Brae Restaurant – degustation dinner in the little town of Birregurra
“…The entire day was to be a grand lead-up to what would emerge as the highlight experience of the weekend. Dan Hunter’s (ex-Royal Mail Hotel) newest venture – Brae – was one of the reasons the Great Ocean Road was the destination elected for this road trip…” [Great Ocean Road – A weekend Getaway] The drive inland to … Continue reading
Great Ocean Road, Victoria – A weekend getaway.
Now that the winter chill is in full swing with the mercury barely hitting the low teens, what better time to plan ahead for a weekend getaway in regional Victoria. Spring is only just around the corner, right? A few months ago over the Easter holidays, three friends embarked on a 3 day road trip … Continue reading
Mt Dandenong – trek, shoot and eat
The morning was quite gloriously sunny with the warmth pouring over the horizon. Heading East to Mt Dandenong for some lunch sounded like a great idea at the time. The idea was to have a quick filler before a short trek. The only problem was finding a place to eat at peak midday lunch hour, … Continue reading
Ten Minutes by Tractor – photography before eating?
1333 Mornington Flinders Rd Main Ridge, 3928 03 5989 6080 Even before we set off for our photography day out along the Mornington Peninsula, I was already scanning the web for dining options both lunch and dinner. Not to say I wasn’t enthusiastic about photography, but clearly I was much more focused on and enthusiastic … Continue reading
Miss Marples Tearoom
382 Mt Dandenong-Tourist Road Sassafras 3787 9755 1610 Despite coming through Mt Dandenong fairly frequently, I have – sadly to say – only visited Miss Marples three times including this current one. This is in part owing to their early closing times and epic tourist crowds during weekends. This was the start of a quick day … Continue reading
Al’s photography #7 – paparazzi?
” A typical day out at Mount Dandenong, with very typical Melbourne weather… “ Sometimes you take things on purpose and sometimes by accident … and well sometimes you (me) get labelled paparazzi =P. Can you tell which was taken on purpose? Left: peeking down, Right: peeking through Peeking around… Left: Peeking over, Right: Peeking … Continue reading
Wine Bank on View
45 View St Bendigo 03 54444655 Wednesday night in Bendigo is ‘wine tasting night’ at Wine Bank on View. They provide a weekly selection of hand-picked wines (generally locally but also many from afar) for free tasting. Intelligible explanations and appraisals from the friendly staff really make this a gem of an idea! Too bad … Continue reading
Rifle Brigade Hotel
137 View St Bendigo 03 5443 4092 Another gem located at the top end of View St art precinct, recently taken over and restored to its past glory. The bar at the front has a pub rowdiness about it, which contrasted greatly with the restaurant’s dim lit warm, chatty vibe dining section. Â Â Roast Duck … Continue reading
Twenty 2
22 Williamson St Bendigo VIC 3550 (03) 5442 8228 Clear blue sky, warm gentle sunshine and gentle breeze – perfect day for a lunch outside. I was in the mood for having a salad. Wonder if it is a fiber craving? Either that or I am going nuts. So looking at the menu, I scan … Continue reading
Al’s Photography #1 – Spring upon Bendigo
Spring has started and much needed rainful has fallen, flowers are blooming, the grass is green… all i need is the right amount of blue & white in the sky! Not surprisingly with out recent weather, its been difficult to find the right weather conditions to take photos – a lot of gloomy wintry days and rain. … Continue reading
Eaglehawk Bakery Caffe
80 High Street Eaglehawk 3556 City of Greater Bendigo Voted “Victorian Bakery of the Year 2008-2009” with their award winning pies (12 awards last year in “Great Australian Pie Competition”) and touted as 2nd best vanilla slice in Victoria. It is known locally as the Bakery with the Penny Farthing Bike, a Mulga Bill Room … Continue reading
Balgownie Estate & Sandhurst Ridge Winery
Balgownie Estate Hermitage Rd Maiden Gully 03 5449 6222 Sandhurst Ridge Winery 156 Forest Drive Morang 03 5435 2534 Having an afternoon off, I decided to go acquaint myself with some local wineries. Was actually hoping to visit a number of them, but you will see why at the end of this post why I … Continue reading
Effortless meal #1 – Egg, pesto & avocado salad sandwich
It’s quite easy to fall into the trap of ‘nothing good can be done quickly’, especially if you’re comparing with super complex & involved recipes with a million ingredients. If one had time who wouldn’t want to be eating that at home. Trying new things, mixing things around, keeping it simple are key to keeping … Continue reading
Sandhurst Club – Bendigo
14 View st Bendigo 5442 3070 I was kindly invited by my supervising GP to attend a drug-rep. dinner at Sandhurst Club (I’ve heard it was quite an exclusive club in Bendigo – not so long ago there was a debate over allowing female memberships.) Locating the double-story brick mansion overlooking Rosalind Park without any … Continue reading
Gallery Caf̩ РBendigo
Bendigo Art Gallery 42 View St Bendigo During my almost 2 hour lunch break from the GP practice (LOLz), I decided to abscond to a nice cafe adjoining the Bendigo art gallery (recommended by Majella from Parisian Patisserie – Bendigo local). Not realsiing there was a “back” entrance I happily strolled though half the gallery… … Continue reading
Bath Lane Café – Legend Burger
13 Bath Lane Bendigo CAUTION: please continue eating (reading) at your own risk. You may become very very very full and get heartburn!Touted on the menu as the best burger in town (see also Half-Eaten’s review), I had quite the expectation for this “Legend Burger”. After waiting a decent 15 minutes (fairly efficient given the … Continue reading
Green Olive Cafe
*Just a quick review, for a quick lunch* =) Warm & inviting ambience, with quite a few interesting things scattered across the walls and displays.        Chicken & pesto risotto – mildly overcooked risotto (not quite al dente) with tender strips of chicken marinated with a pesto-basil oil (a little too subtle … Continue reading
Miss Marples Tearoom
382 Mt Dandenong-Tourist Road Sassafras There is always an epic line when we come by Miss Marples – seems to me closing at around 4pm is an odd business choice given the weekend Mt Dandenong tourist crowd is still flowing strongly at this time. But then again they probably don’t care given how popular they … Continue reading
Almost Always Ravenous 