Appellation at The Louise - MARANANGA

As we were staying at The Louise, and given that we would not be driving (we love our wines too much, and then, there is the issue of which side of the road, one drives on, in Australia), we booked all three nights at their attached restaurant, Appellation. I was happy to do this for several reasons: first, I had research Appellation, its menus and credo of using fresh, and mostly local ingredients, and then because we often dine at Relais & Châteaux properties around the world, and have seldom been disappointed. In this case, we were NOT disappointed, in any way.The restaurant is in the “main building” of The Louise, and also has a bar, plus al fresco dining/lounging areas, overlooking lovely vineyards. As we were visiting in July, during the Winter, we were not able to use the outside seating. We also never actually made it to the bar, though did walk through the space several times.Our visit coincided to the day, with their seasonal reopening, but it was never evident that they had just opened, after a month’s hiatus. The kitchen, the servers, the sommelier and everyone involved, was “ready for business.”Our reservations were for early seatings each night, and though we arrived a bit early for two, were promptly seated – hence no visits to the bar.The room is simple in line, almost “minimalist,” but with very nice touches everywhere – art work, architectural elements, lighting – many things to attract and please the eye. The clean, almost “stark” lines, allowed one to easily focus on the accouterments, as one does in many Asian architectural spaces.We did the Wine Pairing on the first two nights, along with our Four Course prix fixe “Tasting Menus” (AU$135 and AU$60 per diner), and Sommelier Cassaly Fitzgerald did a wonderful job, both with the pairings, and then the wine service. We also added a couple of starter wines, or bubblies, prior to the commencement of dinner. Those gave us a bit of time to deliberate over our orders. I think that she picked up on the fact that we were both “winos,” and spent some time discussing the reasons that she had chosen each wine, with each dish. Even though we had spent the better part of each day, both tasting wines, and then discussing them, at length with the folk at the various wineries, we appreciated the “chalk talk.” On our last night, I played sommelier, and did the ordering, from the extensive wine list – with input from Ms Fitzgerald, only at the end of the meal. She said that I had done quite well in my choices!I had been a bit concerned about dining at Appellation for three consecutive nights, but I found that I had nothing to worry about. First, there were enough tempting choices to satisfy us for the three nights, plus then there were subtle changes in the menu, from night to night, and last, there were a few dishes, which bore repeating – a few of which, also had subtle changes in their ingredients, or preparation.Now, remember that the menus are both seasonal, and also subject to change, based on that day’s availability, so this will be but an overview of the Winter Menu, that we encountered:Citrus-cured Hiramasa Kingfish w/ avocado, finger lime and radish, paired with the Te-Aro Estate “Miss Savvy” Sauvignon Blanc/Semillon ‘16. Great Kingfish, and similar appeared on my wife’s order on the last night. Though she is not a big fan of most Sauvignon Blanc/Semillon, this wine went very well with the dish.Terrine of Red Beets w/ Vache curd, and toasted walnut vinaigrette, paired with the St Hallett “Aged Release Riesling ‘12. This dish would also appear in front of me on my third evening, it was that good. An interesting prep for the beets, and very tasty. The Riesling paired well.Twice-cooked Belly of Berkshire Pork w/ pickled carrot, soy pudding and sesame, paired with the à l’état pur Mataro/Grenache ‘15. Now, Pork Belly is not as easy to prepare, as some might think. One has fat to render, and some to be crisped, plus meat, which can dry out, if cooked to long. This dish was perfect, and was right up near the top of our list, competing with the dishes from many Michelin 3-starred chefs. While the à l’état pur was good, I think that a Pinot Noir, or Syrah (thinking Côte Rôtie maybe?) would have been better. However, as we were in Australia, we wanted the local wines, and think that we deviated from that dictate only twice, heading to French wines, albeit briefly. So, per our desire to drink the wines from Australia, with the concentration being on the local Region, this was a good pairing.Grain-fed Chicken w/ Adelaide Hills chestnuts, lachsschinken, and garlic/sage butter, paired with two wines: Eperosa “Blanc” Semillon ‘15 and Torbreck Marsanne ‘16. This was an excellent dish, and lovely wines. I know Torbreck for their giant Shiraz, but this Marsanne was sublime, and a big hit – reminded me of some of the best Hermitage Blancs that I have had in Europe. Oh, the Chicken appeared again, but for the other of us.Grilled Squid w/ spiced cauliflower, lemon purée and muscatel, paired with the Smallfry Wines’ “Schlieb’s Garden” Grenache/Mataro/Cinsault/Shiraz/Marsanne/Rousanne – almost the full possibilities of a Châteauneuf-du-Pape wine, and lovely with the Squid, which was excellent.Rare Fillet of Coorong Angus Beef w/ grilled brassicas, capers and kohlrabi, paired with the Izway Wines’ “Bruce” Shiraz ‘’10. The Beef was great, and the Shiraz a wonderful accompaniment to it. Best Beef of our 2 week trip.Wattle-seed Ice Cream w/ bittersweet chocolate, macadamia and olive oil, paired with the Dutschke Wines’ “The Tokay” NV. Before this trip, we did not know what Wattle-seed was, but this dish got an “encoure.” The wine was a tad one-dimensional, but still nice.South Australian Cheese Course:King Saul – Udder Delights Barossa BrieMont Priscilla – Section 28 “La Dame”Paired with the Turkey Flat’s Pedro Xeminez NV. This was the most interesting PX that I can recall having, and wonderful with the cheeses. Note: I also had sips of both my whites and reds, so played around with those.Then, we explored other parts of the menu:Slow-cooked Pullet Egg w/ peas, beans, pickled samphire and barley, paired with Eperosa “Blanc” Semillon ‘15. A variation of this Egg would show up on the last night, so it was deemed very good.Raw Fillet of Veal w/ native currant, artichoke and horseradish cream, paired with Soul Growers’ “Wild Iris” Chardonnay ‘15. Excellent Beef and rich enough white to carry the pairing.Quail Breast w/ braised beluga lentils and butternut squash, paired with à l’état pur Mataro/Grenache ‘15, from the night before. Very, very good, and the Mataro/Grenache did nicely.Hand-dived Kangaroo Island Scallops w/ spiced cauliflower, lemon purée and muscatel, paired with the Yelland & Papps “Second Take” Mataro ‘15. This was a weak dish, due to the Scallops, which my wife could not share in a tasting, but a variation did appear the next night, and was far better. I think that these particular Scallops might have suffered a bit from the trip up from Kangaroo Island? Those on the next night were firm, sweet and just better examples, IMHO.Hutton Vale Lamb w/ fennel, black garlic, and anchovy/kalamata preserved tomato just, served with the Marjico Wines’ “The Harvesters” Cabernet Franc ‘15. Very good Lamb, and the Cab Franc went perfectly, though I usually pair a Syrah/Shiraz. This one was placed into my notes, and I suspect that a Cab Franc will show up on one of my Lamb pairings in the future.Grain-fed Chicken, as before, but paired with the Torzi Matthews’ “Vigna Cantina” Sangiovese ‘16. Nice wine, but just did not match up all that well.Lemon Myrtle w/ torched Italian meringue, shortbread and raspberries, paired with the Kangaroo Island Spirits’ Lemoncello. Well, the dessert was very good, but wife did not really like the Lemoncello. She is much less a “spirits person,” though one local chef DOES woo her with his Lemoncello – but he’s about the only one.Wild Fennel w/ compressed apple, ginger mousse and vanilla, served with Jo Irvine “Mistelle” Semillon NV. This dish w/ variations, appeared on the table the next night. As low as the Lemoncello ranked with my wife, the Mistelle was a big hit.On our last night, the dishes mentioned above, mostly with slight variations, appeared again, and we indulged in a bottle of the Giaconda Estate Vineyard Chardonnay ‘12, the Elderton “Command” Shiraz ‘12, and David Franz’ “The Sticky” LH Riesling ‘11.For all three meals, we were treated to innovative and well-prepared food, almost flawless service (there was a bit of a “pause” in the first night’s service, before the Main Course, but it WAS their first night open in a month), and excellent wine service. We would gladly return, and hope to do so in the future. Again, a Relais & Châteaux restaurant has come through, with flying colors.

We dined at Appellation, the restaurant at the boutique hotel The Louise, the first night of our stay at that venue. We booked the meal weeks ahead of our stay via email. I don’t know for certain, but assume reservations are required.The entrance is through the beautiful entrance to the hotel under a canopy walkway with planters and water channels on either side. Through the entrance, it’s a short few steps to the restaurant. We were 30 minutes early and stopped in the lounge, just to the right of the restaurant, for a pre-dinner drink. A server came to the bar 15 minutes later and asked if we would like to be seated as they were set to go for the night. This was nice and nicely done.Our waiter approached very soon and explained the meal as four courses. You choose one option from each course; a first course which is an individual appetizer; a second course which sounds like another individual appetizer; a third course which is a main dish with sides; and a fourth course, dessert. This was one appetizer too many for either of us and the server replied they will adjust the meal, and cost, omitting one plate each, no issue. Then we discussed wine, and they have a fabulous selection! In the heart of Barossa, you might expect no less! He listened to our likes and suggested a few tastes of wines they pour by the glass but we didn’t really love either, so he sent the sommelier to our table and she was really good! She listened to what we like and don’t, what we were feeling like, what we enjoy, and made one suggestion that was spot on! We ended up sharing two bottles of the fabulous wine over a few hours of a fabulous meal!All the wait staff were awesome. The person who poured water was perfect at her role. Server and Somm were amazing, and upon leaving, I imagine as we were hotel guests, there was only a cursory review of the charges. They were perfectly attentive throughout the night, with water glass never empty and fresh bread freely flowing. The plates were beautiful and so tasteful, my only regret is I couldn’t manage to eat that first course or I would have had to give up the last.I highly recommend Appellation for a meal. If you are hotel guests it goes without saying, but if you live locally, are planning a trip to the area with other accommodations or visiting on a driving tour and looking for a place for a great meal, this is the place. Highest recommendation!

We went as a group of thee couples on a Thursday night . It's degustation with only four courses. The first course (Kingfish Chervice cured in citrus) was excellent but it was down hill from there on. The rest of the food was mediocre and cetrtainly not worth the high price tag . The wine pairing was indifferent but the worst of all was the service . On the wine service the word that comes to mind in 'niggardly'. The first serve of each wine was less than 100ml, barely enough to taste let alone 'pair' We were told at the start not to worry as, if we finished the tasting alotted us, they would serve more. At one stage one of our party asked for more of a particular red and was told "There are more wines to come " The waitress' tone verged on impatientAs the evening progressed we were constantly looking for the wine waitress to make good her promise to top us up , but she either was busy at the other end of the restaurant or no where to be seen.The retaurant atmospere was austere, even chilly ; the service unnaceptable for a restaurant that boasts interantional clientelle.At these prices , there are a lot better places in the Barrossa

My husband and I, along with my mother and 2 Sydney foodie friends, all were staying at The Louise for our Barossa wine tasting adventure. We had dinner at its well regarded restaurant, Appellation, for our last night.Dinner was...mixed. We had been advised in advance that a Tues night dinner would be a Chef's choice tasting menu--which was fine with us. We advised about food allergies and preference to assist in advance, as well, so we felt quite comfortable. However, on service of our first course, the 5 of us were served 3 different items! This was very strange to us, as NONE of us ever had had such a Chef's choice being served with different items for the same course. We expressed our dismay and surprise...and our otherwise nice server simply apologized and didn't make a change at all--bringing 3 different items for our next course and for dessert. A true service letdown, to be sure.Otherwise, we enjoyed most of the food. My two courses were wonderful...but I wasn't so keen on the quince dessert. (To be fair, I hadn't liked the quince courses anywhere else, either!) Some dishes were more subtle in taste than others, certainly--mine fortunately were the more bombastic in flavor, so I enjoyed mine more than others liked theirs, apparently.I chose a great South African white to pair with the dishes, though we had only vague ideas of what was to come. The server wast much help in identifying wines that could pair well what our dinner was to be, and there is no sommelier. That was incredibly disappointing for a restaurant that wants to be considered high level dining,The other service fail was that the first courses were brought out to us before we had ordered the wine! The server KNEW that we were trying to choose wine, even. I complained to our server, and she apologized for the obvious error of the kitchen sending out the orders too early. Then nothing. No free round of drinks for the mistake. No comp of the bottle of wine (we ended up trying to order a second bottle, but there were none left...nor any recommendation given for a good alternative--third poor service experience). No offer to make up for the obvious snafu. Not impressive. Overall, we would not choose to dine here again were we back at The Louise or in the Barossa. The service is too uneven and disappointing for a restaurant charging this price. There is no true management. And there is no one willing to take responsibility for when mistakes occur--which is why they continue to happen and things won't change. Our Sydney friends had told us they'd had a poor experience on their last visit a few years prior...so this experience only exacerbated the fact that the restaurant has an endemic problem with service with no interest in resolving that. A fine meal, for the most part...but let down by stupid chef's choice miscues and unimpressive and sad service problems.

We recently dined here to celebrate a special birthday. The restaurant came highly recommended and we weren't disappointed. We had the degustation menu and, although not cheap, it was one of the best meals we have tasted anywhere. We can't wait to go back.