VICTORIA
Big in
Beechworth
Located 2 hours and 45 minutes from
Melbourne by car, Beechworth is a
historical town with a small culinary
scene that is making a big statement. It is
a small picturesque town that is worth
exploring, especially the Historic and
Cultural Precinct. Before you start on
your tour though, head over to
Beechworth Bakery on 27 Camp Street, an
institution that is known for its Ned
Kelly Pie, Beesting Cake, and more. The
wait was worth it.
Both were sublime. The pie oozed with
a rich beef flavour when I bit into it; the
chunks of tender beef, gravy and runny
egg all blended together perfectly for
gratifying moreish bites. The beesting pie
was also delish, oozing with rich creamy
custard that teased without being
overbearingly sweet. It exploded in my
mouth with delicate sweetness and
smoothness. It is impossible to stop until
all the goodness was depleted.
With that insane taste of sweet and
savoury heaven lingering on my palate, I
headed over to Beechworth Honey, an
iconic brand in Australia. The shop on
37 Ford Street showcases over 30
varieties of honey and a range of beauty
and homeware products. Then head over
to its restaurant, cellar door and garden
at 87 Ford Street for a taste of wholesome
bee-inspired dishes and sip on delicious
honey mead. Education is part of the
experience as well, and a stroll through
the bee garden will yield an up close look
at a working honeybee colony.
That night, we headed to two-chef’s-hat
MUST-STAY
While in Beechworth, we suggest you rest
your head at Freeman on Ford located on 97
Ford Street. It is a bed and breakfast unlike
any other. It was evident from the moment
Heidi Freeman greeted us at the door. Her
professional but warm demeanour and
attentiveness to detail made me feel like I
had stepped into a five-star luxury hotel cum
elegant Victorian-styled home. Heidi was a
delightful hotelier cum mistress of the house
who made us feel welcome in the drawing
room while she prepared some tea for us. Our
luggage were attended to while we waited.
As I sat in the sumptuous room, I noticed
the glittering chandelier, the ornate fireplace
mantle and the intricate fresco wall painting
of a floral pattern running parallel to the
ceiling. This building was built in 1876 but its
refurbished condition is stunning. Heida and
her husband Jim Didolis, had remained true
to the Victorian Italianate architecture, and
had received heritage awards for their
restoration efforts, which warrants the work
to be labelled as “painstaking opulence”. No
expenses were spared to re-create glamorous
rooms reminiscent of 1930s luxury.
I was led to the ground floor Deluxe
Crystal Suite, the largest at Freeman on Ford.
The baroque-style king-sized bed with
pillow-top mattress and plush bedding
looked inviting – and led to a night of deep
slumber. The suite faced the pool and
landscaped gardens of the property, accessed
by huge French doors that led to a private
terrace. It was a setting that promised an
indulgent evening of bliss while sipping a
bedtime drink – either in the cool of the
terrace or by the warmth of the impressive
fireplace facing the bed. The opulence
continues in the en suite bathroom, which is
clad in Cararra marble – from the jaccuzzi
bathtub to the vanity countertop and the
shower cubicle. And the set of amenities
rivals that of any five-star hotel.
A night at Freeman on Ford has to be
experienced if you appreciate tiny details,
from the original hand-carved bed frame and
furniture to the expensive and pretty sets of
chinaware in the full kitchenette. Not
forgetting Heidi’s passion and dedication to
the true meaning of good old fashioned
high-class hospitality.Provenance Restaurant & Accommodation
(theprovenance.com.au; 86 Ford Street)
for a highly-anticipated dinner. Helmed
by owner and chef Michael Ryan,
Provenance serves dishes inspired by
regional produce and chef Ryan’s travels
to Asia, especially Japan, which is a
strong influence in his food. A particular
fondness of chef Ryan’s is to experiment
with textures in his dishes and to
highlight vegetables as more than just a
garnish.
We had a delicate start to our meal with
the house-made silken tofu with soused
seafood, wasabi and ginger. It was a small
bite that made a deep impression with its
range of flavours to titillate the taste
buds. On that note, we moved on to the
spanner crab with nuka pickles, almond
and shio koji milk, leeks and keel oil, a
simple dish that impressed with its
freshness and complex layers of
Japanese-inspired ingredients. The
fermented pickles added crunch to the
springy texture of the crab and rounded
up the flavours with a hint of sourness,
uplifted by the enhanced umami and
sweet notes, thanks to the shio koji.
Heavier dishes such as the smoked
wallaby with grilled lettuce, yoghurt,
preserved lemon and karkalla, and the
duck breast with sweet and sour
zucchini, braised eggplant, puffed grains
and lomo were big hitters without being
overwhelming, perfectly balanced by the
contrasting textures and flavours. The
degustation dinner ended with a lovely
dessert of poached quinces, membrillo
puree, green tea cream, chestnut jam and
buckwheat, which was another example
of a well-balanced dish that impartedsweet but refreshing flavours.
With the variety of fabulous fruits and
vegetables in the High Country, chef
Ryan’s menu continues to delight his
guests in the region as well as an
increasing number of young Melburnians
who appreciate his refined spin on
seasonal Victorian produce mixed with
Asian ingredients.Beautiful red-brick houses
abound in the small town of
Beechworth