Wildflower is regarded as Perth’s best modern fine dining restaurant. According to the website, every dish celebrates the local resources honoring the six seasons of the Noongar calendar. It is amusing to me that it is apparently necessary in Australia to stipulate that guests should not show up in sleeveless t-shirts, frayed or ripped clothing, hats, or flip flops. Most restaurants in Europe do not have a dress code, but nobody would consider going to a fine dining establishment in any of those. Wildflower does not have à la carte but offers degustation menus of 4 courses (AU$ 140, AU$ 105 for wine pairing), 6 courses ($180, wine $145), and 8 courses ($ 230, wine $170). We opted for 6 courses.

We started with some nice canapés.

The first wine was a traditional method Blanc de Blancs sparkling wine from Tasmania by Arras, 100% Chardonnay, aged 30 months on the lees. Elegant, well balanced, and fresh.

This was a good pairing for the tartare of dhufish with green asparagus, sunrise lime, mustard seeds, and a fish skin granola. This dish was very elegant and mostly about the play on textures.

The second wine was a 2020 Chardonnay from close by Margaret River by Evoi. Very well balanced and made in French barriques with stirring of the lees and partial malo.

This was a very good pairing for the kardinya mushrooms with puffed sweetcorn, sandalwood nut, and black garlic. Another very elegant dish with a nice mushroom flavor.

To our surprise the next wine was Italian and well-known to us: a 2019 ColleStefano Verdicchio di Matelica from the Marche (100% Verdicchio, made in stainless steel).

When we pointed out to the manager/sommelier that we would prefer Australian wines while in Australia, he came up with a very nice single vineyard 2023 Nocturne Chardonnay from Margaret River. Well balanced and a mineral/reductive note.

Both wines worked well with the dish, although some elements of the dish worked better with the Verdicchio and some with the Chardonnay. The dish was river trout cooked on the skin, Manjimup marron (freshwater lobster), wild fennel, and saltbush, with a citrus butter sauce. I really liked the texture of the marron. The texture of the trout was OK but could have been better. This dish had a lot of flavor, especially paired with the wines.

The following wine was the 2021 Swell Season ‘Cabernets’ from Margaret River, Western Australia, a Bordeaux blend of 41% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Cabernet Franc,
21% Malbec, and 14% Merlot. The tannins were smoother than a Bordeaux and there was just a hint of eucalyptus, but it did have the freshness of a good Bordeaux and nice restrained fruit.

The wine improved with the dish: Margaret River wagyu with a beef jus, laminated ox tongue, river mint, and a parsnip puree seasoned with pepperberry. The wagyu was perfectly cooked and very tender and flavorful. The parsnip with pepperberry was a nice alternative for a horseradish sauce because it had a more complex flavor that complemented the beef very well.

The palate cleanser or pre-dessert usually doesn’t get a pairing, but here it did in the form of a Zoncello Limoncello Spritz from Yarra Valley, Victoria, Australia. It has low alcohol and tastes like a mixture of limoncello with lemon soda.

The pre-dessert was a blood lime sorbet with coastal rosemary, mandarin, and wattleseed. Nice and refreshing, and a good pairing with the limoncello spritz.

The final wine was a still Brachetto from Yarra Valley. This grape variety is known for Brachetto d’Aqui from Piemonte, a fizzy dessert wine that is like a red version of Moscato d’Asti. This Australian version was mildly sweet with balanced acidity.

This was a good pairing for the bush cherries and bush cherry sorbet, on a lemon verbena cream with chocolate, and cinnamon myrtle. The dessert was really nice, not too sweet, but elegant and balanced, yet creamy.

The meal ended with some excellent friandises.

This was a very nice dinner. Food and wine was all excellent. The service was very friendly with some small glitches, like asking if we wanted more bread but then not serving it. It did come straight away when we managed to get the attention of another server though. I can certainly see why Wildflower has the reputation of being Perth’s best modern fine dining restaurant. I have not spent enough time in Perth to confirm or deny it, but I’ll surely return to Wildflower if I am ever in Perth again.