Last week I joined a long table dinner at Settler and Sons with my sister Goldfields Girl. Picture this: a balmy summer afternoon you meet with a group of people to board a bus that will drive you out to a farm. After a cruisy ride through a few small country towns, you climb off the bus to be greeted by an excited dog and few disinterested sheep. You walk down an unsealed driveway lined with trees to a farmhouse to eat amazing food fresh from the farm.
This was how my evening began. One hand keeping my new Capital Girl straw boater on my head, chuffed I could finally wear it somewhere after buying it recently at Blanc Boutique. The sun had begun to get low in the sky when we arrived, which illuminated everything with golden halos. There was wine, dips and salmon while we milled about on the beautiful lawn. Then we strolled further around the house to a long table, set up between the gully holding the veggie garden and the side of the house. String lights guided the way and a live musician filled the space with music.
Not only was the Sub Rosa wine delicious, we got to taste it with the winemaker and order our own on a special deal for the night. The table was beautifully decorated with berries and acorns and apple tree branches. The first course was brought out while it was still light. It was a beautiful salad and cheese, which we ate and then we mingled around the table chatting and enjoying the view.
The view. Oh wow. From the white cockatoos darting overhead, flighty because of a high circling wedge-tail eagle, to the gold tipped hay and hills. Standing there had such a stillness. When the gentle live music wasn’t playing it was quiet and full all at once. You could hear the wind moving through the grass and the trees and it would blow through the rosemary edging the garden, which was still warm from the sun, and perfume the table.
The mains and dessert were served on the large wooden bar and everyone lined up to get a plate. The food was divine with plenty to go around. Slowly the landscape around us was veiled by darkness and the wind became chilly. We stayed and chatted under the string lights and clustered around the outdoor heaters until the last song had been played. And then we all gathered our things and strolled back down the dusty driveway by torchlight, to get back on the bus and travel home.
Every part of the experience was just that, an experience. It was a complete immersion into something beautiful, so separate from everything else that my mind could be nowhere else. It was a collection of complete and elegant moments, strung together in such a way that I feel calling it an ‘evening’ would be less accurate than calling it a string of pearls. If you get the chance, do not miss going on one of these long table dinners. You can find Settler and Sons on Facebook, Instagram and on their website.
Pics by me and Goldfields Girl
– L
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