Three minutes with Restaurant Botanic’s Jamie Musgrave
SALIFE catches up with Restaurant Botanic executive chef Jamie Musgrave, who is steering the progressive fine diner into a new era that focuses on celebrating the Australian landscape.
Ben Can you tell us a little about your ethos?
Jamie My ethos stems from growing up outside the city, surrounded by pristine native Australian landscape in Margaret River. Mum’s house is surrounded by peppermint gum and jarrah, and I’d walk past saltbush and sea celery on the way to surf. Snorkelling meant brushing through golden kelp and sea lettuce; even the school footy oval was lined with paperbarks. So, using these products in my cooking feels instinctive. At Restaurant Botanic, our entire experience is about representing the Australian landscape – not just using native ingredients from across the country, but those we harvest right here in the Adelaide Botanic Garden. Time spent out on Country, hearing stories and tasting foraged ingredients gave me a deep respect for native produce. These ingredients aren’t a trend. This is what Australia tastes like.
Ben How would you describe your cooking style?
Jamie It’s instinctive and ingredient-led; grounded in native Australian produce, shaped by my experience, and driven by my curiosity. I just want to give an ingredient the platform it deserves. The flavours and textures of this country are unlike anything else, and I want to honour them with intent, precision and a sense of place.
Ben It’s been a long winter! What can we expect on the spring menu?
Jamie Spring is when everything comes alive. Shoots emerge, flowers bloom, and the garden is at its most vibrant. One new dish I’m excited about is a smoked eel aebelskiver; traditionally a Danish sweet treat, but we’ve flipped it savoury. We’ve foraged golden kelp and fermented it with green chillies, then emulsified that with rose and cricket miso to glaze the outside. Inside is a green macadamia emulsion (harvested from the garden) mixed with Silver Lake smoked eel and finished with Kaviari white sturgeon caviar. It’s dusted with dried pearl oyster, topped with pickled silky pear and a piece of glazed eel then finished with Manjimup truffle.
Ben What are your favourite ingredients from the Adelaide Botanic Garden?
Jamie It depends on the season and what we are harvesting. All are unique and their applications differ widely across the board. I love harvesting fresh finger limes, green macadamias, lemon aspen, quandongs, Davidson plums, lemon-scented eucalyptus, paperbark and wattle seed. Currently we are pickling quandongs, harvesting lemon aspen and lemon-scented eucalyptus to blend into a salt cure mix for fish. Wattle seeds are coming fresh from the garden; we cook them for hours and then make into a miso with green tree ants from northern Queensland. Davidson plums are cooked down with rainforest cherries until a thick jelly forms from its natural pectin – a zingy one-biter to awaken the palate.
Ben What’s one dish at Restaurant Botanic we must try?
Jamie It’s tough to pick just one from a 15-course tasting menu, but I do love the small snacks. One to look out for: a tart shell made from kangaroo grass and southern calamari, filled with a wattle seed miso cream, topped with Hamachi that’s been cured with lemon-scented eucalyptus then seasoned with sunrise lime and bloodroot. It’s finished with blossoms from the garden and Kaviari Oscietra gros grain caviar, aged and exclusive to Restaurant Botanic.
Ben Your go-to Adelaide spots for food, drinks or brunch?
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Jamie Low & Slow American BBQ in Port Adelaide; I can’t stop talking about it. Maybe it’s because I’m approaching 30 and in my smoked meat phase, but when you don’t have 15 hours to perfectly cook a brisket, this is the place. The menu’s simple: pick a couple of sides, order a whisky highball, and let the professionals do their thing. The pork ribs are unreal, and the mac and cheese is next level.
Ben You grew up in Margaret River – can we call you a South Australian yet?
Jamie Almost there! It’s such a big state with so much to explore. Between the restaurant and home life, we’ve managed to get out and see some amazing places, but there’s still more I want to discover, like the Flinders Ranges and the beaches around Port Noarlunga. And I wouldn’t want to upset any Western Australians by claiming SA just yet … especially Mum and Grandma! I’ve done five years here; maybe check back in after another five and we’ll see.
This article first appeared in the September 2025 issue of SALIFE magazine.
