No oranges grow in Orange – but Sally Hammond has unearthed myriad other brilliant foods produced in this gourmet region.

All I had asked was directions to a cafe I wanted to see. Instead, the woman I’d stopped in the street generously offered to walk me there.
“Do you live here?” was my innocent opening question and, for the next block and a half she expressed her love of the town. She told me that she had moved here just a couple of years before and that it had everything she wanted. And more. Most importantly, that she never wanted to leave.

And why would you? Orange, an inland city, population of 39,000, seems to have it all wrapped up: plenty of good shopping, relative ease of parking, schools, galleries, entertainment, sporting activities, stunning scenery and good food and wine.

Ah, yes. The food and wine!
Think of the Orange district (and that includes Cowra, Canowindra and the various villages) as a giant cornucopia, if you like. Imagine it spilling out produce, flavours, tastes and colour. Highlight that with annual festivals that would blow the socks off some city ones, and you get my (and obviously my new best friend in the street’s) drift.

Despite its current reputation, Orange has not always been closely connected with gourmets. It was the colour of money that brought people streaming to the township, originally called Blackmans Swamp which sprang up after the first payable gold in Australia was discovered at nearby Ophir in 1851.

For some reason Major Thomas Mitchell, a prominent explorer, turned sentimental, renaming it for a fellow soldier with whom he had fought in the Peninsular War. His friend was the Prince of Orange, which explains why, despite its name, citrus fruits do not feature in the must-take-home list of edible goodies from this region.

Instead, you should crunch into a crisp local apple in summer, or in winter sign up for a black truffle degustation dinner at Borrodell on the Mount or go searching for truffles in Millthorpe. Factor in a day (or two!) of wine tasting some of the area’s cool-climate wines made from chardonnay, merlot, cabernet sauvignon and shiraz grapes at the 50 or so cellar doors throughout the region, and suddenly you begin to see what so many people love about this place.

After all, how many towns have not one, not two, but three outlets specialising exclusively in regional food. The first stop in any new town should always be at the Visitor Information Centre, but Orange value-adds its info by exhibiting a huge range of local jams, chutneys, nuts and honeys.
In town, near the supermarket, A Slice of Orange is a providore proudly sourcing local produce and presenting it in a boutique setting. Out of town, you’ll find Totally Local, in a former fruit-packing shed crammed with the freshest local fruit and veg, local beef and lamb, venison, wines and walnuts. Plus the town has a farmers’ market on the second Saturday of each month at the showground.

Then there are the restaurants, gently adapting to suit the times. Michael Manners, the former chef-owner of the famed Selkirks Restaurant has moved into the centre of town to dispense equally toothsome treats at his traiteur-style shop, Manners & Borg. The locals probably love him even more now that they can enjoy his dishes by their own fires or pack them into picnic hampers.

The former Selkirks site is now Bistro Ceello with another local chef of distinction, Scott Want, at the stoves. He moved from Union Bank Wine & Bar which itself is a delight to visit, to either tuck up inside with a glass of wine from the cellar and some fine and simple fare, or enjoy the outside courtyard under shady umbrellas on warmer days. The Wine Store next door offers an enormous selection of local and other wines and has its own place in the hearts of all who enter. Meanwhile a slew of other eateries make this town a diner’s delight.

Each season has its own allure, but autumn is especially brilliant in this crisp, higher altitude region. Yellow poplars line many local roads their leaves glowing like spun gold and even appropriately orange in some lights. Little wonder the tourism brochures call it ‘the colour city’.

It’s not surprising, then, that April is the month chosen for Orange F.O.O.D. (Food of the Orange District) Week, a gala series of events that trumpet the goodness of the food and drink in this area. The word ‘drink’ is used advisedly because not only are there wineries and cellar doors in several areas, but Small Acres Cyder at Borenore and a new brewery at Beekeepers Inn at Vittoria are both worth a visit, as is Bills Beans in East Orange, for great coffee.

In late October, Orange Wine Week (again extending to around ten days) is held each year with tastings and events at wineries and cellar doors in the area. During either festival many visitors follow the Borenore Trail to visit its vineyards, orchards and olive grove. Most can’t resist making a stop at the old Borenore Store, now a relaxed cafe with a great wine selection.

Others dip into the delights of the various small villages such as historic Carcoar, Blayney and Millthorpe. Urban Graze has recently located its cooking school in the latter, no doubt encouraged by its fine new neighbours: Tonic, a highly acclaimed restaurant for several years, and Old Mill Cafe & Restaurant.

During the most recent F.O.O.D. Week, Canowindra, a charming old town with a dog-leg of a main street, celebrated with a 100 mile diet dinner in which all the ingredients came from within the limited radius.

In any other place that could have posed problems but in this land of plenty, it’s probable that the main difficulty faced by the chefs was in choosing what to use.

Visit: www.visitorange.com.au