We’re very much looking forward to the opening of our sculptural and painted works exhibit beginning Saturday 4th May. The Opening kicks off at 4pm and continues on into the evening with canapés and music from Bondi’s The Silver Lining, wrapping up at 8pm.

The full list of artists on show has been finalized and features talent from the region and afar. When you come by you will be delight in the works of Megan Payne, Dana Dion, Alison Coulthurst, Sharon Candy, Danielle McManus, Ollie Heath, Jacqui Joubert, Michael Appleford, Sara Cusack-Cox, The Tin Men, Sara Phemister, Stephanie Corkhill Hyles,
and Sam McGeoch.

We would love it if you can do your best to get along to the Opening Day Celebrations, but if you can’t, make sure to drop by through the rest of the exhibition to Sunday 12th, between 11am and 4.30pm. We look forward to sharing the fine things in art, wine, and food.

Mount Ashby Estate

The exhibition will feature the works of The Tin Men, Megan Payne, Sharon Candy, Dana Dion, Alison Coulthurs, among others; all works will be for sale.

Make a note in your diary for Saturday 4th May, 2013. You will find all kinds of entertainments to be had. Even if you can’t make the opening, come past another day and take an easy walk through the outdoor sculptural installation, and pop in to the Produce Store to view the visual works displayed inside. Before, or after, taste some wine and savour a morsel from the cellar door and the Cafe “la Palette” menu.

We look forward to welcoming you to Art a “La Palette”.

To view this article at full size, click this link: Country Table – Vogue Living March 2013

Warmly,

Sally

(Goslings, shortly after they hatched)

(Goslings, a bit older)

(Beautiful new oak leaves)

Let me tell you about my friend, Mr Lonesome. He is actually a bull; a young one with only a few black spots, but mostly white, and he was a very lonely one for a little while. We all felt sorry for him here. We’d arrive at work in the morning, scattered over the farm to do our various jobs, and there would be Mr Lonesome, bellowing across the paddock for someone to keep him company. One by one we started noticing the friendless fellow, and would make passing comments to one another, “Oh, that poor bull, he’s lonely…” We were, therefore, very relieved when the farmer dropped off a load of young girls to accompany him in the paddock. Suddenly it was much quieter. He would sit there surrounded by about 7 girls, eating grass, moving them along, making sure they didn’t get up to too much mischief. He actually looked like an older brother keeping his younger siblings and cousins in line. (I’m sure, in time, this dynamic would have changed…) Anyhow, Mr Lonesome and his girls have moved on, but don’t worry, they have a happy ending; they’re of the dairy variety, so they won’t be served for lunch at our restaurant. Oh, and another thing; we have our annual, up to 70% off lamp sale with beautiful French and Belgian lamps just flown over from France, so by all means, come and join us and the cows here for a browse through our range; Mr Lonesome won’t be here, but there are some very sweet young Holstein in the front two paddocks.

Warmly,

Sally

We were all a bit sad to say goodbye to Woollahra; we’ve made many acquaintances and friends along the way, and have a few good years’ worth of fond memories, but we’ve known for a while that the space just couldn’t accommodate our tables. I’d been toying with the idea of creating an environment for my tables that would combine the elements of good food, wine, and coffee (I mean, it makes sense – this is how I prefer to spend my time at a table. Perhaps the producers at Masterchef and I are likeminded; I quite liked seeing George, Gary, and Matt perched behind my ‘Christmas’  table, sampling those delicious dishes…) . To be honest, my initial thoughts were to find another place in Sydney, and I looked for a while, actually. Nothing quite struck me, or seemed suitable; the only space I remotely considered was, realistically, too huge, which moved away from the idea I had in mind; something bigger, but not so big it would lose the intimacy of being able to enjoy a coffee, or a light meal, whilst still being able to enjoy the ‘retail’ experience browsing through the showroom. After a bit of disappointment and frustration over not being able to find what I wanted, my husband and I had one of those serendipitous conversations with a good friend of mine. I have a lot of faith in his opinion; he has a good and long track record in successful business ventures… We were enjoying a meal and a glass of wine at one of my tables at, which we fondly dub, ‘Our Cellar Door’ (more commercially known as Mt Ashby Estate). I don’t know how it was initiated, but we found ourselves (probably merrily inspired by the ambiance) in a conversation about formerly merging these two businesses together. For the first time in a while, these ideas actually felt right; everything I’d been looking for was already in front of me in the shape of a popular and expanding food/wine business run by my husband, Chris – I don’t know why I hadn’t considered it earlier, to be honest. We already spend half of the week here, and it would save me packing my bags twice a week, which I loathe, as well as being the perfect step to realising the vision I have for my tables.

So, after lots of planning, sorting, wheeling and dealing, long days, and exhaustion, here we are. We have this beautiful property in the lovely Southern Highlands, set on acreage, with a warm fire, friendly cows, a yummy French inspired lunch menu, Chris’ very own wine (we do tastings, too), a fantastic old wheat silo, and a great, industrial old barn, that was originally ‘The Produce Store’, but now the new home for my French Farmhouse Tables. I’m very excited about this new chapter (you can probably tell), and I really look forward to seeing some of your old faces (as in I know you, not as in you’re particularly weather beaten), and new (as in, we haven’t met, of course), at our combined and permanent location, Mt Ashby Estate, cum La Pallette, cum Sally Beresford Antiques incorporating French Farmhouse Tables.

Warmly,

Sally