Having just visited The Highway for their recent menu launch, we knew we had to head back for their Mushroom Month menu launch too!

Back for its eighth year, this year’s Mushroom Month menu has been specially curated by new Head Chef Damien Fong Lim and Sous Chef Ashley Coad, who have both been with The Highway for years.

“We’ve got a little bit of a different take from what we used to do. We have just gone really simple,” says Chef Damien.

With Adelaide still deep in the chilly winter months, The Highway’s Mushroom Month menu comes just at the right time for diners

“It’s another way to show that the produce we have around us is really great. Mushrooms are simple as – it’s winter, it’s cold, and mushrooms make you warm and feel good inside,” says Chef Damien.

With that being said, we were super excited to try The Highway’s Mushroom Month offerings for ourselves! Here’s what we thought:

Cream of Porcini Mushroom Soup
Our first starter of the night was a creamy mushroom soup – the perfect winter warmer. The strong mushroom notes were laced with a slight saltiness and a light cream balanced everything, making sure nothing was too overpowering on the palate and making us go back for more!

Pickled Mushroom Steak Tartare
With pickled King Brown mushroom, Teys eye fillet, and finished with a raw quail egg on top and a light sprinkling of porcini dust, this dish featured strong flavours of mushroom as well as onion but was balanced well with the light and airy sesame biscuit served alongside. Everything on the plate tasted fresh and it was a great way to begin our meal.

Confit Duck and Mushroom Tortellini
Nothing beats handmade pasta and we could definitely taste the difference in this handmade tortellini. The confit duck and Shemeji mushroom filling was complemented well by the soft pasta and the Asian-inspired broth was a beautiful fusion of savoury sweet meaty flavour.

King Oyster and Swiss Brown Mushroom Gnocchi
Our favourite of the night, the truffle and burnt sage butter sauce of this dish made the pillowy soft gnocchi all the more delicious. The King Oyster and Swiss Brown mushroom flavours were heroed, with their prominent flavours evident yet simultaneously complemented by parmesan cheese and the crunch of pine nuts.

Mushroom Burger
We could never go past a good mushroom burger but this one surprised us. Being used to mushroom burgers with an entire Swiss Brown mushroom as filling, we certainly weren’t expecting the mushroom patty that awaited us in this dish. Deceptively meaty looking, the mushroom patty was not only 100% vegetarian but also 100% delicious! What’s more, when our burger came out, the taleggio cheese was melted perfectly over the patty – a sight for sore eyes for cheese lovers! Not to mention, the sweetness of the pickle relish cut through the savoury flavours of the rest of the burger, creating a perfect balance of flavours.

Mushroom Meringue Chocolate Log Cake
This dessert was as pretty as a picture – featuring Nutella log cake shaped like a real log, surrounded by button mushroom shaped meringue, chocolate soil, and a rich chocolate sauce. Seeing how beautiful and delicious it was, we were quick to forgive that this dish did not actually contain any mushroom!

The Mushroom Month menu we tried is available for a limited time only for the month of August so make sure to book yourselves in to try it before it disappears!

The Highway is located on the corner of Anzac Highway and Marion Road and is open from 10am til late every day.

Words and Images by Geena Ho

WHERE: 290 Anzac Highway, Plympton