NOW EXPERIENCING:Hentley Farm

Among winery restaurants, this is hard to beat – a dining room at the heart of the vineyard where a magic produce-driven menu is matched with celebrated single-estate wines.

In the kitchen at Hentley Farm
Why you goThe concept of the winery restaurant is not new, but it’s not always done as well as it could be. Often the winemaker-landlord isn’t willing to share the limelight as much as they should, or a chef refuses to accept their food has to be an equal partner in a double act with the wine on the table. Hentley Farm has always understood the delicate balance required to make it work and, now, more than a decade since opening in 2012, and with chef Clare Falzon building spectacularly on the foundations laid by Lachlan Colwill, it remains a benchmark for what a winery restaurant can be.
Why you stay

A unique kind of farmhouse-Zen embraces you on arrival at Hentley Farm’s restaurant, a space that feels truly connected to the vineyards surrounding it and the history of the Seppeltsfield village nearby. It’s quiet and calming, the ideal staging place for a collection of exquisitely executed dishes and matched wines that comprise a compelling dissertation on the concept of terroir – the character of wines particular to the place where the grapes are grown.

Everything that passes across the tongue, every element on the plate, every note in the glass, has something to say about the cycle of the seasons, the importance of working in harmony with nature, and the underlying origins of deliciousness. This is a restaurant that feeds mind, body and soul.

What drink to orderYou won’t actually order as such – wines from the Hentley Farm range have been precisely paired with various dishes and you’ll choose pairings from either the “farm” range or the super-premium offerings in the “luxury” range. Whatever option you choose, you’ll get some of the Barossa’s most celebrated and awarded wines. Riesling and shiraz are obvious strengths, but pay special attention when your glass starts to fill with grenache. Winemaker Andrew Quinn and his team have a proven affinity with the variety, even winning the prestigious Jimmy Watson Memorial Trophy at the Melbourne Royal Wine Awards in 2022 with their Old Legend Grenache, only the second time the variety has taken out Australia’s most famous wine show award.
Hentley Farm winemaker Andrew Quinn
Hentley Farm chef Clare Falzon
Why we love itClare Falzon is one of those chefs so connected to the landscape around them you almost want to check the soles of her shoes to see if she’s sprouted roots. She nurtures deeply trusting relationships with local farmers that really pay off with what she can put on the plate. She properly understands the process that grows and makes the wines she gets to work with. And she measures time not by the markings on a calendar, but by what nature assembles on her kitchen bench at any given point. Her deft cooking is born from both careful learning and unteachable instinct, delivering dishes that emphasise harmony and seasonality above all else.
Regular's tip

The only thing better than waking up and gazing out over vineyards to where you’ll have lunch is ordering another bottle of wine at the end of that lunch and looking back towards where you’ll rest your weary head. Andrew and his wife Skye operate Cambourne, a beautifully restored cottage on a hill overlooking Hentley Farm that can sleep up to six guests in pampered comfort. It just makes sense.

If you’re here simply to try some of the Barossa’s most acclaimed wines, the cellar door is open daily from 10:00am to 4:00pm; be sure to book beforehand.

Make it fancyGroups of seven to nine can choose to dine close to all the action at the Chef’s Table. Up close and personal with chef Clare and her team, guests can see for themselves the precision and professionalism of a truly great brigade in action. They can also hear directly from those feeding them why the meal is planned out the way it is and the origins of key ingredients, and get a real sense of the skill and effort required to make the magic on their plates.
Inside the restaurant at Hentley Farm
Who to takeWho to take? Well, who do you know who would most benefit from a weekend away, most enjoy a deep-dive into one of the world’s great wine regions, and be most inclined to travel around the region, tasting at some of the finest cellar doors in the land? Once you’ve answered that, the question of who deserves a dining experience among the country’s best, with a lunch that expands the notion of what can be done with great wine and food, pretty much answers itself.