Top 20 restaurants, cafes to grab a bite to eat this summer in Geelong and the Surf Coast
Looking for a delicious bite to eat in the Geelong region? The Addy's got you covered, with a full guide to 20 of the best eateries in Geelong and the Surf Coast.
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If you’re in the mood for an outing sampling some delicious food this summer season, look no further than the Geelong Advertiser’s guide to the region’s top 20 best eateries.
Geelong and the Surf Coast offers some incredible choices when it comes to dining out, recently showcased in the Addy’s ranking of the 100 best restaurants, bars, and cafes.
Readers were also invited to vote for their favourites, with a recently relocated bar and eatery crowned the people’s choice pick for best restaurant.
Here we have curated a list of the summer the best venues to try the summer - with many having beautiful outdoor areas and decks perfect for dining in the sunshine.
The Arborist
Put simply, a must. Modern Australian cross Middle Eastern cuisine, you can smell the halloumi and lamb from bustling Little Malop Street.
With a newly renovated, sprawling outdoor area - The Arborist is a great place to eat at over summer.
Add to that arguably some of the best cocktails in the city and you’ve got a difficult venue to walk past.
For more information visit thearboristgeelong.com.au.
Brae
Birregurra restaurant Brae has a track record of making lists as a notable flavour destination.
It was named the number one best restaurant in the Addy rankings, and in 2021 it was named as one of the world’s best dining spots.
Speaking to GT Lifestyle in June 2022, owner and executive chef Dan Hunter said it felt like he “hit the jackpot” with the Cape Otway Rd location for the contemporary restaurant.
“For a restaurant of this type and the type of business we operate, it’s pretty idyllic in many aspects, not just its location but also its availability and accessibility,” he said.
“People are coming to our restaurant with a pretty open mind, which is great, and we ask that of them.
“People are coming to appreciate what we do and not for any of their ideas of what cuisine should be.
“We try and bring a new style of luxury to dining, but often it’s with ingredients that are very recognisable; the food’s not broken down so much it’s unrecognisable.
“I like the food to be very natural, to be obvious what it is and hopefully give people the opportunity to have the best version of that food they’ve ever tasted.”
You’ll find Brae on a picturesque nine-hectare farm, which dictates the menu with its produce – this forms the base of all the dishes served.
For more information visit braerestaurant.com/
Frankie Bar & Eatery
The 2023 People’s Choice for best restaurant across Geelong and the Surf Coast, Frankie Bar & Eatery recently relocated amid its booming popularity.
The fusion restaurant was previously located in between office buildings and a stone throw from the library.
It hasn’t moved too far, still found on Malop St, and boasting a menu featuring wontons, gyoza, chicken wings and sweet potato crisps.
When it comes to the larger serves, the slow-cooked massaman beef curry, with coconut, chilli, peanuts, kipfler potato and coriander, has been popular.
Speaking to the Geelong Advertiser in September, owner Ross Blackam said the new premises spanned two level, after outgrowing the previous location.
“This new venue is fresh, vibrant and allows us to offer a more premium experience in a larger space,” he said.
“Rest assured, we will continue to offer the same Pan-Asian fusion dishes and incredible cocktails you know and love at our new address.”
For more information visit frankiebar.com/
Moonah
A restaurant that feels regional and rural, but still elegant – that was the vision for Moonah.
Part of the Minya Winery, at the end of a 1400m dirt driveway off Minya Lane in Connewarre, Moonah was created by Tobin Kent and took 12 months to set up.
The menu highlights local produce, some of which Mr Kent collects by hand from nearby the restaurant.
A multi-course menu is available at the 12-seater restaurant for $210 per person.
The menu is ever-evolving, with the team adjusting or changing items completely from time to time.
To get you accustomed to the style of food, Mr Kent provides diners with starter snacks.
Mr Kent launched the establishment after working at a casual place for about a year.
Speaking to GT Lifestyle in May, he said he realised he “had to do something creative”.
“I need to be constantly creative and doing something new,” he said.
“I realised I had to do what I’ve done in the past, which is fine dining contemporary food.
“We want it to be small and intimate. We wanted to grow our own produce, we wanted to highlight the regionality of it.”
For more information visit www.moonahrestaurant.com.au/
La Cachette Bistrot
This small slice of France in the Geelong CBD invites you to enjoy “The Hideaway” – the translation of La Cachette from French.
Chef Matt Podbury transformed the Eastern Beach Rd venue – once a cafe with a graffiti wall – into a chic bistro that heroes freshness above all else on the menu.
Mr Podbury told GT Lifestyle in June, 2021, that he had a desire to bring French bistronomy to Geelong – the movement where chefs in the late 90s had skilled up at top Michelin star restaurants, and brought the attention to details back to something simple.
He said the concept for the cosy space, where diners are almost an arm’s length away from the duo preparing their meals, was to make customers feel relaxed.
“I wanted to do my own thing and control where I was going, where I was working,” he said.
“There weren’t many restaurants doing what we wanted to do in Australia.
“All the restaurants this size are chef-led and small, so it’s not a place where you can go and get a head chef job.
“We just want to be in control, do something that was us and we’re proud of.”
For more information visit cachette.com.au/
The Q Train
This Drysdale restaurant on rails offers a unique dining experience.
Owner Andrew Bridger had abandoned plans to adventure around Australia on a caravan with wife Robyn when he heard Queensland Rail were selling off a train that once ran between Brisbane and Cairns.
The restaurant is set within 22 of the former Sunliner carriages, and features two dining options – first class and Q class.
This distinctive offering presents you with a love of local produce as you travel 16km between Drysdale and Queenscliff in the renovated carriages.
While the menu is the same for both, first class is accompanied with paired beverages.
The Q Train celebrated five years of fine food last year.
Chief executive Marie-Claire Trotter told GT Lifestyle at the time even the trials and tribulations of Covid-19 and its associated lockdowns had a silver lining for the business.
The time spent shut down allowed a former staff sleeping cabin to be transformed into another first class carriage, which now caters for group bookings.
For more information visit www.theqtrain.com.au/
Tulip
When “new” faces took over Pakington St Tulip, the well-known establishment reaped the rewards immediately.
Manager/sommelier Dan Ford and chef Michael Jaques took over ownership of Tulip in July last year, after working for the previous owners.
Keen to make their own mark the restaurant, the pair make a point to greet each customer individually.
“It’s still a generous sharing experience but I think we’re trying to put the emphasis more on ingredients, a bit more-technique-driven and just to be a bit different, a bit modern and more refined,” Mr Jacques told GT.
“We’re leaning more into the fine dining now, I suppose, just a bit of refining.”
Mr Ford said the revamped menu was based around seasonal produce, with the restaurant working directly with some farms to use the best available product of each day.
The ethos of Tulip is about sharing the food – a la carte options are available for some sittings, but the menu is designed to be served in “waves”, the size of which depend on how adventurous diners are feeling.
For more information visit www.tuliprestaurant.com.au/
Provenance Wines
Each dish at Fyansford’s Provenance Wines is carefully crafted to delight your tastebuds.
The establishment isn’t surrounded by dozens of rows of historic grape vines – instead, its vineyards are located across south west Victoria, including four within the Geelong region.
You’ll find Provenance in the Old Paper Mills creative precinct on 100 Lower Paper Mills Rd, where the 150-tonne winery processes its many vineyards grapes.
Opened in 2016 by chief executive Scott Ireland, the business had a view of having food around the wines.
With pairing food with the wine as its focus, the kitchen tweaks menu items to better suit them to a particular drop on offer.
‘Sommelier at large’ Liam Trump told GT Lifestyle in August 2021 that chef Nathan McIver was “really open” to adapting.
“I think the best way he works with (food) … is it’s functionality and usability up against wine,” he said.
“You often see food that’s really well put together and it’s really well balanced, but then to use it in the wine sphere and make it make sense against wine is not always the case.
“With the menu that Nat puts together, it’s not like each dish is unbelievably well suited to a particular wine that we have on the list, but generally his menu works really, really well with wine.”
For more information visit provenancewines.com.au/
Sumi
The humble barbecue is the founding idea on which Sumi was built.
The Gheringhap St restaurant was opened in 2019 by Alex Yourong Pan with business partner Kyle Wang.
Mr Pan first came to Geelong in 2008, and worked for Australian Tea Masters for six years.
During this time he also travelled throughout Asia, and it was this that highlighted how integral the barbecue is for Asian and Australian cultures.
“The Aussie barbie, it’s like Chinese yum cha. Sunday arvo, Aussie barbie – it’s a thing in Australia,” he told GT Lifestyle in September 2022.
“People catching up, it’s a family thing. It’s in our blood.”
A fast and fine approach to cooking the meat on offer is what customers will enjoy at Sumi, which means “charcoal” in Japanese.
A mastery of cooking even the delicate seafood that makes up half the menu is the major drawcard for this Gheringhap St gem.
Diners can take advantage of starters, skewers, bao and larger dished on offer, while they cosy up in the venue that accommodates 26 people at any one time.
The menu is divided into starters, skewers, bao and larger dishes.
There is also a “Feed Me” option, which Alex recommends for first time diners, or wanting to experience all of what Sumi has to offer.
For more information visit www.facebook.com/sumigeelong
Jack Rabbit Vineyard
The sweeping view customers get to enjoy while dining at Jack Rabbit Vineyard is just the cherry on top of the culinary experience.
Jack Rabbit Restaurant and the more casual House of Jack Rabbit cafe sit on a headland overlooking a rolling slope down to the ever-changing waters of Corio Bay.
The Bellarine establishment received prestigious accolades at the 2021 Golden Plate Awards.
Executive chef Dwayne Bourke told GT Lifestyle after the win that he and his team sometimes need to stop working and take in the view, to appreciate the beauty of where they work every day.
“You do get caught up in your daily operations, so to have that as the venue to come to and then to have the amazing produce that this area is becoming very well known for is special,” he said.
The establishment is the crown jewel of The Sharp Group, which also owns Leura Park, Curlewis Golf Club, and Flying Brick Cider Co.
With its two dining options and breathtaking scenery, it’s no wonder why this restaurant nestled at the end of McAdams Lane has become a favourite.
For more information visit www.jackrabbitvineyard.com.au/
VID Bar Highton
For those with a sweet tooth, look no further than reader favourite VID Bar on Belle Vue Ave in Highton.
Village Ice Cream Dessert Bar, or VID Bar for short, is the brainchild of brothers Spiro and Nicholas Alesios, and their partners Katrina Anastasopoulos and Ana Medjed.
According to GT’s Cam Ward, love is the special ingredient to success for the quartet – “love of their food, love of their community and love of their Greek heritage.”
Visitors can choose from an assortment of sumptuous Greek desserts, including loukoumades, baklava, karidopita (walnut cake), rizogalo (rice pudding), kourabiedes (almond shortbread), melomakarona (vegan honey biscuits) and galaktoboureko (semolina custard with syrup in filo).
You’ll also find a selection of more than 30 ice cream flavours at the dessert bar, which was founded by brothers Spiro and Nicholas Alesios, and their partners Katrina Anastasopoulos and Ana Medjed. Spiro and Nicholas’ mother, Georgie, uses family recipes to bake the mouth-watering sweet treats.
“We’ve always been brought up to be proud of where we’re from – obviously we’ve got a Greek heritage – so we’ve had these Greek cakes in our family all our lives,” Nicholas told GT in March this year.
For more information, visit facebook.com/vidbarhighton
ALMA
Two ambitious friends brought a splash of South America to Ryrie St.
Matt Baird and Jesse Hughes opened the popular Ryrie St venue in 2017, and it has since become a staple of the Geelong dining scene.
“My cooking has always been classic with a modern twist,” Mr Hughes said at the time.
“It’s still that, now it’s just a South American twist.
“We wanted a ‘fill your table’ dining experience.
“The menu is suited for small groups to try a good cross section of the menu.”
Grilled octopus with lime and chorizo vinaigrette was an immediate hit, alongside the ceviche and the king fish.
An extensive wine list is dominated by South American brands, with Australian and other international drops filling out the selection.
Cocktails and a long list of craft beers have also proven popular.
The founders also opened a new European-inspired restaurant, Felix, in 2021, just metres away from ALMA.
For more information, visit www.almarestaurant.com.au/
Geelong Smoked Brisket
Barbecue, but not as you may know it – this is how GT’s Cam Ward describes Geelong Smoked Brisket (GSB).
It’s American style barbecue, hours long smoked meats on a smoker the owner David Abousejean snagged on Gumtree off a guy from Dubbo.
People order online and ready-made packs are boxed and delivered with a frozen gel pack in a thermal liner, ensuring freshness and food temperature safety for up to six hours.
All that has to be done is gently reheat the meat in a microwave, dole out the choice of coleslaw and assemble on the supplied brioche buns.
Each Geelong Smoked Brisket box has a QR code that will take you to the step-by-step prep guide.
“You’ve got the smoke, you’ve got the wood, you’ve got the salt, the pepper, the garlic – it’s like a dance party in your mouth, and everyone’s invited,” he said.
Boxes are $62 for four serves of either smoked brisket or smoked maple chicken, a choice of three kinds of coleslaw made in-house and four brioche buns.
The chicken and brisket have also been incorporated into pies now being sold by Porter Avenue Cakes & Pies.
For more information, visit www.geelongsmokedbrisket.com/
Blank Space Newtown
Walk into Blank Space and you’ll find not a blank space, but a mural of Taylor Swift, who wrote and sings the hit song of the same name.
On the other walls of the Pakington St, Newtown venue you’ll see a mural of Jay-Z, an oversized mirror, Aboriginal art from Lowell Hunter and a neon sign which states “stay grindin’ Newtown”.
Owners Josh and Katie Armstrong have aimed to bring New York’s thriving cafe scene to Newtown, with the menu featuring cocktails, beers and wines, along with a delicious array of breakfast and lunch options.
Popular dishes include the breakfast wrap, the smashed avocado and the chicken burrito bowl.
“We’ve played around a lot with the menu but we’ve tried to stay a little bit different to the rest of the crowd, and playing back on that New York feel of what they eat,” Mr Armstrong told GT in October 2022.
Both of the owners said the go-to dish on the menu was the breakfast wrap (American cheddar, avocado, bacon, fried egg, hash brown, spinach, barbecue mayo), but that the smashed avocado (with feta, poached eggs, fermented beets and pumpkin seed zaatar) was on “almost every other docket”.
For more information, visit blankspacenewtown.com.au/
Caruggi
At this Little Malop St establishment, you’ll find an experience of authentic Northern Italian cuisine.
The staple in the heart of the Geelong CBD focuses on European classics made with local ingredients.
The wine list focuses on Italian varieties and Italian wines grown in Australia.
The venue gets its name from the medieval centre of Genoa, with ‘Caruggi’ translating as little alleyway in Genovese dialect, it is the labyrinth that meanders from the old port arcades of Sottoripe through ancient Genoa connecting small squares and opening up to reveal Cathedrals.
The Caruggi have always housed small artisanal shops and many still serve typical dishes and foods as they have done for 100s of years.
In addition to the popular restaurant, a bar area welcomes patrons throughout the day for cakes, coffees, beer or wine.
For more information, visit www.caruggi.com.au/
Bao Place
There’s more to Bao Place than its delicious buns.
Husband and wife team Kyle and Mary Wan transformed the one-time Pakington St Korean takeaway spot into the bao heaven it is today.
Mr Wan came to Geelong from China in 2008 and studied hospitality at The Gordon TAFE.
The menu offers at least 10 different fillings ranging from traditional – pork belly, tempura prawn – to contemporary, including panko zucchini with peanut sauce.
But you can also find starters like the Korean fried cauliflower with sesame, gochujang dressing and spring onion, chicken prawn pot stickers or the crispy pork wonton wraps.
Mr Wan told GT Lifestyle in August this year the venue serves up to 200 baos daily.
“My favourite for the bao is definitely the duck (honey duck with cucumber, leeks, hoisin sauce and sesame seeds), pulled lamb (accompanied by zucchini, onion, dukkha and garlic aioli) and crispy pork belly,” he said.
“You never go wrong with the crispy pork belly.
“We put a lot of effort on our crispy pork. It takes three days to make.”
He said he enjoyed taking part in every aspect of the business, including the front of house where he can talk to his customers.
“A lot of my customers are becoming friends to me,” he said.
For more information, visit www.baoplace.com.au/
That Place
People flock from as far afield as Melbourne to try one Geelong bakery’s croissants.
After training at one of Frances, leading culinary schools, Ashlea Allen converted an old hairdressing studio on Mt Pleasant Rd in Belmont into a patisserie and cafe.
Feature croissant flavours rotate weekly, and staff take turns designing them, with past varieties including sticky date, Anzac biscuit, Malteser and snickers.
With everything made from scratch, regular menu standouts include an almond croissant, lemon meringue and a local take on a pain Suisse – chocolate dough rolled with tahini custard, Belgian chocolate and finished in a honey glaze.
Ms Allen, a Sacred Heart College Geelong grad, told GT Lifestyle in July this year that pastry allowed for more positive experiences for people.
“Definitely I’m a sweet tooth and always with my food, ever since I was younger, I’d look for people to create that warming fill-that-hole-up-in-their-stomach effect,” she said at the time.
“Pastry is where you get a lot more of that positive feedback of them getting that warmth from the food that they’re eating.”
For more information, visit thatplacepatisserie.com/
Terindah Estate
Four wineries on one 750m stretch of McAdams Lane alone isn’t the only attraction at Terindah Estate.
The venue has multiple dining rooms, including an event space that can cater for 180 people and a tram bar opened in 2022 – that uses an actual restored tram.
Terindah Estate used to focus on fine dining, but now it provides delicious, casual foods like pan fried barramundi, house made pork terrine and cured gravalax.
Terindah Estate operations lead Holly Gillham told GT Lifestyle in April 2022 the ferry had made it “so much easier” for people to visit the town of Bellarine the estate is found in.
“The Mornington Peninsula has been done a little bit. This is sort of an unexplored area that people are just getting to know,” she said.
“It’s an hour and 10 minutes from Melbourne, so it’s a great day trip and the ferry has made it so much easier to get here.
“Saturday afternoons here are just fun.
“Everyone is up and about, having drinks, getting married. All sorts of things!”
For more information, visit www.terindahestate.com/
Tommy Gunns
Family, smiles and a friendly atmosphere; owner Ruaraidh Gunn, affectionately known as Rozza, has captured something special with Tommy Gunns.
The Barwon Heads restaurant is a relative newcomer to the scene, launching in December 2022, after Rozza and his family relocated from Melbourne.
The family spent six months renovating the space, and the same thought and care are at play in the dining experience.
The Barwon Heads restaurant, which allows for 65 guests at one time, aims to offer tapas-style dining rooted in French traditions with sharing plates and quality wine, led by head chef James Bond-Kennedy.
Mr Bond-Kennedy’s menu is rooted in classic French menu style and techniques, but also driven by younger chefs.
Mr Gunn told GT Lifestyle in June this year that the community had welcomed the business with open arms, with visitors coming from Barwon Heads, of course, but also central Geelong, Point Lonsdale, and Ocean Grove.
He said treating everyone to a good time was ”what it’s all about”.
“You want people to feel like they’re being looked after, and everything’s thought of,” he said.
“That, to me, is the core.”
For more information, visit www.tommygunns.com.au/
Pucci’s
Opened in December of 2022, Pucci’s is an Italian restaurant that can delight your tastebuds with a myriad of tasty treats.
From classic toasties and dim sims, to potato croquettes and pasta cooked to order, there surely is something for everyone.
As GT journalist Cam Ward says: “How many other places can you walk into and can get your dim sims and a bespoke risotto?”
Owned by Michelangelo and Ekaterina Pucci, who were previously based in St Leonards, Pucci’s is hidden in plain sight, and cracked both the top 20 lists for Geelong Addy’s editorial list and the people’s choice.
Speaking to GT Lifestyle in May, Mr Pucci said they could do any sauce.
“Most Italian sauces – apart from the ragu and a few other sauces which have to be cooked a long time,” he said.
“We have the basis for everything, so we can make anything when the time comes.
“The sauces are very important because the pasta can be any pasta. If you know how to cook pasta and you have a good sauce … the sauce gives the flavour.”
The establishment is located at 496 Moorabool St, Geelong, on the river end of the street.
It may not be the obvious location choice for an eatery, but it’s proven to be a winner.
Originally published as Top 20 restaurants, cafes to grab a bite to eat this summer in Geelong and the Surf Coast
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