The famed winery behind the Hunter Valley’s first skin-contact wines is now home to an impressive 180-restaurant complete with a private dining room, a cellar door, a central firepit and floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the winery and Brokenback Range. Richie Harkham’s eponymous restaurant is helmed by head chem Shaun Nash (ex-Cutler & Co) who’s serving up a mostly Italian menu with rigatoni alla vodka, meatballs, four different pizzas and a secret-family-recipe tiramisu. There’s caviar service, too, plus tins of sardines served with Jatz, native ingredient-spiked cocktails and a extensive wine list of minimal-intervention local and global wines – including, of course, plenty of Harkham’s own. 266 De Beyers Rd, Polkolbin; harkham.com.au.

Housed in a welcoming space previously home to Blue Mountains favourites Vulcan’s and Fumo, Ates (the Ottoman Turkish word for fire) has quite the legacy to live up to. Luckily for us, chef William Cowan Lunn (ex-Tetsuyas and Rockpool Melbourne) delivers, with an adventurous menu that never misses a beat. They’ve kept the wood-fired oven at the heart of the open kitchen, from which comes Mediterranean share plates in quick succession. House-made jersey milk comes alongside roasted peaches and hazelnuts, while beef tartare gets a Korean twist with gochujang and tartlets are filled with comte and caramelised onion. Mains are all from the fire: cauliflower, market fish, free-range duck or local mushrooms. The confident food and service of Ates is on par with any of Sydney’s heavy-hitting restaurants. 33 Govetts Leap Rd, Blackheath; atesblackheath.com..

Some of Australia’s best oysters come from Merimbula, and there’s no better spot to eat them than at seafood restaurant Valentina – right on the waterfront. As you’d expect the Mediterranean-inspired menu is packed with local seafood: whipped cod’s roe, scallops in beurre blanc, octopus with ‘nduja and blue swimmer crab pasta. Another reason to jump in your car and head down the coast: Valentina’s incredible Aperitif Hour from 5-6pm. Upstairs, 5/2 Market St, Merimbula; valentinamerimbula.com.

Sitting in a light-filled dining room, gazing out across the sea, sampling locally sourced seafood dishes inspired by a parade of global cuisines might well be the definitive Rick Stein experience. Appropriate, then, that the restaurant within Bannister’s coastal Mollymook hotel that offers it, nestled on a hill on the NSW South Coast about three hours from Sydney, bears the chef and author’s name. 191 Mitchell Parade, Mollymook Beach; bannisters.com.au.

Bistro LIVI is perhaps proof the renaissance of regional towns during the pandemic wasn’t a flash in the pan. The Northern Rivers homecoming of sisters and co-owners Danni and Nikky Wilson from Melbourne’s Carlton Wine Room and MoVida respectively, alongside ex-MoVida head chef and third amigo Ewen Crawford, brings a city polish to colourful Murwillumbah. LIVI is a blueprint for an exemplary neighbourhood restaurant and a beacon of optimism that, after a pandemic and floods, a restaurant and town can bounce back better. Cnr Brisbane St &, Proudfoots Ln, Murwillumbah; bistrolivi.com..

The kitchen at Humbug might specialise in moreish snacks and pasta but the food is shaped by the restaurant’s drinks list. Head chef Mike Portley starts with the wine first – sustainable drops that are biodynamic, organic or use sustainable practices – and then builds the menu from there. A humbug might be a dishonest person, but if you go hard on the snacks, split a pasta and drink with an open mind, you’ll learn that Newy’s newest wine bar is the real deal. 87-89 Hunter St, Newcastle; humbugnewcastle.com.au..

There’s no shortage of great dining in Newcastle these days but the place to be for a weekend lunch is Flotilla. Overseen by co-head chefs Jake Deluca and Darren Price, the menu is super-seasonal – the spring lineup currently starring fennel soup with ‘nduja, scallop crudo, coral torat with spätzle and roasted veal with broad beans. Flotilla is the kind of place where diners can happily leave the heavy lifting to the experts and just enjoy being along for the ride. It has a new Spanish bar next called Vecina, too, so you can continue your wining and dining well into the afternoon and night. 9 Albert St, Wickham; theflotilla.com.au..

The Palm Springs-inspired decor of the Kyah Hotel may seem a little incongruous given the mountains location, but step beyond the potted cactus and through the lobby into restaurant Blaq and you’ll find a spacious and elegant dining room that also manages to feel intimate and warm, especially if you nab yourself a table near the wood-burning stove. Choose from ‘smalls’ like grilled octopus with salsa verde and seared scallops with puffed rice or ‘bigs’ that include charred pumpkin with spiced chickpeas and pork belly with bacon cabbage and black pudding crumb. A welcome addition to the Blackheath dining scene, Blaq is worth travelling for – a prospect made even more enticing when you remember you can stay the night as well. 13-17 Brightlands Ave, Blackheath; thekyah.com.au..

With enigmatic vistas and a bountiful coastline, the Tweed Shire is a locale where some of Australia’s finest produce is grown. Like most of the Northern Rivers, Pottsville is characteristically tranquil, making it an unspoilt canvas on which Pipit can work its magic. The six-course lunch and seven-course dinner set menus change with the seasons, diving into canapes with the likes of smoked fish waffles, before punctuating the experience with thoughtful and meticulous odes to seafood like scorched squid with dried mushroom and mustard leaf. An all-Australian drinks list showcases single-vineyard, wild-fermented and new-age drops from fiercely passionate and lesser-known producers, so inviting that you might need to reconsider how you’re going to travel home. Shop 4/8 Coronation Ave, Pottsville; pipitrestaurant.com..

The Wollongong food and wine scene has boomed in recent years, with impressive wine bars, cocktail bars and restaurants filling the coastal town. One of the game-changers: natural wine bar-meets-finer diner Babyface Kitchen, which opened back in 2016. Head chef Andy Burns work closely with Australian farmers and producers to create magical dishes like hot honey-fried abalone, wagyu skewers with kombu glaze and a Moreton Bay Bug schnitty. Hot tip: swing by between 5-7pm on Thursday and Friday, and 5-6pm on Saturday for Halfway Sourced – it’s self-proclaimed ‘Wollongong’s best happy hour’. 179 Keira St, Wollongong; babyfacekitchen.com.au.

With its white rendered walls, bougainvillea and pastel-hued interiors just steps from Wategos Beach, Byron’s playground for the rich and famous is still the place to be seen. Thanks to head chef Jason Saxby, Raes Dining Room is a culinary destination in its own right. Top-notch Northern Rivers produce and native ingredients are the foundation, and while many of Saxby’s dishes take inspiration from fun and nostalgia, this is serious food. 6/8 Marine Parade, Byron Bay; raes.com.au..

A sense of yesteryear and holidays by the coast is your overarching sensation when arriving at Paper Daisy. Executive chef Andrew Milford’s menu is a palette of exciting flavours hinging on regionality and creativity – with plenty of seafood to boot. It’s home to the nation’s largest collection of Australian gins, too, and an impressive dessert menu spanning their take on the famed Splice ice cream, rum and smoked grape parfait and cheese. 21 Cypress Cres, Cabarita Beach; halcyonhouse.com.au..

If a stroll down Newrybar’s main street is a sure-fire way to incite nostalgia, then Harvest delivers chapter and verse on how seasonality and provenance are harbingers for incredible dishes. The menu is an ode to simplicity, with artisanal producers and their ingredients centre stage. It’s recently opened for breakfast – Mon, Thu, Fri, Sat and Sun – and is turning out the likes of hand-rolled buttery croissants, and fluffy brioche buns stuffed with jammy fried eggs and Bangalow sweet bacon. 22 Old Pacific Highway, Newrybar Village; harvestnewrybar.com.au

Not only is a trip to the Hunter Valley incomplete without a trip to Bistro Molines, it’s a wanton shame. Not only has this classic French cottage-core restaurant been a major player for decades, it’s got one of the most stunning views in the region. You could be in Australia, you could be in the French countryside, the only limit is your imagination. 749 Mount View Rd, Mount View; bistromolines.com.au.