We had several great meals within walking distance of the upscale hotels in and around Hobart’s harbor. Much of Tasmania is agricultural, and the best restaurants combine farm-to-table — and sea-to-table — freshness with innovative cooking. Menus list local purveyors and change seasonally, if not weekly. Since reservations tend to be a must throughout Australia, I always booked ahead. When Tasmania’s stellar wines were on the menu, we made sure to match them with our dishes.

Fico

Fico, by chefs Federica Andrisani and Oskar Rossi, is an ideal place to pair Tasmanian wine and superb Italian cuisine. With expert service and an open kitchen complemented by a glowing, unhurried atmosphere, Fico offers a relaxing, prix fixe evening abetted by an award-winning wine list. With notes of both mushrooms and ripe peaches, a 2018 Grey Sands Pinot Gris was a fine match for sublime first courses like a creamy yet bracing gazpacho made from almonds and fresh horseradish. Local seafood showed up in dishes like scallop gnocchetti in beurre blanc spiked with crayfish oil, and urchin risotto tinged with tomato and smoked paprika. The meat course was an Alpine classic: venison, grilled pink and strewn with peppercorns in a sweet-tart red-currant bordelaise sauce — a reminder of Tasmania’s cool climate. Closed Sunday evening and Monday to Wednesday.

Fico
151 Macquarie Street, Hobart. Tel. (61) 3-6245-3391