For years I have driven along Sunset Boulevard and noticed Eveleigh restaurant, making a mental note to dine there. When I received an invitation to a multi-course wine dinner prepared by the Executive Chef Jared Levy, and paired with five different Australian wines from Hentley Farm Winery, I eagerly accepted and looked forward to the informative evening.

The braised kale and rainbow chard salad is topped with an egg and shredded parmesan which combine to make a rich and creamy dressing. (photo by Jill Weinlein)

In Australia, Eveleigh is an area in Sydney known for farmers’ and artisans’ markets. The ambience in the Eveleigh in Los Angeles is rustic, country clapboard farm. Owner Nick Mathers acquired many of the items displayed in the restaurant from various antique stores.

The restaurant is known for its interesting wine list from wineries producing fewer than 1,000 cases from geographical origins in Australia, New Zealand, France and California.

Perched on a hillside, Eveliegh offers lovely views of the city and glimmering lights, especially from their back room where our dinner was hosted. A charcuterie plate of meats, cheeses, olives and bread was served with a Hentley Farm rosé. Its vibrant pomegranate color had the aroma of raspberry, strawberry and orange blossoms. This is an ideal summer wine with a fresh finish.

The restaurant is known for Chef Levy’s American and European farm-to-table plates, like the salad of wild foraged leaves from Oregon glazed with anchovy vinaigrette, shredded grana padano cheese and topped with breadcrumbs. Bowls of warm and crunchy wheatberries are textured with cashews, toasted sunflower seeds, beluga lentil, bright greens, Greek yogurt, and sugar snap peas. These two salads were paired with Hentley Farm Stray Mongrel, a grenache blend with a berry nose and essences of nutmeg, cinnamon and lavender.

Another salad was a braised Tuscan kale and rainbow chard served with a warm egg yolk on top and shredded cheese. Winemaker Andrew Quin paired this with a dark cherry-colored Hentley Farm shiraz. Notes of black currant and licorice added complexity to balance the fruit intensity of this wine.

Australian Hentley Farms Wines. (photo by Jill Weinlein)

Quin explained that Hentley Farms is in the bucolic Barossa Valley, a renowned wine-producing region in South Australia known for its shiraz grapes. During the 19th-century, there was a wave of German settlers in the valley, and the previous owner, Otto Kasper, used a cutting from a secret shiraz clone and nurtured it by hand using organic practices. The red wines from this region are known for their distinctive full body and spice notes.

The entrée was a surf-and-turf paired with two wines known as Beauty and Beast. A hanger steak was plated with roasted corn, vibrant fuschsia breakfast radish, Provençal green garlic pistou and spicy arugula. The Hentley Farm Beauty evoked raspberry and blackberry on the nose, and flavors of baking spice and white pepper. The fine tannins and acidity went well with the steak.

Chef Levy started cooking in Los Angeles at Providence and is a bit of an expert in preparing fish. He filleted a locally caught halibut, grilled it, and served it with summer squash, thyme, capers, tomato and sorrel. It was drizzled with a classic, lightly acidic, ravigote sauce that complemented the fish beautifully, as did a glass of Hentley Farm ‘Beast.’ Quin told us that this wine spends 20 months in old and new oak. Like the fabled character, the Beast is a big and bold wine, yet has a beautiful soft side with “grippy tannins,” he said. Both of these wines are known for their mystique, history, romance of the label and quality of the fruit.

A plate of Spanish style patatas bravas made with fried russet potatoes, a pinch of sea salt, and sprinkle of chili pepper aioli was a hearty side dish.

Quin presented the last wine with the dessert course consisting of a plate of cheese with a puddle of honey near walnuts and a slice of toasted bread. This dessert let the sweetness of the Clos Otto elegant dessert wine shine. The Clos Otto vineyard yields low quantities and have an ultra rich perfume of black currant, blueberry, clove and dark caramel enticing the nose. After the first sip, the fruit forward wine offered a soft, beautifully balanced elegance.

As I left the restaurant through the lively bar and kitchen area, I noticed an exquisite burger with fries waiting for a server to deliver to a guest. The burgers here are made with a selection of dry-aged cuts of beef and enhanced with tomato-currant relish, cheddar, pickle, mustard aioli and red onion. I made a note to come back, sit at the bar, and enjoy a burger with a great glass of Australian wine on my next visit.

$$-$$$ Open 7 days a week for lunch, dinner and weekend brunch. There is valet parking or a pay-to-park lot is available across the street. 8752 Sunset Blvd. (424)239-1630.