A whimsical food adventure with just the right amount of Sault.
Sault features its own lake and acres of well-maintained gardens and lavender fields. There's a chapel overlooking the lake that was built with recycled timber on the outside with large windows and dreamy white interior for the perfect wedding, perhaps? Yes, you can get married at Sault and I haven't even touched the surface of the dazzlingly restaurant yet.
Sault is picture perfect. It has a 180 degree view of lavish green grass, the forest, the lake, the lavender and hilly views presented a nostalgic feel complete with being inside in a candlelit table to make your heart yearn for a place it hasn't been to before. At night, there's fairy lights on the outside area, open fire during the winter when the snow covers the establishment and the Sun sets in the most ideal of locations.
The service, the ambiance and the paintings on the wall for sale are exceptional. I have been here twice and I'm reassured what 5 star ratings are all about. The staff greet you in a professional manner and glide between tables that offer great knowledge on matching regional wines.
What is food like at a place like this? Wowing. They even pick their own herbs and condiments from the garden.
We have tried three dishes from the tapas menu. Grilled scallop with sobrassada, cauliflower purée and tapioca caviar, the spinach, porcini mushroom and San Simon cheese croquettes with pine nut emulsion and the grilled octopus with confit potato, black garlic aioli, edamame bean, smoked paprika and olive oil. The presentation makes you fall in love with food again. These starters set the tone for the entire evening letting you know that food and creativity is well and truly alive. So is the taste. The grilled scallop are large and filled with flavour thanks to the well thought out ingredients. The grilled octopus is a fun dish that makes you smile because there has never been a time where grilled octopus has looked this colourful. The arrangement of the black garlic aioli and edamame beans is as if you have found this dish sitting in the ocean floor. Perfectly cook accommodated with ingredients that bring out flavour after flavour. The porcini mushroom was juicy and cheese croquettes tasty, went well with the rest of the servings. Remember to not order 100 of these tapas, because there is mains and desserts still to go believe it or not.
For the mains we ordered the Hopkins River eye fillet steak, mushroom purée, grilled onions, baby corn, thyme volcanic salt with red wine jus and the roast free-range corn-fed duck breast, carrot and citrus purée, sweet spice crumble, honey and lavender jus. We also order the triple cooked royale blue potatoes with brava sauce and aioli. These mains, especially the duck, had the most amazing presentation that resembled an eatable garden. The eye fillet steak was perfectly cooked and juicy as a steak can possibly be. I loved the thyme volcanic salt with the rest of the flavours that spoiled you for a number of complimenting tastes. The duck breast has the carrot poking out of the sweet spice crumble to mimic dirt. The taste was just as impressive, perfectly cooked again.
We had a number of desserts over our time here which included the affogato (it doesn't look much, but it's a must have, delicious with Frangelico and amazingly tasting vanilla bean ice cream, it has hazelnut biscuits too), the choc mousse (presented like a perfectly created scene on a farm, with flavours any sweet tooth would dream of) and the field of mushrooms, can you guess the presentation here?
The menu does change (sadly), some favourites remain and ingredients altered for the seasons, but whatever you're in for, I'm convinced, there's not a bad apple in their offering.
It's memorable and you will be coming back as often as you can. If you don't experience this wonder, it's one of those places that I can safely and rarely say you're missing out.
Maybe you will have your wedding here one day? read more
