Entering a long drive way through two imposing pyramid-shaped metal structures on an otherwise ordinary country road is as close to falling down the rabbit hole as one can get on the Mornington Peninsula. Well, more of a jackalope hole than a rabbit one to be exact. The jackalope, a mythical hybrid creature crossed between a jackrabbit and an antelope, is the metaphorical and literal centrepiece of the surreal wonderland that exists in the middle of Merricks at Jackalope Hotel (Emily Floyd’s seven-metre Jackalope sculpture stands tall in the middle of the car park). Rare Hare, the less formal of two restaurants on site, is one of the main characters and shining stars of Jackalope’s fanciful micro-universe.
Rare Hare is set within a space of brown brick floors, dark wooden benches and shared tables, an open fireplace and stacked wooden logs, which exists in stark contrast to its breathtakingly bright and beautiful view out onto the Willow Creek Vineyards. It feels almost blasphemous not to enjoy a glass of the estate grown and made Willow Creek Vineyard Chardonnay or Late Harvest Sauvignon Blanc to start, while taking in the view and settling in. The wine list is otherwise composed of Rare Hare wines, made from grapes grown by “trusted friends” and Mates Grapes which showcase “delish drops” from friends on the Peninsula and further afield.
Louis Li acquired the Willow Creek Vineyard in 2013, and with the help of an all-star creative team, including Carr architects and Pascale Gomes-McNabb Design, bought his vision of creating a wondrous world of art, design and luxury accommodation to life in the form of Jackalope Hotel. Complete with 46 luxury rooms, two restaurants, a cellar door, curated art collections, neon-lined hallways and an eccentric bar in which the Mad Hatter himself would not look out of place, Jackalope is not like the traditional wineries and country-style bed and breakfasts in the area.
The importance of concept and design comes through in Rare Hare’s playful branding, which serves to lure you further into the Jackalope universe. Branded serviettes, plates and grey jumpers, which double as merch for sale and as the waitstaff uniforms, and comical cartoon characters which grace the back of the menu. Speaking of, the reasonably priced and rather varied à la carte menu at Rare Hare is quite the rarity in a region where dining options are often limited to fine-dining degustation menus, or take-out pies.
It’s hard to pin down or neatly categorise the theme of the menu, with dishes ranging from crudités with carrot miso, mushrooms with goats cheese, five-spice duck legs with Asian herbs, to Otway Pork cutlet with cabbage and bourbon sauce. However, in this whimsical world, categorisation and conventionality are not compulsory. Particularly when the kitchen has crafted each dish with enough flair and creativity to make you listen, but also a sublime straightforwardness that lets the seasonal produce do a lot of the talking on its own. Such as the shockingly simple starter of charred toast, topped with a delicately salty sardine fillet and a few slivers of preserved lemon, which is a tempting taste of what’s to come.
The menu is designed to be share-style, with dishes progressively making their way to the table with plenty of time in between for working your way through the wine or cocktail list, and meandering around the stunning setting. The service aligns with this comfortable rhythm with friendly and enthusiastic waitstaff always easily waved down, but never hovering over you or rushing you out the door.
The salumi selection is a crowd pleaser, particularly when ordered alongside the potato bread, which is an oily, textural masterpiece proving that adding carbs to carbs is always an ingenious idea. If you’re lucky and come at the right time, you may even be able to snag a chunk of that lovely loaf to take home.
The experimental vegetable dishes are a speciality of the kitchen, whether it’s heirloom beans with caponata and labneh or honey-glazed pumpkin with whipped sunflower and granola. The charcoal eggplant is a particular favourite, glazed in a sticky, sweet red miso marinade, topped with a crunchy concoction of chillies, coriander and furikake.
The barramundi wings being delivered to many tables around us catch our eye with their spiky fins and golden glossiness imbued by ‘nduja butter. It's an enticingly messy dish of delicate, tender flesh encased in KFC-level crunchy fish skin. Served piping hot straight from the fryer, they are gloriously crisp without being greasy, which is a good thing as we strongly suggest using your hands. Not only are the barramundi wings one of the best bites we have had the pleasure of eating recently, they also serve as a poignant reminder of the incredibly inventive ways that exist to use up the less familiar parts of a protein.
And there is one final dish, a dish whose intoxicating aroma continues to lure locals and those further afield to keep coming back for more. Of course, it’s the chocolate chip cookie, served sizzling in a skillet straight from the handcrafted woodfired oven, which takes pride of place in the dining room. Expertly crisped on the edges and left gooey in the middle, the giant cookie is served with a melting malt ice cream that rounds out this nostalgic and playful dessert. Word on the street is that guests of the hotel may even have the opportunity to learn the in house secrets with a cookie-making class.
It is no small accomplishment that the food at Rare Hare does not get lost amongst the endless curiosities and wonders of Jackalope Hotel. Rare Hare is reason in itself to drink a few drops of magic potion (the ever popular Rare Hare Rosé does the trick) and fall down the Jackalope hole, to let yourself get lost in a magical moment on the Mornington Peninsula.
