Flinders Food Co is a dining gem at the gateway to outback SA.
Story Gretel Sneath Photos Robert Lang
Hawker is widely viewed as the southern gateway to the Flinders Ranges; the spot where striking painted hills begin to emerge from sweeping plains, and the secrets of an ancient landscape start to unfold. But the regional town is also a destination in itself, thanks to a bustling cafe just off the Outback Highway. “Make sure you stop at Flinders Food Co,” says just about everyone you encounter up this way, for co-owners Doogal Hannagan and Louise Lynch are regarded as some of the region’s finest achievers.
Doogal was born and raised in Hawker, and Louise, his long-time fiancée, comes from “just up the road” in Leigh Creek. “So we’re about as local as you can get,” Doogal says.
And so is their food, with all-day dishes flavoured with native ingredients such as quandongs, lemon myrtle, wattle seed and bush tomato.
This story excerpt is from Issue #147
Outback Magazine: February/March 2023
