Looking for somewhere special for Sunday family lunch? Wild Canary, the botanically themed bistro hidden behind Brookfield Garden Centre, ticks a lot of boxes. Perch outside on the deck, overlooking the extensive custom-built biodynamic kitchen garden, or head inside, where the sunny soft furnishings, popping with yellow chairs and fresh flowers, make the restaurant feel like one big living room.

Whatever is sprouting in the kitchen garden dictates what’s on the menu that day; grilled fennel, perhaps, to serve with a twice-baked bisque and snapper crab souffle, or breakfast of grilled mushrooms, with green lentils, feta, basil pesto and eggs.

It’s hearty country-style cuisine (think a ploughmans-style lunch, with vine leaf wrapped pork terrine and cloth bound Maffra chedder), softened by chef Glen Barratt’s fine-dining touches and penchant of edible blooms.

The keeper of the cake cabinet generally employs a more-is-more touch when decorating, topping winter strawberry sponges or raw dragonfruit, coconut and lime creations with a riot of pretty petals, meringue shards and everything in between.

Have a wander through the garden after lunch, and if one of the forty different herbs on offer tickles your fancy, pop into the garden centre and grab a planter to take home.

Regular producer lunches are excellent value, generally around $65 for five courses, and showcase the bistro’s local suppliers.

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