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Only 40km south of Adelaide, the McLaren Vale wine region is a patchwork of vines planted on rolling hills, framed by ocean views. Grape vines were first planted in the area in 1838 and the Seaview and Hardy wineries were operating as early as 1850. …
You’ve probably eaten kangaroo and wallaby and maybe even salt bush. You’ve probably heard of bunya nuts and lemon myrtle and quandong, even if you haven’t had a chance to taste them quite yet. But what about dorrigo or sunrise limes or brush cherries? It’s …
Saison, Joshua Skene’s 3 Michelin Star, fire focused restaurant in San Francisco, is easily the most fun dining experience I’ve ever had in a fancy restaurant. What a treat to combine serious, sophisticated food with a vibe that was warm and irreverent. It was such a blast! I dined at Saison about three weeks before the 2018 announcements for the World’s 50 Best Restaurants were made. That night, Saison was number 37 and it has now dropped to number 46. With Atelier Crenn somewhat controversially dropping out of the list, it is now the only restaurant in San Francisco represented in the Top 100.
Located near the baseball stadium, the Relais and Chateaux restaurant is housed in a red brick warehouse which is pretty unassuming from the outside, with tinted windows masking the warmth of the room inside. As I walked in for the early seating at 6pm, I was immediately at ease. This was a welcoming, casual space – the website states there is no dress code, ‘come as you are’. Half the room is taken up by an enormous, entirely open kitchen. I was seated in a banquette style mini booth, near the small bar area. The styling consisted of rough timber pylons, exposed ceilings, lots of greenery, undressed tables, wood stacks and bunches of dried herbs hanging from the racks above the kitchen alongside copper pots and pans. It was quite noisy, with sounds from the kitchen and a very eclectic 1980s soundtrack pumping making it clear this was not a place where hushed, reverent tones were expected.
The $298USD (before tax and tip and booze…deep breath) multi course set menu meant I didn’t need to make any decisions except about what to drink. As the sommelier poured me a complimentary glass of champagne to start and handed me a hefty wine book, even that seemed a little overwhelming. So instead, I made the decision to just give the expert a modest budget and after a couple of questions, he said ‘leave it with me’! We started with a very reasonably priced half bottle of a 2014 Gitton Sancerre Les Belles Dames which was lively and citrus driven, a great food wine. Then, as we moved into the more meaty part of the meal, he poured me a glass of 2009 Copain Pinot Noir from California that cost almost as much as the half bottle – worth every penny and he still came in under budget!
The food philosophy of baseball cap wearing Joshua Skenes and Saison is very clear – taste is king. Everything revolves around fire and local products, nothing is imported or commercially available. Taste drives everything. Whilst there is plenty of complexity in achieving that taste, essentially the quality of the produce and the skill of cooking with fire is front and centre.
The meal started with make your own wraps consisting of a bowl of gorgeous salad greens and slices of raw Amberjack alongside a sticky chicken wing and pieces of pineapple that had been charred on the fire. No cutlery to be seen, you just used your fingers to make the wraps and eat them. It was a fun, fresh way to start and I will definitely be grilling pineapple when summer comes!
I then had my texture issues seriously challenged by the appearance of enormous pieces of orange uni, the edible part of a sea urchin served on top of buttery, grilled bread. And this was before I actually knew that uni is the sea urchin’s gonads…best to not think too deeply about this. I took a deep breath and hoped for the best, but the flavour overtook any texture issues I had been worried about. Wow – no wonder this is considered a signature dish at Saison! The bread had been soaked in a sauce made of stock, seaweed, brown butter and lemon and somehow that massive umami kick plus the sogginess of the bread meant that the texture of the uni was not as challenging as I feared. I definitely needed the hand towel to clean up after that one!
The fascination with fire continued when I was presented with a beet that had been roasted for three days in the coals at the back of the open-flame grill. The tableside theatre really went up a notch when a waiter poured liquefied bone marrow out of the centre of a cow femur bone into a pot of beet sauce! The result was an incredibly rich, viscous beet dish that melted in the mouth.
Roasted, honey glazed quail was served alone on a plate with only a hand towel for company. Fortunately, I had just about finished the half bottle of Sancerre before I embarked on the experience of picking up a quail wing and gnawing on it at a three Michelin Star restaurant!
After choosing my own steak knife from a selection presented at the table (I had done that the night before at Atelier Crenn so I was really getting the hang of it), a roasted fillet of perfectly pink antelope was finished off by the waiter searing it on coals on a mini grill tableside and served with a southern style biscuit, dusted with chilli. Oh and house-made honey butter that made me keep eating the biscuit long after I should have stopped. Broth made from the antelope bones and topped with a sage leaf followed as the last savoury course. That was my first time eating antelope and it was tender and lean, similar to venison but perhaps a little sweeter.
The service was genuinely delightful. Equally adept with as much tableside service proficiency required as Atelier Crenn, but at Saison it was done with humour and a refreshing lack of ernestness. It’s possible a special effort was made because I was dining solo, but several wait staff engaged me in conversation over the course of the night about the food, the wine, where I was from and what I was doing in San Fran. I never felt like I was dining solo for long!
The friendliness seemed to seep into the whole atmosphere of the room. The sommelier had taken me on a tour of the open kitchen after I simply asked if it was ok for me to take a photo, a waiter from Adelaide wanted to know where I had eaten in his home town and we chatted about Hentley Farm, the couple at the table next to me struck up a conversation – she was an Aussie and he was Texan. The night had taken on a distinctly Aussie vibe in our little bar section of the restaurant and the presence of Ben Shewry, owner and head chef of Attica (which jumped from number 32 to number 20 in the 2018 World’s 50 Best list) sitting a couple of metres away at the bar just sealed the deal! It was really cool to watch such an accomplished chef be so excited about the food, taking photos and posting them to Instagram just like me!
The sommelier, who couldn’t possibly confirm or deny that was Ben Shewry sitting at the bar, then took my night to a whole new level by bringing out a bottle of 2002 Château d’Yguem Sauternes. He thought I might like a glass, on him. I know Sauternes dessert wines are exceptional, so this was a big deal. But it was only upon further research I found out this particular wine is widely regarded as the best Botrytis Semillon in the world. It retails for about $250 for a 375ml bottle and it was like drinking liquid toffee. That’s a pretty damn generous gesture and I’m almost certain it’s because I was a solo diner who was clearly enjoying herself to the max!
The three desserts of caramel sundae, wild strawberries and an orange buttermilk creamsicle (a mix of ice cream and sorbet) served inside a hollowed out orange were all delicious from memory! But by that stage, I was just way too in the moment and happy and yes, a tiny bit tipsy, to take any detailed notes to share with you here – my notes page on my phone finishes with “Antelope Broth”!
With a little dutch courage on board, I made a point of speaking to Ben and Josh as they were chatting at the bar. I dined at Attica in 2013 with my friends Matt and Lauren. We had booked dinner to celebrate mine and Lauren’s birthday and the week after we made our booking, Attica was named for the first time in the World’s 50 Best Restaurants List at number 21, the highest new entry. Attica was my first taste of a world class restaurant, my first time eating perfectly executed conceptual food. It was a nice moment of synchronicity to now be eating at Saison with Ben as a fellow diner. They were both very gracious, Ben taking the time to say goodbye as he left a bit later. After shaking Dominique Crenn’s hand the night before, I was basically in chef fan girl heaven!
A lot has been written about how eye-wateringly expensive Saison is (for a little while, the set menu was priced at $398 per person, but has since dropped to $298). With tax, compulsory gratuity and drinks (even with my very modest budget of $70) my experience at Saison came in at $474USD. That’s $641 Australian dollars. Easily the most expensive meal I’ve ever had. By a long way. By comparison, Reale in Italy, also a 3 Michelin Star restaurant and number 36 on the World’s 50 Best (up from number 43 when I visited last year – yay), came in at $450AUD for the 11 course menu with matched wines. It’s a huge difference – you could also get a room for the night in the gorgeous 16th century monastery at Reale with your leftover change. I’m a bit embarrassed even writing about the cost; it’s hard to justify even when you love food as much as I do. All I can tell you is that I had to look up my credit card statement, only 2 months since I ate there, to check exactly how much it was. I’ve already forgotten the cost, but as I’ve been writing this, I can still feel the texture of that uni and I when I typed the words ‘house-made honey butter’ I could actually taste the sweetness of that smooth, addictive stuff. And, it wasn’t just a great meal, it was a really fun night out which can’t always be said for fine dining. Worth it? Maybe not for some, but just take a look at my face below and you’ll know it was for me!
I first laid eyes on Crested Butte in the winter of 2002/03. I had just finished university and was due to start my first job as a baby lawyer in March 2003. A few months of adventure seemed like the right thing to do before …
Dominique Crenn is a rockstar. She is truly a world famous, instantly recognisable chef to anyone interested in food. Her flagship restaurant, Atelier Crenn in San Francisco was first awarded two Michelin starts in 2012, with Dominique being the first female chef in the US …
There are a few wine regions that make up California Wine Country, but Napa and Sonoma are the big ticket areas. The Sonoma and Napa Valleys are about 1.5 hours north of San Francisco and are separated by the Mayacamas Mountains. Napa is the glitzy, glamorous, fancy valley; long established as a wine and food mecca. Sonoma is way less pretentious and expensive and has plenty of authenticity, along with great wine and food. There is only one twisting and turning mountain road to connect the two – most people take the long way around the edge of the mountains if they are visiting both. Take the mountain road, the views are amazing and it’s a fun drive!
The towns in the valleys are often set up around a central square. Sonoma itself has a large square, with the town hall set within its lovely gardens. The town dates back to Spanish settlement times and has a number of historical buildings from that era. There are wine tasting venues in the towns as well as at the wineries in the valley, so you probably wouldn’t even need a car, but that would be doing yourself a disservice. I really enjoyed my drives through wine country; the Sonoma Valley was gorgeous and narrow and the grandeur of the wineries along State Route 29 in Napa was something to see. Some of these tips about driving in Europe will help you in the US too!
Trying to set an itinerary to make the most of your time can be a bit overwhelming – there are a lot of options – especially if, like me, you don’t know anything about Californian wine. There are loads of blogs and guides out there to read and help plan. Don’t try and master it. Don’t stress about whether you’ve been to all the places you should go. Just pick a couple of wineries, enjoy them and if you get the chance to go back, try some different ones! The stress of trying to get it right is going to suck you in if you let it!
I was fortunate to have a distinctly local experience, staying with my winemaker friend Danielle and her wine grower husband Dan. I arrived on the Sunday of Memorial Day weekend (without actually realising it was a holiday weekend when I booked the flights to San Francisco). It is considered the start of summer in the US and the weather cooperated. It had been cold and raining the previous week, but Memorial Day weekend saw blue skies and hot weather. I was lucky enough to attend a family and friends’ BBQ the day I arrived and a pool party at a large winery property the next day. On my last night, they took me up to the vineyards where Dan works and we did a tour around the vines on a gator and took in the stunning views from the top of the mountain range. I did zero planning for my trip, choosing to leave myself in the hands of Danielle and Dan and the tips their friends also gave me. So here are some spots I really enjoyed that you might want to check out if you make it to California Wine Country.
The Sunflower Café was my breakfast spot of choice, I went three times in the four mornings I was there! It has a focus on local produce and healthy breakfasts but still has waffles and eggs benedict on the menu if you need a hangover cure! There is a really pretty, quite large courtyard out the back with lots of cooling greenery and yellow tables and umbrellas. It feels a little like eating in a sunflower! Be prepared for a line to order, but once you get your order in, the food comes out super quickly.
Harvest Moon is Danielle and Dan’s favourite restaurant in town. They tell me the menu changes frequently but a couple of staples remain year round like the rib eye steak, the caesar salad and there is always a pasta dish and a fish dish. The food is locally sourced, seasonal and generous. The service was knowledgeable and friendly, but never intrusive. I would have been very happy there as a solo diner. Plenty of local wine options and whilst I had a couple of experts on California wine dining with me (we had a delicious Unti Grenache from Dry Creek Valley), I’m sure our waiter would have happily provided appropriate pairings if required.
Every Tuesday of summer, there is a farmers’ market in the main square of Sonoma which runs from around 4pm till dark. There is great produce available, food trucks and a band. It is very much a local affair. You take a blanket or some chairs down and can bring your own alcohol into the park. There were older groups who had staked out the tables in the park and brought linen and crockery with them, lots of families and kids. It had a great vibe. Try a poke bowl and seek out the excellent donuts!
Lasseter’s is the winery where my friend Danielle is Assistant Winemaker so I was lucky enough to get a private tour! But tastings are available by appointment and I would highly recommend it. The wines were fantastic and are served with paired cheeses. I really enjoyed the rosé blend of estate-grown syrah, mourvèdre and grenache called Enjoué which means joyful or playful in French and the Paysage which is a Bordeaux style red blend. The property itself is really pretty and a lovely environment to sit and try some great Californian wine. And check out the wine labels – works of art in their own right.
Salt and Stone is just down the road from Lasseter’s, on the main road that runs through Sonoma valley, surrounded by vines. There is a lovely patio to enjoy a full meal or you can show up to the bar for Happy Hour (2.30pm – 5.30pm) and have some Pacific Oysters for $2 each and small plates for $6.
Ridge Vineyards has two locations, one in the Santa Cruz Mountains which was first planted in 1886 and one at the very northern end of the Sonoma Valley where I visited. Ridge’s most famous wine is the Monte Bello, a Cabernet Sauvignon blend which took out fifth place in a Paris Tasting event in 1976. Thirty years later, the tasting was recreated and the 1971 and 2000 Monte Bello cabernets won first place in both the original vintage and new vintage categories at the “Judgment of Paris 30th Anniversary Wine Tasting”. Beating the French wines is something the winery is very proud of!
Tastings start from $10 and you can sit out on a beautiful shaded terrace, overlooking the old vines and rolling hills of northern Sonoma. I was lucky enough to be served by a lovely American woman who also happened to have dual Australian citizenship, having lived there for 12 years. The tasting of 4 wines, plus the Monte Bello for $10 extra took around an hour to complete and I learned a lot about the history of the vineyard and Californian wines in general.
Ridge is located about five minutes away from the town of Healdsburg, a really pretty little town. The huge, light-filled, industrial space of The Shed is home to a dine in cafe, a take away larder and produce shop and an upmarket retail space. It has its own fermentation bar – how very Californian! The food was local in focus and fresh and light. You can expect dishes like Mendocino Sea Urchin with Local Seaweeds; Charred Leek Terrine with Nantucket Scallops; and Salad of Heirloom Carrots and Dates with Wild Pecans and Salted Yogurt. I had what felt like a little piece of California for lunch, a strawberry and duck salad and a glass of rosé.
After my virtuous salad for lunch, I made up for it with some ice cream from Noble Folk on the square in Healdsburg. The list of ice creams available changes frequently and you can have four tastings before you commit. They also serve some great looking pies.
Williamson Wines is owned by an Australian couple who moved to the area 30 years ago. Staying true to their roots, it was the only winery I visited where the tasting was free of charge! It is located just off the square and is a tasting room rather than a winery based cellar door. Four wines were served along with cheese and chutney and jam pairings. It was a pretty slick operation, with a very practiced spiel from the young man who served me. Definitely worth calling in if you’re in town.
Sterling Vineyards was the only winery I visited that was a big, corporate tourist experience. It is actually owned by the massive Australian corporation, Treasury Wine Estates. I didn’t realise that until I arrived and the man operating the gondola told me (yes, there is a gondola to get up to the top of the cliff where the winery is located). There were a number of tasting options, I chose the base level which involved a self-guided sip and walk tour for $35 and you keep your glass at the end (not much use to international travellers who travel with carry on only!). I tried four wines at different stations as I wandered around the winery, learning about the wine making process from the videos playing on big TVs at different points. Whilst the experience was a little soulless and the wines that I tried didn’t excite me, the view from the top of the winery out over the Napa Valley was gorgeous and it was interesting to get the comparison of the big corporate versus the family experience I had at Lasseter.
Yountville is the food centre of the Napa Valley. I took a little drive here just to look at Thomas Keller’s institution The French Laundry! The town itself is pristine and pretty. I had lunch at Bottega, an Italian terraced restaurant with very professional service and an extensive menu of Italian classics. There was also a foodhall and retail market called Ottimo just across the way from Bottega (also owned by chef Michael Chiarello) where you could tuck into some pizza or salumi or pasta in a more relaxed environment. Across the street was Bouchon Bakery if you’re just passing through and would like a sandwich and a great looking cake from Thomas Keller – or can’t quite stretch to The French Laundry!
I feel like I barely scratched the surface of these valleys, especially when it comes to understanding California wine. I’m informed by the locals that the whole concept of drinking and driving is a little more lenient around these parts, but a lifetime of Australian values about that, combined with driving on the other side of unfamiliar roads, meant I kept myself to the 0.05 approach! That limited my tasting options a little bit, but if you can get a driver or even focus on tastings within the towns themselves I’m sure you can get a broader experience than I did. But, as I’ve warned Danielle and Dan, that just means I’ve got an excuse to return!
Destination dining has been a long established part of the Australian food scene. The Lake House in Daylesford was amongst the first to entice city slickers out to the sticks for a good feed over thirty years ago. Living in Port Fairy, the Royal Mail …
I had never eaten in a three star Michelin restaurant when I started planning my time away. I knew I wanted to include some of the Top 50 Restaurants in the world. I was researching the European options, preferably not in big cities, and came across …
First, let me say, Athens is a city that deserves more of your (and my) time than 35 hours. But, I appreciate it’s often a quick stop over destination before people head off to Rhodes, the Peloponnese or the Aegean islands. So, how can you get the most out of a quick 2 night, 1 day stay in Athens? Hopefully those 35 hours well spent will ensure you return and explore some more, but if not, this will cover the big sights and some hidden gems.
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It seemed fitting that I spend my first unemployed Monday doing something that was a big part of me deciding to become unemployed… eating and drinking! Tipo 00 has been on my “must do” list for far, far too long. I’m embarrassed as a proud …