Robert Upe and Barbara Sweeney hit the slopes to find a new breed of high-country chef serving up some real mountain magic.
Lifestyle wasn't a buzzword 40 years ago, when Bob Fleming first lit the gas burner on his stove at Mount Buller's isolated Koflers Hutte. It was an era when skiers wore tight skivvies and stretch pants, and Frenchman Jean-Claude Killy was the world's ski-race darling.
After all these decades, the fashions have loosened up and Killy has slowed down, but Fleming is still providing shelter for the cold and hungry while living with his wife, Christine, and a crew of 13 in cramped quarters on the quiet side of the mountain. Blizzards sometimes engulf them and leave long icicles hanging from verandahs and the deck chairs that are premium property on blue-sky days.
But Fleming alternates the big chill with the beach scene at NSW's Merimbula, where he spends the off-season. He isn't the only one mixing lifestyles.
It used to be a rule of thumb: the higher the altitude, the lesser the restaurant. No more. Thanks to a new generation of chefs embracing the high-country lifestyle, snow food is decidedly on the up. The latest breed of ski-fields restaurants are as on-trend as their sea-level siblings. But why take our word for it? Chuck on the snow chains and check it out for yourself.
One of the new breed of high-country chefs, Sydneysider Mark La Brooy also loves to swap the ocean waves for the snow. He and his partners from Bronte's Three Blue Ducks have ventured to Falls Creek with the coolest cafe in the snow, the Gully Restaurant and Bar. (Mark La Brooy's braised lamb shanks recipe here.)
''For the staff, one of the criteria is that they also have an interest in being on the mountain. They all ski or snowboard, too,'' he says.
The regional-seasonal local mantra has made it up the mountain. With a few exceptions, the Gully respects a 250-kilometre rule, with produce such as rainbow trout and craft beers sourced within that distance.
In the NSW snowfields, the dish that wins over skiers and snow boarders is goulash. Ski into Stephen Young's Alpine Eyre at the base of Eyre T-bar in Perisher for a cup of steaming goulash soup or tuck into the real deal at Wildbrumby Schnapps Cafe, on the road between Jindabyne and Thredbo, where the dish is made to owner Monika Spalding's mum's recipe. "Hearty mountain food, that's what people want," says Jean-Michel Gerst, the former executive chef at the Thredbo Alpine Hotel, who has struck out on his own at Jean-Michel at the Knickerbocker.
Here's some high-country dining to enjoy:
■ Kaptans restaurant at Pension Grimus
(03) 5777 6396; pensiongrimus.com.au; lunch on weekends, dinner daily.
Hans Grimus is the old-style host every diner longs to meet. After 50-plus years on the mountain he says he's slowing down, but with just a little arm twisting he'll regale you with mountain stories, a squeezebox and schnapps.
The restaurant is Austrian to the back teeth, with kaese spaetzle, wiener schnitzel and kassler (entrees $17-$21, mains $25-$39, desserts $16-$20). There's an open fire. Adjacent Herbie's Bar is an intimate space that can become raucous late, as the squeezebox gets louder.
Go for: Salzburger nockerl, a warm chocolate chip and hazelnut souffle.
■ Black Cockatoo at Mount Buller Chalet
(03) 5777 6566; mtbullerchalet.com.au; breakfast and dinner daily.
The highbrow influence is gone and the restaurant is more relaxed this winter. An Italian-influenced menu has osso buco as one of the stars.
Go for: Free-range suckling pig with cotechino sausage and herb dumplings ($38).
■ Koflers Hutte
(03) 5777 6241; 10am-4.30pm daily.
Simple and fresh. Soup, spaghetti bolognese, lasagne and sausages in rolls are ideal for a quick pit stop between carving turns.
Go for: Apricot mogul cake ($8): halved apricots topped with sweet pastry baked to resemble the bumps (moguls) on a ski field. Add cream to replicate snow. Out of the oven daily at 10.30am.
■ Powder Bar
(03) 5777 6181; bullercentral.com.au; open 10am until late.
This new kid on the block is at the just-opened Buller Central in the heart of the village at the old YHA site.
The Powder Bar is styled as Italian, a cafe by day and bar at night. Think pizza, panini, coffee served with nougat and hot cocktails.
Go for: Crusty Italian-style pizzas with minimalist toppings ($15).
■Cattleman's Cafe and Steakhouse
(03) 5777 7942; mtbuller.com.au; breakfast, lunch, dinner daily.
This busy eatery dishes out fast food for breakfast and lunch, but takes on a new persona for dinners this winter with British chef Greg Bell, who has a steakhouse pedigree.
Go for: The steaks ($36-$42).
■ The Gully Restaurant and bar by Three Blue Ducks
(03) 5758 3863; threeblueducks.com; breakfast, lunch and dinner daily.
New this year are American-style cheeseburgers ($10) with local beef and buns made in-house, along with all the restaurant's bread. Last winter's popular beef-and-pork sausage rolls - with smoked paprika, Spanish onions and chilli - are back at the same price of $1 an inch. With an interior of recycled timber, cowhide benches and spray art on the walls, the Gully delivers more than high-quality breakfasts and lunches.
''The menu excels in the evening, when we have some nice braised dishes,'' partner and chef Mark La Brooy says. ''Last year's popular duck dish is back, and there are slow-cooked lamb shanks and lamb shoulder.''
Go for: The duck with chilli jam, enoki mushrooms, Asian greens and coconut sambal (all mains $35).
■ QT
(03) 5732 8000; qtfallscreek.com.au; breakfast, lunch, dinner daily.
This is the former Quay West Hotel, now with the QT's funky branding and its restaurants, Stingray and Bazaar, that can also be found at the hotel chain's Gold Coast property.
Stingray has food such as tacos, burgers and quesadillas ($6-$23) while Bazaar recreates a marketplace with diner dishes - lamb shank, soft-shell crab and Cuban-style roast pork among them - either cooked to order or in the bain-marie (breakfast $32, lunch $49, dinner $69).
Go for: Stingray's chicken taco ($7): chicken marinated overnight in oregano, cumin, lemon and chilli, grilled and finished in the oven.
■ Summit Ridge
(03) 5758 3800; summitridge.com.au; open for dinner daily.
Can this highly regarded restaurant hold its standing with new owners going into their second season? The indications are good, with the restaurant recently making it into the finals of the Restaurant and Catering Australia regional awards for excellence.
Go for: Rabbit ballotine: rolled saddles of rabbit stuffed with apple and black pudding with creamy mash and savoy cabbage ($37).
■ Graze at Peppers Rundells Alpine Lodge
(03) 5159 6422; rundells.com.au; breakfast, lunch, dinner daily.
Some might pause, knowing that this cosy and classic lodge of timber and stone has been taken over by a corporate entity such as Peppers, but the restaurant and glowing open fire are as enticing as ever. After a 10-year absence from Dinner Plain, Leigh Irish is back from South Australia's Flying Fish Cafe.
Go for: The regional produce remains a cornerstone of the menu with Harrietville trout, Kiewa Valley black angus and Dargo walnuts (entrees $16-$18, mains $32-$40, desserts $16-$25). A five-course degustation menu is $89; book 24 hours ahead.
■ Tsubo
(03) 5159 6622; tsuborestaurant.com.au; dinner daily from 5.30pm to late, July and August.
Japanese styling with some sunken tables and a modern Japanese menu using local produce. Bar snacks $3.50-$6, small plates $18-$24, large plates $19-$30. Communal duck $65.
Go for: Confit chicken wing with sustainable Shark Bay scallop and kombu ($19).
■ The Denman Hotel
(02) 6457 6222; thedenman.com.au; open for dinner daily.
Chef Karen Forsstrom, of the Denman Hotel in Thredbo, is keeping her picnic menu for Clicquot in the Snow (July 29-August 4) under wraps for now; but there will be a snow bar built for the occasion, beanbags for serious reclining and bocce on offer.
Go for: Well-cooked steak, the view and special events.
■ Jean-Michel at the Knickerbocker
(02) 6457 6844; jeanmichelknickerbocker.com.au; lunch and dinner daily.
This is Jean-Michel Gerst's first season at Jean-Michel at the Knickerbocker, a name he chose to reference a style of early skiing apparel and the New York City hotel where the martini was said to be invented. Guests are already returning for tartiflette, made with Heidi Farm raclette melted in a gratin dish with potato, onion and speck.
Go for: Hearty mountain food.
■ Cuisine@Home and Alpine Larder
(02) 6451 3000; lakecrackenback.com.au; breakfast and dinner daily.
Hot-ticket events to look out for this season are the celebrity chef dinners, featuring Peter Evans, Steven Snow and Justin North, and the three-course truffle menu (black truffle ice-cream anyone?), served as part of the Canberra and Capital Region Truffle Festival.
Even though North has never been to snow country (discounting a school trip as a seven-year-old), he has instinctively drawn on warming European classics for his dinner in September. "I imagine being rugged up against the cold, log fires and big glasses of red wine," he says. "The menu will be full-flavoured and warming, not spicy hot." Guests can look forward to slow-cooked short beef ribs cooked in red wine with thyme and garlic and served with pickled and smoked tongue.
Go for: Celebrity chef dinners and family feasts.
■ Wildbrumby Schnapps Cafe
(02) 6457 1447; wildbrumby.com; open 10am-5pm daily.
At this farm on the road between Jindabyne and Thredbo, the goulash is made to owner Monika Spalding's mum's recipe.
Go for: Goulash and butterscotch schnapps.
■ Guthega Alpine Inn
(02) 6457 5383; guthega.com; 11am to 6pm daily, dinner by reservation.
Private ski lodges go to great lengths to pamper house guests and stories of delicious dinners served with fine wine do the rounds. Luckily, a few lodges, such as Eiger Chalet in Perisher and Guthega Alpine Inn in Guthega (which is open to everyone at lunch), accept outside guests for dinner if they have available tables.
Go for: Lunch and the view.
■ Snow Gums Restaurant
(02) 6459 4755; perisher.com.au; breakfast, lunch and dinner daily.
Sit in front of the fire and enjoy the spectacular views of Front Valley as you dine on local produce and enjoy apres entertainment.
Go for: An upmarket experience.
■ Alpine Eyre Kiosk
0417 449 013; breakfast and lunch daily.
There are lots of quick options for lunch on the slopes but Stephen Young's Alpine Eyre at the base of the T-bar is always popular. Try the goulash soup and gourmet burgers.
Go for: The Tex-Mex burger and piping-hot soup.
■ Aldo's Cafe and Pizza
(02) 6457 5032; aldoscafe.com.au; breakfast, lunch and dinner daily.
Italian cuisine that includes 14 traditional and gourmet pizza and six pasta selections.
Go for: Great coffee and crusty bread.
■ Kebabz Korner
0413 889 644; 8am-5pm daily.
In the Pub in Perisher, John Onur's sizeable and tasty kebabs are an institution. Onur opened his first Kebabz Korner in 1985 and now has a second outlet in Perisher as well as outlets in Jindabyne and Thredbo. The secret to his success? Local lamb and his closely guarded Mediterranean-inspired seasoning recipe.
Go for: A filling and tasty kebab.
■ Avalunch Cafe
(02) 6457 6333; 8am-5.30pm daily.
Another Stephen Young eatery, this one at the base of the Pretty Valley double chair.
Go for: A hot cup of hearty soup.
Restaurant reviews, news and the hottest openings served to your inbox.
Sign up