The Summertown Aristologist

The Summertown Aristologist is probably my favorite place to eat in South Australia. Since its opening in October 2016, it has brought upon a velvet revolution to the Hills community. The concept is idiomatic, and the inspiration comes from the original Uraidla Aristologist which was the first of its kind in Australia. The name sums up wonderfully what the venue is about. Aristology meaning the art or science of cooking and dining that encompasses the growing, preparing, curation, presentation, consumption and experience of a meal.

Co-owned by three partners, Anton Van Klopper (Lucy Margaux), Aaron Fenwick (Château Comme Ci Comme Ça) and Jasper Button (Commune of Buttons). All three are natural winemakers in the Adelaide Hills. The restaurant is only open Friday to Sunday, lunch and dinner. The rest of the week, the chefs spend time on the farm, which is ten minutes away, tending to their vegetables which all go on the menu. The creativity of the menu, which changes on a weekly basis is something I pursue with fervor. Seasonality is one part of the cooking but what makes this even more interesting is the series of chefs-in-residence that come and develop their own interpretation of what’s available from the farm as well as what can be sourced from other neighboring ethical producers.

It is incredible to see how tasty vegetables turn out to be when they are nurtured from the earth by the same chef who will later put it on your plate. All is farmed organically with methods of permaculture. This is why having a meal there is a complete experience of tasting through a thoughtful menu and unraveling complex flavors from simple ingredients. A place where I go and I don’t have to think and make any decisions, I just let the lovely staff surprise me with the sumptuous dishes and wine.

The winelist is an impressive concoction of natural wines from all over the world. Truly international in its offering, the ethos is about wines that are made from organic or biodynamic grapes, unfined, unfiltered using only indigenous yeast with less than 20 parts per million sulphites, preferably… no sulphites at all. They have a cellar downstairs where the home cured meats are hanging amongst the wood carved wine shelves holding about 300 different labels. The bottles are placed in the same order as the winelist is written, so you can pick from the winelist and find the bottle on the shelf to find out about the label. They even have a tasting table which you can book for dinner or lunch or simply for a tasting. A very intimate setting… beautiful smells.