Overview
It's time to put Dunkeld's Royal Mail Hotel back on your weekend getaway radar, as it opens the doors to a new fine dining offering, Wickens at Royal Mail Hotel. Taking over a new standalone space on the property, the remote restaurant is accessible by a bush trail the winds down from the hotel. It's been designed by Melbourne-based Byrne Architects to highlight its connection to its natural surroundings, with floor-to-ceiling windows capturing striking views of Mount Sturgeon and Mount Abrupt. Inside it's a luxe fusion of sheepskin leather, sandstone and Australian hardwood.
This respect for the land is mirrored in Executive Chef Robin Wickens' hyper-local menu, which'll change up regularly, dictated by the daily haul from the on-site olive groves, orchard and 1.2-hectare organic kitchen garden.
The garden-fresh goodies will inspire textural plate additions like soils, foams, purées, petals and vegetable infusions. Diners can enjoy the spoils via an eight-course ($185) or five-course ($165) chef's tasting menu, with a special chef's table in the kitchen available to groups of up to four.
Unsurprising, given the Royal Mail's award-winning 28,000-bottle cellar, the booze side of things sure isn't lacking, with three expertly curated wine matches on offer as well. Get a taste of the largest privately-owned collection of Bordeaux and Burgundy in the southern hemisphere with the five-course French match, celebrate locality with the all-Australian wine match, or mix things up with the cellar wine match.
The restaurant is a replacement of sorts for the two-hatted Royal Mail Hotel dining room, which closed earlier this year. The hotel's casual diner Parker Street Project — which is a good spot for breakfast if you're staying the night — has now taken over the space, which is connected to the hotel.
Find Wickens at The Royal Mail Hotel at 98 Parker Street, Dunkeld.