Australian Gourmet Traveller - (03)March 2020 (1)

A

s thelunchcrowdbegins

toarrive,BrigitteHafner,

ownerandchefat

MorningtonPeninsula

newcomerTedesca,is making

fettucine.Thepasta,partofa

five-coursemenufocusedonlocally

sourcedingredients,is madeusing

eggsfromherownchooks.It’llbe

tossedwithmusselsfromFlinders

Pier,zucchinifroma nearby

farmanda thrillinglycleansauce

madefrommusseljuice,lemon

zest,parmesan,a littlebutter

andCapeSchanckoliveoil.

Hafneris workingat a bespoke,

blackened-timberkitchenbench,

backdroppedbya sizeablebrick

hearthequippedwitha woodfired

grillandoven,andcrownedwith

a massive antique stone ram’s

Ness,whohasdonea superbjob

modernisingtheoriginaltimber

buildingwithoutlosingitsintegrity.

Theopen-planspacefeaturesa

long,centralbenchstrewnwith

vasesofflowersfromthegarden,

lamps,glassesandcutlery.The

windowpanesarewonkywithold

glass.There’sbeenmoneythrown

at it buttheroomis relaxed.

Thepricetagis alsorelaxed:

it’sanall-inclusive$110.The

osteria-stylemealstartswith

antipastoandthenrunsthrough

pasta,fish,meat,anddessert

courseswithVietnamesecoffee,

filteredrainwateranda tip

included.There’sonlyone

seating,sothepaceis languid.

Ingredientschangefromweek

to week, depending on what’s

Clockwise

fromabove:the

privatedining

room;King

Georgewhiting

withsumac,

corianderand

walnutdressing;

generalmanager

JamesBroadway,

andarchitectand

designerPatrick

Nessandowner

andchefBrigitte

Hafnerwith

theirdaughter

Vivienne Ness.

head.It’snotsomuchanopen

kitchenasanextensionofthe

diningroom.Guestswanderup

tothebenchtochattothechefas

sherollsandthencutsthedough.

It feelslessrestaurantandmore

likelunchat a friend’shouse.

Thisis thefirst“real”kitchen

Hafner’shadinmanyyears.At

pioneeringwinebarGertrude

StreetEnotecaherrepertoirewas

restrictedbyspace.Sixteenyears

later,it’sapparentshe’sspentthe

timethinkingaboutexactlywhat

shewanted.Tedesca(Italianfor

“German”)is notonlyimpressively

competentbutalsooriginal:a

modern-Australianversionof

a traditionalItalianosteria.

Thedesigncomescourtesyof

Hafner’s husband, architect Patrick

Modern-AustralianosteriaTedescaoffers

anoriginalmenuinfluencedbyItalyand

beyond, writesMICHAEL HARDEN.

Euro vision

46 GOURMET TRAVELLER