Pipers of Penola

“We work with our environment and what we can get down here – what’s local, what’s in season, what’s good. We know every local supplier by name.”

Scallop sashimi with shallot and seaweed vinegar, summer tomato gazpacho, rice noodles, and macadamia pesto; roasted loin of lamb, parsnip purée, miso-glazed eggplant, potato and rosemary galette, braised shank, and warrigal greens; and roasted pineapple puff pastry escargot with sesame seed crème pâtissière, halva, and almond frangipane.

Great wine regions deserve great restaurants, and having honed his skills in other fine regional restaurants, Simon Bowen returned to his home region in 2006 to deliver just that. The little white weatherboard former Methodist church now houses a European-style dining experience with, thanks to Erika, a distinctly warm and hospitable Coonawarra flavour.

Bowen’s cooking rolls sophistication and comfort into one, showcasing premium produce in a way that respects the work and care that has gone into growing it. He’s old-school enough to make his own puff pastry and new-school enough to recycle, he says, “everything we can”, right down to re-using the paper from menus and wine lists.

“Given the size of Penola and its distance from the big cities, it’s a wonderful surprise, and another example of how our wine regions nurture some of the state’s best dining.” –Simon Wilkinson, The Advertiser