Those who’ve wished to dine at Spicers Sangoma Retreat’s intimate fine diner could only ever do so if they were staying at the Blue Mountains property.
But from Friday 5 March 2021, Amara Restaurant will open to visitors, by reservation only, sharing one of the region’s best-kept secrets with a wider audience.
Amara Restaurant aims to take guests on an intimate, personalised culinary experience through degustation dinners and lunches carefully created by head chef Will Houia.
Each dish showcases local producers within 100 kilometres of the venue and Spicers’ sustainable on-site practices, culminating in meals that are designed to be savoured, not rushed.
“We have built incredible relationships with our local suppliers and work together to deliver the finest produce the region can provide and bring out it’s best in the kitchen,” said Houia.
“We’re very lucky that Spicers has so much support for standards we set in Amara.”
Houia’s food philosophy is all about a simple, natural approach to cooking (he prefers charcoal and fire over gas and electricity) and utilising local and indigenous ingredients to add subtle layers of flavour.
Amara sources as much produce as possible from Harvest Farms, a community supported agriculture project that supplies local restaurants and the public from two organic farms in the Hawkesbury.
Amara’s meat and seafood comes from ethical suppliers including Melanda Park Pork and Wilberforce Meat Co. and they support the GoodFish project to only serve seafood from sustainable fisheries.
The sustainable initiatives are part of a wider green commitment at Spicers Sangoma Retreat, which includes a dedicate, in-house Green Team to ensure nothing is wasted and single-use products are avoided.
For small business events and corporate trips, Spicers Sangoma Retreat offers six suites of four different types, plus luxury amenities such as the sauna and spa with Australian bush-inspired treatments.
Amara Restaurant gives groups even more reason to whisk their teams away for the day, to meet and connect over a memorable dining experience.
