Sweet return to Main Ridge strawberry farm for Gallace family

Mornington Peninsula’s iconic Sunny Ridge Strawberry farmgate has a new name, as its original owners come home.

They say there’s no place like home, and for the Gallace family this may just be the sweetest homecoming of all.

The original owners of the Sunny Ridge Strawberry farm have returned to the much-loved Main Ridge farmgate, seven years after selling the business.

Now operating under the new moniker Rocky Creek Strawberry farm, the second, third and fourth generations of the berry passionate Gallace family can be found manning the popular tourist destination.

“I’m sitting here now looking at the house I grew up in,” general manager Matt Gallace said.

“It really feels like coming home.”

Matt’s grandfather Peter bought the Mornington Peninsula property in 1964, and originally grew cherries and apples. The first strawberries were planted in the early 1970s, when Matt’s father Mick took it upon himself to take over the orchards while Peter was visiting family in Italy.

“He (Peter) came back to find all the cherries and apples pulled out and his 15-year-old son smiling,” Matt said.

The punt paid off. The Sunny Ridge brand gradually expanded to become the second-largest strawberry producer in Australia, with properties also in the Yarra Valley and Queensland.

Mick sold the portfolio in 2015 with plans to partially retire – but an unexpected offer from Sunny Ridge last year to buy back the tourist arm saw the entire family jump at the chance.

This time around, the family plans to keep their focus local: the popular pick-your-own, farmgate and strawberry dessert cafe will continue to run, while the name Rocky Creek refers to a nearby waterway.

“All the regulars are starting to come back, the response has been fantastic,” Matt said.

“Every day there’s a customer I remember who says g’day.”