We’re deep into a new chapter for the former partners of sustainable winery fine diner Arimia, now helming an evening affair on Margaret River’s main drag.
There’s no path through bushland. No estate-raised pigs. No trout hiding in the brook. In fact, from the outside not much about de’sendent suggests a link with Arimia, the celebrated sustainable fine-diner chef Evan Hayter and business partner Ann Spencer closed in 2023. But then you take a seat and the connection is thrown into sharp relief. A tasting menu starts with snacks: three bites presented on a bed of seashells that showcase Hayter’s obsession with detail, from reworking the Indonesian cracker, krupuk, as a miniature cornetto, then filling it with marron, to dressing Albany rock oysters with Arimia olive oil and aged rice-wine vinegar. His talent for bringing unexpected touches to familiar presentations remains, too, from a tartare spun from dehydrated carrots, to a hit of Thai basil and curry leaf adding fragrance to gruyere-filled tortellini served in a smoked-onion consommé. Same goes for Futari Wagyu sirloin topped with XO cuttlefish, sauced with chicken and squid-ink jus – all savoury depth and texture. The finishes in the room are elegant, the mood is intimate, the wine is beautiful and Spencer treads the floor alongside a team of pros fully committed to the cause. The spirit lives on, but de’sendent is charting its own way forward.
In other news
