Georgia Moore, Editor in Chief
Mumford and Sons, Prizefighter
“Reach across again, here’s where heaven starts, I end where you begin, with my hand over your heart.” That line, at the 3:20 mark of Conversation With My Son (Gangsters and Angels), is all the evidence you need that Mumford and Sons speak to a certain kind of person with a particular set of feelings. Prizefighter, produced by Aaron Dessner, is the sound of a band that has made peace with exactly what they are, and it suits them. The guests help. Badlands with Gracie Abrams is the one that stays with you, her delivery finding something I didn’t expect in Mumford’s voice. Prizefighter is the other highlight – honey soaked vocals perfect for a chilled morning sipping tea at home. A welcome return from a band I had missed.
The Fauna dinner at Casa Perth
There are few things in Perth dining life quite as galvanising as a 6am email from Casa announcing they are flying in two exceptional chefs with five days’ notice and a firm directive to book immediately. It is the culinary equivalent of a fire drill, and one you should not ignore. The Fauna dinner did not disappoint. Greenlip abalone tostada with smoked bonito pate and burnt habanero, grilled octopus with roasted tomato and mojo sauce alongside very special tortillas, and an ajonjoli con chocolate to finish, built around black sesame, chocolate and macadamia from pastry chef Maribel Aldaco. This is one email database to stay subscribed to.
Dave and Busters, Clarkson
It is perfectly fine to never grow up and consider a round or six of Mario Kart a legitimate Saturday night out. When I lived in Canada, Dave and Busters was kind of weaved into the social fabric of Toronto. You simply went, ate something you probably should not have, played more games than your age suggested was appropriate, and felt better for it. The Perth opening in Clarkson fills a gap that parents of young children in this city have been quietly lamenting for years.
The floor covers everything from Godzilla VR and Top Gun Maverick to Mario Kart, Halo, NBA Hoops and the dodgeball arena game. On the food front, the wings are the obvious order, the brisket nachos are built for a group, and the prawn and chorizo rigatoni is a better plate of pasta than you have any right to expect in a room full of arcade machines.
Melbourne rapid-fire weekend
There is a version of Melbourne that exists purely for people who know how to move through a city at a turbo, let’s squeeze this lemon till there’s no juice left pace. A long weekend spent ricocheting between a game at Marvel Stadium, France-Soir, Gimlet, Caretakers Cottage, Bar Carolina and the Hyde Hotel is exactly that kind of trip. France-Soir remains one of Australia’s great dining rooms, unchanged in all the right ways. Gimlet holds its own as the city’s most reliably excellent meal. Caretakers Cottage is cute, fun, polished and serious all at the same time. Karen Martini’s new Bar Carolina on Toorak Rd is the late-night argument for one more meal. To sleep: Hyde Melbourne. The moment room service delivers whipped taramasalata to your room while you catch your breath watching Friends and Neighbours, it counts as an easy new favourite.
Chicken bone broth, Wholefoods Circus, Shenton Park
Worth every cent, and worth telling people about. The chefs roast their chickens simply, seasoned with salt and pepper, then strip the meat and reserve all the bones and juices. Into the pot go two onions (skin on), two carrots, two sticks of celery with their leaves, a tomato, whole peppercorns, bay leaves, a dash of apple cider vinegar, parsley stalks and thyme. I am drinking this straight out of bed every morning and so far so good on staving off the winter cold.
Reviewer, Jono Outred
Bair Bones
When Tasmania’s Van Bone closed its doors in 2024, it was a noticeable loss for the country’s dining scene. But, as the saying goes, as one door closes another one opens – and that door has opened at Margaret River’s Mr. Barval Winery. Troy and Laura Stucken launched Bair Bones out of the winery’s cavernous barrel room to offer a stripped back dining experience that mirrors much of the ethos of what they created in Bream Creek. It’s south West and on-site grown produce at its nucleus now, however. Stirling Ranges beef with pickled radicchio, a light, creamy broth flavoured by Cambray Cheese Farmhouse Gold, and Lake Jarvis potato with whipped bottarga were just a few locally sourced highlights – all paired with current and back vintage Mr. Barval Wines.
Su Legno Nero
Sue Legno makes beer, but not a lot of it. Owned and run by John Ricciotti our of South Australia, Su Legno bucks alot of the craft beer trends of the 2020’s, instead zeroing in on traditional technique to produce a range of barrel fermented ales, all packaged in elegant 750ml ‘champagne’ bottles. Su Legno’s Nero is a particular highlight, being a barrel fermented stout with layers of subtle complexity. The big win is these larger bottles are perfect for sharing at the dinner table; oysters, smoked meats, strong cheeses or fruit-forward desserts to name but a few great options.
South Australia
Gee, South Australia punches above its weight, doesn’t it? I’ve been lucky enough to visit twice in the past 12 months, providing ample opportunity to see just how good the food and drink scene is. Café culture is strong (Yuna in Mile End a highlight with its Japanese style breaky), Adelaide’s ‘China Town’ easily rivals that of Melbourne or bigger cities, and the Adelaide Central Markets is wall-to-wall great food (like carbonara from Lucia’s or a porchetta roll from Marino Meats). Plus, you’re never too far away from a good wine, literally, as South Australia boasts three wine regions less than an hour’s drive of its CBD.
Pick & Mix Lunch from Coventry Village
Sometimes, when it comes to lunch decisions, there isn’t one single cuisine on the mind. And in those moments, there’s really no need to compromise with Morley’s Coventry Village at the ready. The sprawling marketplace is primed for lunch time window shopping with its 40-odd food stalls. A shared family lunch recently featured Singaporean omelette and rice from Kin Kitchen, Burek from Sultan Café, roast pork buns from Hedy’s kitchen and Laksa from D’Big Mama – just a handful of options alongside fresh produce, seafood, meats and dry goods.
Nanna’s Pantry Nannup
Although Nannup is small, quiet and not so renowned for its dining prowess, the tiny town sits right in the heart of some serious produce growing territory. Nanna’s Pantry is a humble one-stop shop for good local produce and pantry supplies in the tiny town. The shelves and fridges are stocked with hyper-local ingredients like Fulcherello Farm lamb, Chestnut Brae Pork, Cambray Cheese, Southern Roasting Co coffee beans, Millers Ice Cream, Karri Country Potatoes, Nannup Estate Olive Oil, and always a smattering of freshly grown produce delivered by locals with a surplus.
Guide Editor, Max Brearley
HYDE Perth
Fans of boho chic with a side of tzatziki are in luck with the arrival of HYDE on Pier Street. This global brand with LA roots now lists Perth as one of its outposts. The ground floor Greek leaning restaurant Farra, led by Executive Chef Aaron Moore (ex Coogee Common), shows early promise. Rabbit meatballs and a glass or two of Cretan white are my idea of living.
Gladstones, Crown Perth
Feeling bougie? You could drop almost $300 on a 150ml Coravin pour of Giaconda, or a lot, lot more if you hit the bottle list at Crown’s new wine temple. Named for Dr John Gladstones who identified Margaret River as a region with potential for high-quality wine production, the list is of the quality you’d expect, with pours from about $25 up. This is sit and savour territory, aided by discreet design and a bar menu that could see you stretching your night out.
Winter at The Lodge Wadjemup
A recent stay proved to me that Island life doesn’t just need to be a summer pursuit. The Lodge Wadjemup is set to hold its first Island Cellar Nights collaboration with Vasse Felix, launching their 2024 HEYTESBURY Chardonnay next month (June 20th). Mat Powell, Executive Chef at Sunsets is overseeing a five-course menu to be paired with a selection of Vasse Felix wines. A long weekend of good wine and rugging up?
The Kings Arms, Roupell Street, London
What do you do when you land in London at 4.30am and need to kill time until a late afternoon check in? Take a walk yes, but also test that the pub radar still works. It does. On a nineteenth-century terraced street close to Waterloo, this is what I’d term as a proper pub with proper pints. Obviously I had to sample several pints of hand pulled real ale. All in the name of quality.
The Hobson, Cambridge
When you’re in a city that has an architectural span of about 800 years you want to stay somewhere that in itself has equal charm to the city around you. I’m at The Hobson in Cambridge, a newly opened modern apart-hotel that has managed, thanks to its Grade II heritage listing, to retain the grand staircase, soaring ornate windows and bags of other detail. One of those, I could live here moments.
Sophie Gargett, Reviewer, WAGFG
Hunter Bread, Bicton
I love everything about Hunter Bread. I love the warm toast tones of the industrial interior and the rough hewn wooden bowls on the counter cradling dinner rolls. I even love waiting in the long line first thing in the morning to secure my weekend supply. There’s a silent camaraderie in standing behind a fellow devotee, anticipating what will be left when your moment arrives. But perhaps more than even the bread, I love the goat’s cheese croissant. A rustic square of chewy tangy sourdough bliss wrapped around a hunk of chèvre, encased in a crunchy seeded exoskeleton of pastry, pushed just to the cusp of burnt. Who would have thought that the salty sister of the saucy pain au chocolat could be the star.
Salted Honey
Speaking of pimping out your sweet things to the savoury gang, I have two game-changing words: Salted. Honey. On a trip to Denmark, I stopped by Bartholomew’s Meadery and sampled myself into a glucose-high on honeys spiked with chocolate, turmeric, ginger and liquorice. But the flavour I can no longer live without is the simple salted. It is rye toast’s best friend, the finishing touch to caramelised roasted pumpkin and the elevation for your Hunter Bread’s goat cheese croissant. It’s also a great twist for honey ice cream using the base recipe from the master: Chez Panisse’s David Lebovitz.
A slight chicane from food, my favourite thing of all this month is The Bear’s standalone special episode, ‘Gary.’ For those many fans among us who proprietorially spruik the first season as a masterpiece of frantic humanity played out in the kitchen, and who felt slightly betrayed by season three’s contrived artsiness and slow pace, this is a return to form. I’m told I’m a walking #spoileralert when it comes to the screen so I’ll say no more; if you’re an original Bear fan, watch it before people like me spill the beans.
Launceston, Tasmania
Hobart is Tasmania’s culinary scene-stealer so it’s a surprise to learn that little old Launceston is Australia’s only UNESCO City of Gastronomy. Makes sense – one of my best dishes in a week on the island was a plate of home-made ricotta with zucchini pickle at the unassuming Havilah Wine Bar. Another Launnie spot that justifies its culinary designation is family-run merchant Stockton & Co . A curation of Tassie and Japanese wares, you’ll find local hand-thrown ceramics next to Japanese artisan knives, woven Tasmanian wool scarves draped around Soy Fish lamps. No wonder my kitchen gadget of the month came from here: a fiddle-bow bread knife crafted from Tasmanian Blackwood that pairs perfectly with a block of sourdough.
Il Santo, Claremont
There’s a flurry of excitement around the Il Lido crew’s rebranded osteria, Il Santo, formerly Nolita. If my first try is anything to go by, the hype is deserved. There’s a lot to love on the menu but one thing is set to become iconic: the Shark Bay prawn sandwich is the twenty-twenties’ prawn cocktail. A hefty crumbed prawn, fine shreds of mayo dressed iceberg between squishy, perfectly nutrition-free white bread, it’s the saint of the menu.