As of earlier this year, the the site of Wild Dog restaurant and five kilometres south of beautiful Warragul has been reborn, now refurbished as Hogget by chef Trevor Perkins and winemakers William Downie and Patrick Sullivan. A true gift for locals and a tempting stop on a road trip out of Melbourne, the winery-restaurant-cellar door has been reshaped and reworked to seat up to 80 guests, presenting an food and wine experience set against the rugged Strezlecki ranges.
Perkins, who joins the project from local favourite Big Spoon Little Spoon has created a concise menu to complement the wines on offer, mirroring the focus on simplicity, seasonality and generosity with a particular love of artisan butchery and highlighting local Gippsland produce. Think roasted lamb saddle with zucchini and tomato, eight-hour smoked short rib with blood plum and pickled peppers, and desserts like farm fresh apple pie with cream and ice cream, all with a dedication to in-house curing and in-house butchering (for the meats of course, right before they are cooked over an elemantal grill).
In order to tease the most flavour out of the produce, Perkins will be making use of open outdoor cooking over charcoal coals with local wood, said to infuse unique and rustic flavours into the meats while making for a unique open kitchen to the restaurant. Meanwhile vegetables will be freshly plucked each day.
Hogget
Address: 6 Farrington Close, Warragul
Contact: +61 3 56232211
Website: www.hogget.com.au
Hours: Breakfast and lunch daily; dinner Thurs-Sun
Image supplied and credited to Tim Grey.
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