Chef James Viles calls his guests today – a group of passionate local Southern Highlands producers – his bread and butter.

“That’s how it’s happened at Biota. The relationships we’ve formed over the last seven years have been natural and local,” he explains. There’s Jo Dodd, from Quarter Acre Farm, who grows James unique wild weeds like flickweed and dandelion, as well as edible flowers – today she plucked a load of citrus from her trees and dropped them on the kitchen pass before sitting down to lunch. Jo introduced James to John Scott, a beekeeper, who keeps hives on the Biota property. From early days, cheeses from Pecora Dairy down the road have appeared on the restaurant’s menu. Garlic grower Russell McKean arrives at lunch brandishing a soil-laden bunch of fragrant green garlic – it’ll appear later tonight. What this means for Biota is a menu that changes not only seasonally, but often daily depending on who drops by.

Inspired by New York State’s Blue Hills at Stone Barns, a big expansion is in the works at Biota: luxury accommodation, a vertical garden, and a fruit orchard out the back. Of his guests, James says: “I want these producers to connect. They are bloody good people and they support us as much as we support them.”

Set the scene

Guest list
Joining James were his former head chef, Joel Bickford (now at The Gantry in Sydney); Jo Dodd, from Quarter Acre Farm; Russell McKean and wife Naomi, from The Good Garlic Guy; Cressida and Michael McNamara, from Pecora Dairy; and local beekeeper John Scott and wife Maria.

Style
“We have a lot of ceramics, big natural vases and plates at home,” says James. “We have a big farmhouse table and everything just naturally works together. I love serving food on tactile dishes.”

Menu
“My mates come and we sit on the back deck and pile the table with food,” says James. “We love to be casual, but still use lots of seasonal produce.” See here for James’ complete menu, inspired by the Southern Highlands. 

Playlist
“I set the scene with tunes,” says James. “In the kitchen I’m used to Metallica and heavy metal. At home, I love Australian artists like Xavier Rudd – no-shoes hippie kind of music.”

Drinks
“I love a tinnie any time of day,” laughs James, “because they stay cold. Right now, it’s Mick Fanning’s Balter beers. I’m always getting in trouble for taking them home.” Says Biota’s sommelier Ben Shephard: “We try not to choose wines that are too serious and instead go for lesser-known grapes and more fun-style wines. As Biota transitions into a more casual venue, we tend to source our wines by word of mouth, not necessarily local to the Highlands, but small producers. There’s one wine that I have, Trousseau (from Amato Vino) where they only produce 30 cases a year and I have six of them.”