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Dear Friends

Dear Friends leverages its Swan Valley location to the fullest. While restaurant manager Kelli Mainwaring sweet-talks local vignerons out of their cellars’ finest, husband Kiren works tirelessly to honour the produce he has hand-picked to represent the region. Like the homely dining room, there’s a rustic edge to grilled farmer-direct vegetables, poached bantam egg and an earthy kale broth poured tableside, but satisfaction levels are high. So, too, with an edifice of scallop and prawn boudin blanc, juicy Cockburn Sound blue manna crab and silky sweetcorn mousse, picture-pretty and too easy to eat. Expectations build through the meal, yet the tight-knit brigade is up to the task, right through to the swan song of an Eton mess, its airy marshmallow and crushed meringue pieces playing off the sweet summer fruits. A shining example for its wine-country peers.