Set within its beautiful heritage dining room with soaring white columns and luxurious styling, est. is synonymous with eating out on a grand scale. However, a new venture, with brewery James Boag, sees executive head chef Peter Doyle bringing a little of the rugged beauty of Tasmania into the dining room for this year’s Melbourne Cup.

Harnessed at est., a Tasmania Melbourne Cup event at the restaurant on November 1, will give guests a unique dining experience. Inspiration for the bespoke menu came from a recent trip to the Apple Isle by Doyle and right-hand man Jacob Davey. On the trip, the pair visited local farm, sampling the best local and seasonal produce the state has to offer.

“Tasmania seems to be attracting a new groundswell of energetic producers who are forging a new path for quality produce,” says Doyle. “They are passionate and, combined with the quality of the natural environment, they know they can achieve their dreams.”

Doyle has managed to keep est. at the forefront of the nation’s dining scene for well over a decade. Davey was handpicked by Doyle in 2014 after he won the 2013 Young Australian Chef Of The Year Award.

On designing the menu, seasonality and availability were Doyle’s two main considerations.

“We want to showcase the ruggedness of wild Tasmania as well as the best quality produce and ingredients they have available and integrate that to the refined style and atmosphere of est.,” he says.

Having a good working relationship with producers and suppliers is critical to any success, according to Doyle, “as without the right quality produce you cannot achieve the standard you need to be successful”.

Although it’s not yet known precisely what will be featured on the Tasmania Melbourne Cup menu, with Doyle and Davey having visited fruit and vegetable, oyster and mussel, cheese and quail farms, it can be expected to be well-balanced, high quality and tantalising fare.

Thinking beyond this one event menu though, Doyle believes his trip to Tasmania will influence much of his work in the future.

“Any trip like this is an ongoing source of inspiration, because you’re drawing on the memories that you experienced while you were down there.”

Take a behind-the-scenes look here: