AUSTRALIANTRAVELLER.COM 23
Botanic-based tipples, PRODUCE-DRIVEN triumphs
and veritable WINE LIBR ARIES to wet your whistle;
this season is going to be simply SUMPTUOUS.
wine & dine
FIVE MINUTES WITH DEAN
JONES OF BELLS AT KILLCARE
Taking over the reins as executive chef from Stefano
Manfredi at the beginning of this year, Dean Jones
talks past, present and future at one of New South
Wales’ more beloved boutique hotels.
WHAT’S DIFFERENT AT THE RESTAURANT
SINCE STEFANO MANFREDI HAS LEFT? The
restaurant itself has had a bit of a facelift inside and
out. We have enclosed the verandah, which has
added to the usability and has become an instant hit
with customers. It’s now the place to dine day and
night, but with the same al fresco feel as before. The
new floor-to-ceiling glass louvre windows frame the
garden beautifully and the kitchen garden has been
replenished for the winter season, according to what
grows well through autumn and the cooler months.
DO YOU STILL HAVE A CLOSE RELATIONSHIP
WITH HIM? Stefano is one of my mentors and
someone whom I have great respect for. It’s always
good to have people to bounce ideas off and I know
I can do that with him.
HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR FOOD? It is
a reflection of my experiences, with a strong Italian
focus on seasonality, preparation and combination
of flavours. Bold flavours but simplistic. Doing the
classics well and also using the Italian way to prepare
unique Australian produce with a modern take.
IS THERE ONE DISH WE SHOULD MAKE SURE
WE TRY? The spaghetti with sea urchin butter,
bottarga and brown butter crumbs. In my opinion,
it’s a great example of the last question.
WHAT ARE THE BIGGEST CHALLENGES WITH
A RESTAURANT IN A HOTEL?
The biggest challenge for me is keeping things
interesting for in-house guests and balancing that
with a busy restaurant. If we have people staying for
three or more nights, it’s nice to be able to offer
different food items on the menu.
YOU HAVE A KITCHEN GARDEN AT BELLS.
HOW REALISTIC IS IT FOR RESTAURANTS
TO GROW THEIR OWN FOOD? I think it is
realistic to grow your own food. It’s not easy, that’s
for sure, but you get out what you put in. You have
to be proactive and always planning for the next
season. At Bells, we keep all our kitchen green waste
for compost, always putting back what we take out.
I personally think it’s better to grow more of one
item and have that truly be on a menu for the whole
season, than to grow too many different things that
won’t sustain a menu.
WHAT DO YOU THINK THE NEXT BIG FOOD
TREND IS? I believe everything goes around and
comes back again; it won’t be long before you see
formal dining making a strong presence once again.DOOT DOOT DOOT^
Opened since April in the year’s most
exciting new hotel, Jackalope, Doot Doot
Doot is pure destination dining. As moody
as the rest of the noir-esque hotel on the
Mornington Peninsula, the restaurant turns
Victorian produce to pure elegance in the
hands of executive chef Guy Stanaway.
Choose from either a four- or eight-course
menu and sit beneath a huge chandelier of
some 10,000 glass orbs, or hop across to
Rare Hare, the more casual eatery and new
cellar door of Willow Creek Wines.
jackalopehotels.com; rarehare.com.auWINTER FEASTS
Each year, former Longrain
executive chef Martin Boetz
throws open the doors of his Cooks
Co-op produce enterprise – which
supplies some of the best
restaurants in Sydney – to host a
winter feast cooked up by some of
our best chefs in a super-chic tin
shed on the Hawkesbury River.
This year includes Danielle
Alvarez of Fred’s and Colin
Fassnidge of 4 Fourteen and My
Kitchen Rules. cooksco-op.comGET REGAL
The talented Philip
Moore, horticulturist,
herbalist and craft
spirit guru at Distillery
Botanica, has foraged
ingredients in the
Sydney Botanic Garden
to produce just 1000
bottles of Rather Royal
gin. Be quick to nab one!
distillerybotanicagin.comSHORTCUTS | Wine & dine