Try umami-rich steak at a regional restaurant by an ex-Rockpool head chef
Lost Cat in Warrnambool has a familiar and comforting vibe with fine dining flare.
Contemporary$$
Lost Cat is an airy new 55-seat restaurant in Warrnambool, three hours from Melbourne. Chef and co-owner Zac Nicholson (ex-Rockpool) is making his ranch with quark from nearby Schulz Dairy and serving it with crunchy crudites from a local farm.
Dark-gold focaccia that ferments for 48 hours is baked just before the restaurant opens, and served with a butter featuring caramelised onion, garlic powder, onion powder and fried shallots for an all-out allium assault. A dry-aged scotch fillet is served with a kombu-rich umami butter.
Wood-grilled cabbage with cashew cream, and baked custard with seasonal fruit celebrate produce from local grower Merri Banks. Drinks cover western Victorian wines, gins and beer from locals Noodledoof, and crowd-pleasing cocktails such as whisky sours. And the White Russian? It’s made with Schulz milk, of course.
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Emma Breheny – Emma is Good Food’s Melbourne eating out and restaurant editor.