Rampant creativity. Iron-clad conviction. Flawless execution. It’s a recipe for genius, and for a decade-and-a-half it’s drawn acolytes up the Hume to worship at this Japanese-hued shrine. For all his ambition, one thing’s clear: owner-chef Michael Ryan is devoted to deliciousness.

Local venison is ruby-middled magic. A plush wild boar meatball is skewered and rolled in a sweet-sour sauce. Brussels sprouts are undergirded by the boozy rasp of a sauce of sake lees. An inspired dessert sando’s roasted soybean shell clasps miso-honey ice-cream.

Cocktails spotlight one of Ryan’s myriad pursuits: the making of amari, Italy’s botanical liqueurs. Drink a negroni made with his Beetlejuice amaro, then repair to the upstairs speakeasy for a Yackandandah Old Fashioned heroing his spiced chocolate bitters. Emotionally resonant, sui generis food that swells and settles under the baton of a High Country maestro.

Good to know: The boutique accommodation is very reasonably priced, and the in-room breakfast is a delicious survey of some of the region’s best producers.

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