Overview
First there was camping, but nature is icky and the hard ground is no Posturepedic. Then there was glamping, which is certainly a step up but still requires you to be outside with only a thin velour track pant and tasteful white canopy between you and the bugs. But now, thankfully, there's a way to get the best parts of camping (good company and fire-cooked food) without having to leave the city or wear ugly hiking shoes and unflattering shorts.
Hunter and Barrel is the new dining concept hitting Sydney and Melbourne. With a menu focused on coal-roasted meats and seasonal vegetables, big barbecued skewers, sharing boards, stews, soups, pies, and generally hearty fare, H&B delivers the sensory experience of camping without the inconvenience of actually, y'know, camping. Think warm, hearty dishes such as slow-roasted beef rib, seafood and pork belly cooked over the restaurant's coal grill (hot tip: order The Hunter's Feast), washed down with your classic craft beer or barrel-aged wine.
Although contemporary horror films have taught us to fear the foreboding idea of a remote cabin (thanks Evil Dead and Cabin in the Woods), the primal part of our psyche still longs to get back to nature. Bradley Michael, the CEO of Seagrass Boutique Hospitality Group who own Hunter and Barrel, told Good Food the venue had a “sexy camping, hunter’s cabin feel.” The décor at Hunter and Barrel, designed by ODO, features big rocks and rustic pipes — and your drink comes delivered by a suspended wall covered with barrels.
Hunter and Barrel is now open at 303 Cockle Bay Wharf, Sydney.
Via Good Food.