The weather has turned cold and Chef Kurt Adam is getting excited. The New Zealand-born chef came up to the High Country to work a season in a mate’s pub at Mount Hotham.
A latecomer to skiing he was hooked. Well known for running the kitchen in the incredibly busy and much-hyped Auction Rooms in North Melbourne he and his partner made the move to Harrietville. He donned the chef’s hat in the kitchen of the Snowline Hotel and over the past four years he has quietly but methodically raised the culinary standard. The aim was to keep the locals happy while serving adventurous and hyper-delicious dishes to visiting skiers, hikers, bike riders and families. Because this old pub has the classic busy country pub feel and rustic well loved décor, the quality of the food truly exceeded the expectations of out-of-towners. This led to a torrent of positive reviews for The Snowline via Yelp and Tripadvisor this summer and hordes of eager new customers.
Adam delivers rock-solid pub classics such as the golden parma layered with gypsy ham and topped with real mozzarella. Another cornerstone dish on the menu is the venison cheeseburger made with two types of cheese, bacon and pickles. One of the new favourites is a dish of 12-hour slow-cooked lamb shoulder served with smoky baba ghanoush, pickled red cabbage with flat bread and a generous portion of chips. The main-course blockbusters follow a great offering of umami-bomb bar snacks such as salt ’n’ pepper popcorn squid: crunchy, juicy and moreish morsels of calamari dusted in flour and pulverised popcorn then deep fried. Adam can hardly wait to get his hands on the flush of autumn mushrooms and the bounty of nuts and chestnuts he will run as specials in the colder months.
The cold brings snow, of course: the ensuite rooms behind the Snowline Hotel are incredible value for money from $90 a night for a double. The owner of the Snowline, Bennett Mountjoy, does runs up to Hotham in the Snowline bus during the snow season, making the pub a practical and affordable base.
The Harrietville Snowline Hotel
237 Great Alpine Road, Harrietville, Victoria
Tel 03 5759 2524
www.snowlinehotel.com.au
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