Anabel Dean joins the socially-distanced crowed of pandemic escapees to explore the streetscapes and epicurean delights of Mudgee, regional NSW. ‘Zest me a lemon?’ she asks. ‘Peel me a potato?’ ‘Roll out the dough?’ We are sitting at a kitchen counter waiting for Tamara Howorth to make lunch, but the artisan chef who runs The Little Cooking School in Mudgee is not just here to share her culinary expertise, she is making us work. In…
It’s a frigid winter afternoon in the Southern Highlands and the Wingello Village Store is closing. ‘Come back tomorrow,’ calls a chirpy adolescent through the diminishing space in the door jam. ‘We serve good breakfast.’ Then he’s gone. The warmth inside is palpable even through the window. There’s a wall papered with newspaper clippings: local celebrities and feats of heroism. Shelves are filled with cutesy-kitsch teapots and homemade biscuits in big glass jars. An open…