and Cumper took the helm in the kitchen, but they kept getting requests for a parmi. “I thought I’m not going to be precious about it … We’ll do a good parmi,” Cumper says.

He uses Nichols Poultry free-range chicken breast and serves it with chips and coleslaw.

There are quite a few vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free options, and the children’s menu is a deep fryer-free zone.

The kids grazing plate.

Cumper says he has always done a version of a “grazing plate” for kids wherever he has worked. The Fern Tree Tavern version consists of cheese, ham, celery, sultanas, carrot, apple, hummus and bread. There’s also tomato and parmesan gnocchi, or sausages with vegetables and mash for young diners.

My husband and I return another day. Again, we’re keen for a walk but the day is wet and windy so we decide on a hearty lunch before hitting the tracks. I choose the vegetable tagine. It’s the perfect dish for a cold day. My bowl is full of vegies cooked in northern African spices and served with pearl couscous. My husband opts for an adult version of a grazing plate — the Peddler’s Plate — and enjoys munching on pickles, ham, cheese and celery with chutney and bread.

The vegetable tagine is full of vegies cooked in northern African spices and served with pearl couscous.

The tree ferns outside are blowing in the breeze and rain is hitting the window panes as the showers move through. In by the fire, we decide it won’t be too bad once we get going, and we’re right. The worst of the weather seems to have passed and we walk to the Octopus Tree, via Rocky Whelan’s Cave and O’Grady’s Falls.

One of Cumper’s signatures at Red Velvet was his cakes, which are refined versions of the types of cakes you would find at a country fair or market.

“A friend of mine once described the desserts I did as ‘nanna-style’,” Cumper says.

“I really liked that term because to me it’s all about comfort.”

Fern Tree Tavern chef Steve Cumper.

On our earlier visit to the tavern, my husband and I shared a slice of raspberry butter cake, a beautifully moist cake with a generous amount of fruit. It’s a winning combination, and Cumper’s cakes celebrate whatever is available at the time.

He says his cakes “aren’t too show-offy” but show good technique and celebrate quality ingredients. He’s hoping to introduce the younger generation to classic cakes.

FERN TREE TAVERN 680 Huon Rd, Fern Tree. 6239 1171 Open Tuesday to Friday from 12pm and Saturday and Sunday from 10.30am

“So many oldies love a good Victoria sponge and a lot of young people aren’t really au fait with that because they’ve been brought up with very esoteric desserts or smears and foams,” he says. “There’s a generation of people that are starting to discover classic desserts that were out in the cold for a number of years … but good food never goes out of fashion.”

Some of Cumper’s classic cakes, and other recipes, are included in a new book, A Table in the Valley by Mercury food writer Elaine Reeves and Cumper.

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I am glad his nanna-style cakes live on at the Fern Tree Tavern. One of the best things about the car being an hour’s walk away is I can walk it off on my way home.