An intimate new Margaret River dining experience from a couple of Tassie pros

Ahead of another sunny autumn week in Perth we’re looking from south to all the way north with today’s stories. First up is an exciting new dining experience in a Margaret River barrel hall, from a couple who are back home after running a popular restaurant in Tasmania.

Back up and closer to home we meet the man who wants to take on cattle emissions with a Fremantle seaweed farm, before racing all the way up north to find out the Forrests’ ambitious new Ningaloo eco-resort finally got the go ahead last week.

^{Troy Mutton, Editor, Perth is OK!}

Margaret River’s dining scene has its fair share of fine diners and elevated food experiences.

But you really can never get enough of a good thing, and a new player has entered the arena with an offering that challenges for top dog when it comes to refined ‘paddock to plate’ dining.

While Tim Hardy and Laura Stucken only recently decided to call Margaret River home, their Bair Bones concept comes with several years of tried and tested experience via their hugely popular, now shuttered Van Bone restaurant out of Tasmania. After closing the Bream creek restaurant to start a family, the duo has now settled in Margaret River, where Laura grew up and met Tim years ago.

They’re now primed to reimagine what they created in Tasmania, but with southwest ingredients and their own market garden produce at its nucleus.

“We enjoy applying our skills to any well looked after produce, and there sure is a lot to enjoy here in WA,” Laura tells us. “Van Bone was a set menu using our produce that we picked daily and paired it with seasonal produce we found as close to our restaurant as possible.

While Pemberton’s past fame was mainly built around its massive karri forests, its potential as a perfect little getaway in the South West only grows and grows.

With an expanding wine region that’s become renowned for stellar pinots thanks to the cooler climate, it’s becoming much more than just a stopover to destinations further south.