EXP. Restaurant

This venue is included in Good Food’s 100 Essential Restaurants list.

The restaurant Emma and Frank Fawkner started in 2015 has done it the long way, moving from Oakvale Wines into Pokolbin Village, adding a bakery-cafe, then going all-in on finedining.

This is cooking that’s on the level of any big-city tasting menu, but still feels wholly Hunter Valley from a chickpea tartlet with duck-liver parfait enhanced by brown butter, rosella jelly and Branxton-grown pecans, to dry-aged, roasted and barbecue finished Redgate Farm duck (one of the constant headliners of a seasonally changing menu) glazed with local honey and orange zest.

A good deal of the deliciousness comes from ferments, vinegars and braises – not to mention the hard work of farmers with beaut soil – but the kitchen is also well practised in classic technique, meaning Murray cod loin comes in a pool of the silkiest beurre blanc slicked with wild fennel oil. Confident service and considered wine pairings complete one of the Hunter’s most special nights out.

Good to know: The Saturday-only summer lunch service is a terrific way to escape the regional heat.

Good Food reviews are booked anonymously and paid independently. A restaurant can’t pay for a review or inclusion in the Good Food Guide.

Last visited: August 2026

More:

• Pokolbin
• EXP. Restaurant
• Sydney
• Contemporary
• Accepts bookings
• Prix fixe
• Private dining room
• Good for solo diners
• Good for groups
• Licensed
• Vegetarian-friendly
• Gluten-free options
• Wheelchair access
• Restaurant
• Reviews
• Good Food Guide
• 100 Essential Restaurants
• Regional Restaurant of the Year
• Critics’ Pick