Main Ridge Dairy
Main Ridge Dairy is the epitome of local produce. Visitors to Bess and Damien Noxon’s farmhouse cheese factory can taste products made onsite with milk from around 400 free range goat’s on the 130 acre property.
The Red Hill Kitchen
Towards the end of an inconspicuous unsealed road in Red Hill there is a kitchen in a quaint weatherboard house surrounded by a prolific vegetable garden, where Bernie Furness creates some of the most delicious take home food available. The Red Hill Kitchen is something of a closely held secret to locals, who make up about ninety per cent of the business. So renowned is it in these parts though, that after being closed for six months a couple of years ago, when they reopened word spread quickly and business resumed as if they’d never closed.
Del Posto 2409
Have you ever been to a restaurant where every single pasta on the menu is ridiculously good? Del Posto 2409 is the kind of place that sweats on every detail - it manages to bring a refined dining experience in a modern yet graceful way - without being over the top or try hard.
Polperro
Sam Coverdale believes he has the best job in the world. It’s part agriculture, part science, part marketing, part creativity and part wine decanter full of heart.
Rare Hare
There’s a buzz in the air on Mornington Peninsula, and it comes in the form of a contemporary cutting edge designer hotel, formal restaurant, smart bar, casual dining experience and cellar door. The name is Jackalope – and it’s the new home of Willow Creek Vineyard Wines. The vision of Louis Li's, a 29 year old Chinese national who has been living in Melbourne for ten years, Willow Creek Vineyard is now the site for the world’s first Jackalope Hotel. Moving here as an 18 year old to study film making, Louis Li is well versed in luxury property development with his parents being involved in a number of luxury hotels and residential properties in Kunming in south western China. So in a sense his first solo project is following in the tradition of his family business. Being a film maker Lewis Lee is a great storyteller, and his first foray into hospitality shows his appetite for art and design and food culture, which shines through every element in this property. His debut Jackalope Hotel in Merricks will be followed by a 40 room hotel in Flinders Lane which is scheduled to open in 2019.
Blue Range Estate Wines
“Wow!” The three letter word that Jo and Cosi Melone hear every time a guest steps out of their car and breathes in the view. It is indeed unexpected, a delightful surprise, and breathtaking. Set on a hidden hill that rises over the back of Rosebud and is sheltered by Waterfall Gully, the Blue Range Estate’s view is expansive. Stretching from Western Port Bay and Bass Strait across the Portsea Peninsula and into Port Phillip Bay, the view is unique, and extraordinary.
Adhoc
Adhoc offers a quality restaurant experience in a relaxed dining environment. The family friendly atmosphere is evident upon arrival. Carefully designed to allow privacy for intimate dinners and with communal tables for larger gatherings, couples sit alongside parents with children in a harmonious and relaxed space. It’s light, bright and welcoming, yet stylish and sophisticated, so you can enjoy a casual coffee and cake, or celebrate a special occasion. The staff are excellent, offering table service with an efficient but warm attention to detail.
Main Ridge Olive Oil Co
Tim Jupp is full of surprises, experienced and focused beyond his years. Young and talented, this fine dining chef has moved away from the 80 hour working weeks his chosen profession demands to chef at Commonfolk in Mornington, where the hours are much more conducive to family life. Given that he and his wife Michelle have four children under the age of 11, you can understand his life choices.
Little Rebel
For Little Rebel, it’s all about the coffee. Husband and wife team Peter and Trish started in the café business in 2010 and soon discovered that the coffee available for them to offer their customers simply wasn’t good enough. If you’re going to serve coffee, why not serve the best right?
Flinders Sourdough
It’s possible that sliced bread was the best thing since scotch ovens. The process of bread making has evolved significantly over many years, but if you ask Flinders Sourdough owners, Margaret and Dave, using a scotch oven is still the best way to bake bread.
Laneway Espresso
Introducing Laneway Espresso (formerly our readers would know it as Felix) in the heart of Dromana right opposite the beach, making it the perfect spot for an early summer swim followed by a long lazy breakfast...
Flinders Hotel
Hotels have a proud history in Australian folklore. Many pride themselves on serving camaraderie, consolation and a glass or two of culture. Today they arguably have evolved into communities of like-minded folk...