The once modest distillery has grown into an iconic Newcastle destination
When Carrington-based distillery, Earp Distilling Co. launched in 2019, it was a small operation producing hand-bottled and hand-labelled gin. Fast forward to today, and the once modest distillery has grown into an iconic Newcastle destination, celebrated for its spirit-making excellence and its soon-to-be-enjoyed inventive dining experiences.
“It’s been quite the journey over the last five years. We started with a small distillery and doing some gins, now it’s grown into something quite larger than we ever expected,” Operations Manager, Cameron Burns said.
This evolution was guided by a relentless drive to push boundaries, a theme that resonates throughout Earp Distilling Co’s story. What started as a tasting room has transformed, thanks to the willingness of its team to innovate and adapt.
“When we first started, the kitchen was just a kitchenette. Then we moved into a shipping container kitchen and now we have a full kitchen tucked away.”
Enter Head Chef, Peter Streckfuss, who joined the team a mere three weeks ago, and has already transformed the venue’s menu into something rather unique for Newcastle.
Hailing from a fine dining background in Sydney and with a global travel portfolio spanning Southeast Asia, Central America, India, Nepal, South Africa, and Europe under his belt, Peter brings a wealth of culinary knowledge and ultimately, creativity to the Earp Distilling Co. food offering.
“I’ve drawn from my experiences over the years. Every time I put a menu together, each dish has a bit of a backstory. It might be how I came across that flavour profile or how I learned a certain technique,” Peter said.
In those few short weeks, Peter has worked to create a menu that not only honours Earp’s innovative spirit, but blends local inspiration with a global touch.
The menu showcases mostly share-style dishes that combine simplicity with bold flavours, a reflection of Peter’s culinary vision and Cameron’s emphasis on local produce.
“A big thing about being sustainable as a business is who you work with. If you’re getting produce locally, as opposed to something that’s from overseas, that’s really something that we strive for,” Cameron said.
By collaborating with local suppliers, Earp aims to ensure that their food isn’t just flavourful, but rooted in the region’s best offerings.
The new menu features intriguing options, from standout dishes like the master stock poussin with vanilla carrot puree and asparagus to Peter’s playful take on bar snacks. Peter notes that while the atmosphere of Earp resembles a high-end bar rather than a restaurant, the menu aims to remain approachable yet still high quality.
The gruyere croquettes are designed as an interactive experience, pairing gooey goodness with pickled zucchini, reminiscent of a kitchen experience from Peter’s former Bondi Beach kitchen.
“It’s soft and gooey and you dip it into the sauce and then wrap the zucchini pickle around it and eat it like its own little pickle burger. I had four of them today, they’re dangerously good,” Cameron said.
One item that’s capturing attention is the crocodile bites, a uniquely Australian offering that reflects Newcastle’s rising status as a tourism hub.
“One of the cues I had from Cameron when I came on board was that Newcastle is wanting to become a bit more of a tourism destination. So, I thought we’d put something very Australian on the menu which is incredibly hard to find anywhere else,” Peter said.
This bite-sized introduction to crocodile is both fresh and citrusy, offering a flavour adventure that is surprisingly accessible, and blooming tasty.
“It’s nice, fresh, and citrusy. It gives diners a little teaser into trying crocodile and it’s honestly just delicious.”
In keeping with the venue’s adaptive spirit, Peter’s menu will no doubt continue to evolve, with an approach to gradual tweaks seasonally rather than drastic menu overhauls.
Earp Distilling Co. has undeniably grown beyond its beginnings, becoming an emblem of Newcastle’s vibrant and ever-evolving hospitality scene. Cameron’s vision of Earp as a collaborative, boundary-pushing venue resonates through every aspect of the business from the distillery to the kitchen and beyond.
“Peter and I have had some great conversations saying that we want our kitchen focus to be a long-term thing. We want to build it to be a culinary scene here in Newcastle, and we want to showcase the best of what we can do in here,” Cameron said.
With the passion and creativity of a dedicated team, Earp Distilling Co. is continuing to become a cornerstone of Newcastle’s food and drink landscape, redefining what it means to dine and drink at one of our city’s most ambitious venues.
