“I believe that 100 per cent of my energy should be spent in the kitchen and the restaurant, and I want to work with producers who spend 100 per cent of their time in their field of expertise – growing, rearing, and producing the best-quality ingredients.”

Cos lettuce, simply dressed; beef short rib with duck-fat carrot, smoked cashews, spiced cream cheese, and chargrilled lime; and the Black Box (tempered chocolate box with seasonal contents).

Experimentation, thy name is Ides. This handsome, dimly lit space in the hipster heart of Collingwood’s Smith Street is the crucible for the sometimes adventurous, sometimes comforting, always delicious food of Peter Gunn.

The former Attica right-hand man turned solo restaurateur celebrates the end of summer with a collection of just-blanched cherry tomatoes with a tamarind-spiked eggplant purée centre crowned with goat’s curd, candied pine nuts, or watercress flowers. Winter might be heralded by a slow-cooked lamb neck arriving, like the ultimate Sunday farmhouse roast, in a tangle of parsley stalks and a handful of vegebased side dishes.

Ides is as unfussy as a set four or six-course menu gets, the staff are fully engaged, the wines are low intervention, and there’s a sparkling sense of fun. (Spoiler alert: you may have to break open your tempered chocolate box with a stainlesssteel hammer.)

“Experimentation is central to the Ides idea. Buy a ticket, take the ride.” goodfood.com.au