De’sendent is the Margaret River’s Hottest New Fine Diner

One of Western Australia’s most respected hospitality duos takes fine dining to new heights.

If you ever visited the now-shuttered Arimia restaurant in Wilyabrup, WA, you’ll likely remember the journey to get there as much as the meal. The hyper-local fine-diner, co-owned by Ann Spencer and executive chef Evan Hayter, was located at the end of a winding red-dirt road and became an indulgent destination for those who knew what they were looking for.

Some of that mystery has carried over to the pair’s new 35-seat venture, De’sendent, in the town of Margaret River. “You won’t know it’s there unless you’ve booked and know the address,” says Hayter. “There’s no branding or signage. All you see is the name on the concrete step as you walk into the restaurant.”

Inside, the dining room is a “dark, intimate space of quiet intention”. The open-plan design allows guests to see the chefs cooking over fire in the kitchen – not surprising, given that Hayter was advised on the build and concept by his friend Dave Pynt from the much-gonged Burnt Ends barbecue restaurant in Singapore.

As at Arimia, the mostly à la carte menu is informed by Hayter’s personal relationships with local farmers and producers. Expect to see rare ingredients that are more precious than any pricey caviar or truffle, such as deep-sea crayfish, which are only found 80 kilometres from the coast and usually earmarked for export, or beef cattle bred exclusively for the restaurant.

While De’sendent is unabashedly high-end, the chef insists it has approachability at its core – somewhere you can visit for an end-to-end meal or simply a glass of champagne and a snack. Whichever way you experience it, Hayter hopes his and Spencer’s new project transcends – and ascends. “We want this restaurant to be world-beating,” he says. “That’s the level we’re aiming for.”