AMAZING GRAZE
A vibrant agrarian adventure awaits at this historic hotel’s regional restaurant, writes TRISTAN LUTZE.
Gundaroo, on the edges of the Yass Valley, is the kind of one-street, tin-roofed
New South Wales town endearingly immortalised in the poetry of Henry Lawson. Once a pit stop on the trade route between Cooma and Gunning, the Gundaroo’s Royal Hotel has offered respite for weary travellers evading both hunger and the ubiquitous threat of bushrangers since 1865.
Today, the spirit of Lawson’s “uncounted half-way houses and scores of ten-mile inns” is preserved not only in the mud brick hotel’s gentle, ageing bow, well-worn timber floor and glowing fireplaces, but in the warmth of chef Kurt Neumann’s agrarian fare.
Introductions to the menu from the sharp, amiable staff hint at the usual regional eatery tropes – “local producers”, “kitchen garden”, “seasonal ingredients” – but a lightly grilled oyster topped with a charry miso caramel, its shell brimming with beurre noisette, suggests there’s a little more off-script intrigue to follow.
Starters crackle with enthusiastic inventiveness, whether in the confident simplicity of a grilled za’atar-spiced goat kofta on a swirl of smoked yoghurt, or the surprising theatricality of a butterflied prawn dotted with peas, clams and prawn oil, luxuriating in a bisque-like emulsion. Main courses settle more predictably into the proteinforward regional inn routine, be it the slab of soft pork belly with braised sugarloaf and a richly savoury apple soubise, or a fried disc of Pedro Ximénez-braised beef cheek with a tight quenelle of mashed potatoes.
Disappointingly, the celebration of local produce doesn’t translate as neatly to the sole vegetarian main course offering; a trio of baked zucchini flowers glued together with a chalky legume stuffing. Begging for a hit of seasoning and more of the vibrant carrot hummus beneath it, it’s the only muted note in an otherwise vibrant offering, partnered proudly with a brisk wine list drawn from the most celebrated of the surrounding Canberra region winemakers. Heavyhitters Clonakilla, Mada and Collector Wines rub shoulders with smaller local producers like Tallagandra Hill and Mount Majura – the team confidently well-versed in their respective merits – while beers are similarly pulled from nearby.
Things finish as convivially as they begin, with a selection of largely local cheeses or a cosy dessert; a viridescent slice of smooth feijoa tart, or a glossy candied lemon tarte Tatin that’s as comforting, classic, and well-built as the building it’s served in. Just the warm hug needed to sustain you for the long, dusty ride home.