Best places to eat and drink in Melbourne and Victoria
From a parma worth the drive, a top toastie takeover or a mighty meaty feed in Maidstone, here are Dan Stock’s top picks for where to head this weekend for fine fare.
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From a mighty meaty feed in the west, a parma worth driving for or a toasty taste test, here are Dan Stock’s top picks for where to eat and drink this weekend.
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FOR A TOP COUNTRY PARMA
This bluestone beauty — a one-time Cobb & Co changing station during the gold rush — was brought back to life in 2015 by Beth McIlwain and Garth Campbell giving the small Redesdale community, Lake Eppalock holiday-makers, and city day-trippers alike reason to celebrate.
An honest-to-goodness pub that’s family friendly (including four-legged members), there’s a homely dining room, cosy front bar and outdoor garden, but it’s the vine-covered veranda that’s the prime pick on a sunny afternoon.
Macedon and Heathcote region wines fill the cellar — many of them by small, boutique wineries — with Tooborac summer ale from down the road joining Carlton and Furphy on tap served by the pony, pot and pint.
No ‘gastropub airs’ but just simple food done very well. Campbell, a butcher and chef of 35 years’ experience, ensures the good line of steaks are expertly treated — terrific meat with a great caramelised crust, served simply with a nicely dressed salad and good chips — while the parma is up there with the best around.
A fat, tender, crunchy-crusted fillet with its mozzarella crown grilled brown and beautiful, it’s a winner.
The Redesdale Hotel, 2640 Kyneton-Heathcote Rd, Redesdale. theredesdalehotel.com.au
FOR A TOASTY WITH THE MOSTY
Ballarat’s best will be put to the test to see who can come up with the toasty with the mosty.
From the classic through to the quirky, more than 20 of the city’s eateries are crafting their own take on everyone’s favourite food, raising a toast to the region’s best produce.
Whether the brisket and mac-and-cheese number at The Red Lion, a pile high reuben at Golden City Hotel or “Papa’s Leftovers” at Fika — a ragu with Salt Kitchen pork, John Harbour beef, buffalo mozzarella, basil and parmagiano — there’s a top toastie for all tastes.
Toast of Ballarat is a new addition to Plate Up Ballarat, the second annual food festival that takes over the city and transforms it into a hub of great grub and fab feasting, a month-long series of events putting the spotlight on the region’s best growers, producers, chefs, restaurants and cafes.
The line-up includes a five-course Edible Weed feast of foraged delights by Workshop Cafe, a sizzling Chilli Fest of all things spice including chilli beer and chilli ice-cream, a secret sensory experience at Dinner in the Dark, and the Made of Ballarat Marketplace, featuring a local artisans and producers including Tuki Trout Farm, Salt Kitchen Charcuterie and Backyard Beekeeping Ballarat.
Plate up Ballarat runs throughout May.
For more info and tickets: plateupballarat.com.au
FOR FLAME-COOKED MEATS
Along a small local shopping strip in the back blocks of Maidstone’s suburbia you’ll find On the Bone, a terrific little restaurant serving flame-cooked meats and other Med-leaning treats.
Within its funky fit out and friendly service, it’s quickly become a hit with the west, where a mix of small plates and large proteins to share are served.
Bread, warm from the oven, comes with smoked marrow butter in the bone — a cute nod to the name — while other starters to note include a pond of terrific stracciatella cheese teamed with roasted beetroot and Kalamata olive crumbs, and crunchy fried squid bits with a punchy tartare.
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A knuckle of roasted lamb with lightly smoked babaganoush and a nicely sweet romesco, char-scarred spring onions underneath and a moat of meaty pan juices makes for a homely classic executed with class. Add a side of roasted carrots — a mix of soft and just-crunchy textures teamed with smoked ricotta and a handful of toasted almonds — for Sunday roast, elevated.
Whole snapper — butterflied and pan roasted with capers in butter — is expertly treated, served interestingly with pureed celeriac.
To finish, don’t miss the Big M Mess — a traditional “mess” that’s made from the Chocolate Big M aerated into a cloud of cream, with berries, puffed quinoa and a white chocolate shard.
Impressive all round and incredibly enjoyable, On the Bone is a win for the west.
On the Bone, 128 Mitchell St, Maidstone.
FOR A FINE WINE TIME
Flemington has a new local drop-in-for-a-drink bottle-o. The Fox and Daisy is a bar and bottle shop with a focus on local, independent Victorian producers. Owners Nick Prendergrast and Kim Heffernean (pictured) worked with the Wine Whitch — aka wine educator Jenny Polack — to create a keenly priced list where glasses of something interesting, say a Gippsland sauvignon blanc, or a Rutherglen shiraz, hover around $11.
Bottles on the shelves can all be enjoyed in store or grabbed to go, but for those who stick around a wine-friendly menu of terrines and cheese and toasties are offered to snack on alongside.
On Saturday nights, a more robust weekly special is offered, such as a Spanish meatball stew, and expect full raclette fondue once winter truly hits.
This Saturday, Foxy’s Meet the Maker series features winemaker Jackson Brooke who will talk through his approach to making single vineyard wines, while mum’s can enjoy a bottle of bubbles and cheese on Sunday.
The Fox and Daisy, 185 Mount Alexander Rd, Flemington. thefoxanddaisy.com.au
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