Published 10/01/2013

The second pick in our ethical restaurant roundup is Manfredi’s at Bells in Killcare, near Sydney. Stefano Manfredi’s modern Italian restaurant, found a couple of hours north of Sydney, won the ‘Good Living Sustainability Award 2012’ in the Sydney Morning Herald’s Good Food Guide Awards. And we can see why.

The restaurant is located just next to a 500 square-metre patch of land know as Stefano’s garden. It’s home to extensive vegetable patches, 50 free range hens, an orchard and honey-bee hives. And the dishes on the restaurant’s seasonal menu are designed mainly with this garden in mind; the produce literally couldn’t be more local.

The ingredients that can’t be found in Stefano’s garden come from local suppliers. Key to their mantra is also the ‘nose to tail’ principle which ensures that all edible parts of the animal are used, reducing waste.

The fresh nature of the produce is central to the restaurant. As Stefano explains: ‘As an Italian, gardening is in my DNA. Italian cooking is very simple and relies on the quality of the primary produce. There is nowhere to hide’. Find out more about Manfredi’s.

Disclaimer: All facts and figures have been taken from the restaurant's website. We cannot be sure of the exact nature of the farming conditions described.