Local hero: Harry’s Garden at Wirra Wirra

Local hero

Story by Kate Le Gallez. Photography by Brett Harwig.

Page left: The recently renovated extensions to Harry’s Deli at Wirra Wirra – Harry’s Garden. Above left: Confit Duck Leg with Summer Salad. Right: Chef Tom Boden in the new Harry’s Deli kitchen.

It takes a certain ubiquity to become known by your first name only, attended by a level of fame usually gained on the global stage or sports field. Then there’s Harry. Around McLaren Vale and particularly at Wirra Wirra, Harry achieved similar mononymic notoriety, albeit in a more limited geography. Before he died, Wirra Wirra named a room in his honour. Five years ago that room became Harry’s Deli, Wirra Wirra’s cafe that started small but has since grown to be a destination in its own right.

Harry was Harry Kilaitis, a Lithuathian immigrant, known around the traps as Harry, Harry the carpenter and even the original Harry highpants. ‘I didn’t even know his surname until after he died,’ says Andrew Kay, Wirra Wirra’s managing director and CEO. Harry plied his trade of carpentry out of Sparrow’s Lodge at the entry to Wirra Wirra. ‘Everything around here that’s big and made of timber, Harry had made it,’ says Andrew. ‘The beautiful big doors you see around Wirra, that whole room,’ continues Andrew, gesturing to the room that used to be the Wirra Wirra boardroom, ‘it’s made by Harry. He was just incredibly talented.’ Harry’s namesake deli started as a small enterprise, initially imagined by Andrew as a New York-style deli. The international inspiration was eventually dropped in favour of a regional focus which has become the deli’s guiding mission. Take the paninis, made with Andy Clappis’ bread. Andrew explains his thinking: ‘if you came down to McLaren Vale or Willunga to get Andy Clappis’ bread once a week on a Wednesday, because that’s the only day he had a drop, what if you could get it seven days a week at Harry’s Deli?’

This ultra-local approach has defined Harry’s Deli and is continued by new chef Tom Boden. ‘Eighty percent of what we use is in some form or another using small local producers or using local products, Fleurieu Milk being a major one,’ says Tom, going on to list other familiar names including Dawn Patrol Coffee, Little Acre Foods, Brian’s Olives, McCarthy’s Orchard and Goodieson Brewery.

Tom arrived at Harry’s Deli at a time which, in hindsight, was not ideal. He’d spent the previous six or so years running his own business, joining Harry’s Deli in early 2020. Weeks later, we were all in lockdown. ‘I learned how to pack wine,’ he jokes. ‘And I fed the staff in-house while that was going on too, which kept morale up.’ They also continued serving takeaway during the shutdown.

Harry’s Deli was already in its second iteration when Tom arrived, the original indoor area now supplemented by an enclosed courtyard. But the kitchen remained somewhat limited (‘squalid,’ says Tom) crammed into a small galley behind the bar. With the government handing out post-lockdown grants, Andrew saw the opportunity to expand Harry’s Deli again, taking it into its third phase. >

Top left: Platters are filled with fresh local produce and complemented by Wirra Wirra’s fine wine. Top right: The sculpture was commissioned as part of Wirra Wirra’s memorial garden for Emily Trott by Ty Manning. It is a fun take on Rodin’s The Thinker. Bottom. Lawn games and special events will be part of Harry’s Garden offerings.

Completed in 2021, Harry’s Deli 3.0 now seats sixty people in the fully-covered courtyard (an increase of over forty seats), the new layout incorporating two long tables made for long lunches. Every table features fancy insitu ordering tech that will make us all happy to scan QR codes again.

The real hero, however, is the brand new kitchen. ‘Radical change is an understatement,’ says Tom, of the spacious, light-filled kitchen. The new kitchen has allowed Tom to bring on a new chef – Taiaha Ngawiki, known as Tiger or T. It also means greater consistency and speed in turning out the Harry’s Deli stalwarts, like the Son of Trott pie, generous platters and, of course, all manner of Clappis bread. Tom’s brought his own touches to the menu adding specials and more substantial bowls which in summer featured miso-roasted pumpkin, confit duck and this writer’s pick: the sweet and sticky beef. I’m told a recent special of salt and pepper squid with dried chilli was so good that people came back to eat it again the very next day. Breakfast is now available on weekends. The new kitchen fitout also activates an entirely new space at Wirra Wirra. Through the warmer months, a servery window from the kitchen will open wide to an expansive lawn on the western side of the building. While density restrictions this summer have seen it used as an overflow for the main dining menu, it will eventually be its own space, known as Harry’s Garden. Patrons can snag a table on the paved area or roll out a rug on the lawn. A seasonal snack menu chalked up on the blackboard will be delivered directly via the servery, with the chance to play lawn games while you wait.

Harry’s Deli has perhaps been a quiet achiever in the Fleurieu’s cafe firmament, with each change allowing the cafe to grow in confidence and quality. Tom and his team are now set to make it fly, elevating the Deli classics and introducing new tastes and textures. When I ask Tom how he imagines the Harry’s Deli and Garden experience in this third phase, he replies, ‘I envision people being able to just relax, be replete, not have a care in the world, really soak up the atmosphere and vibe.’ It’s a humble vision, but after the last couple of years it’s exactly what we need – the chance to be in the moment, enjoying good food, good wine and good company. Harry would be chuffed.