Mick and his wife, Anne are still just as passionate about farming strawberries and have moved the farm to a sustainable model, reducing the use of agricultural chemicals and relying on organic mulch to continue improving soil quality.  One of the first things Mick instigated when he took over the farm was the Dessert Café, a way to entice visitors and locals to explore the farm and develop a taste for the fresh, unadulterated product. The café is famous for the chocolate fondue with strawberries.

Thousands are already gathering every weekend for U-Pick Strawberry Picking  – every year from November to April daily from 9am until 4.30pm. Adults are $8 and it includes 500g of strawberries
, children up to 12 years are $4, which includes 250g strawberries
 and children under 3 years are free.

As well as the intensely popular, U-Pick season, strawberries are sold through Coles, Woolworths and Costco Supermarkets. The berries are of the highest quality and are known for being premium Mornington Peninsula produce. This is achieved through best farming practice, which optimises plant health by ensuring field hygiene is at top levels. Rocky Creek grasses inter-row furrows, which controls weed populations and protects bare soil from erosion and structural damage. Crops are rotated to revive the soil. They also use indigenous Australian species as border plants to create a growing environment more in sync with the local habitat.

The couple’s children remain invested in the business, daughter Nicole runs the packing shed – she spends half her time in Australia and half her time in Belgium where she is married to a Belgium strawberry farmer! Son Matt runs sister company, Rebello Wines. Rocky Creek has made wines for the last 15-20 years but recently divided the business into separate enterprises. Rebello produce strawberry wines, fruit wines and ‘Cheeky Rascal’ cider using only real fruit. Rebello also produce wines under the ‘Little Birdie’ label. During peak picking periods they have up to 80 staff in the shed, 80 picking and 30 in the shop.

Visit Rocky Creek Strawberry farm this weekend to pick your own amazing, fresh strawberries. Strawberries are an incredible source of vitamin c, serve them with pancakes and fresh cream, chop and mix with balsamic vinegar and icing sugar, make a compote to serve with French Toast, decorate cakes, make strawberry ice-cream or wash and enjoy them straight out of the punnet.

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You’ll always have a dilemma when visiting in that you can never walk out with only a few items! The store is a series of food zones; there’s fresh fruit and vegetables – which they pride themselves on – continental deli, gourmet grocer, butcher & seafood and other speciality items. Originally the Tully’s site was an apple orchard however today the business is driven by three generations of the Brancatisano family who have been providers on the Peninsula since the late 1950’s. While respecting the history of the site, Tully’s appreciates that supporting & promoting local regional lines – most of which are sourced directly from growers – is integral to the business and the community it serves. The family are also passionate about delivering quality fare and a family friendly experience built on service.

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The Ripe ‘n’ Ready Cherry Farm at 52 Arkwells Lane in Red Hill, is owned and operated by two generations of the Easy family, who planted the orchard back in 1947 on 24 acres of lush, Red Hill countryside. These days, Eric and Simon Easy’s farm is one of the Peninsula’s biggest and best cherry producers. The love that has gone into cultivating the orchard is evident in the lush quality of the fruit. With over 70 varieties of cherries, there is a delicious variety for every jam, ice cream, cake, sauce or fruit bowl.

With a trout pond stocked full of rainbow trout – autumn, winter and spring are the best times to try your hand at catching a plump, juicy dinner-plate-sized fish. Eric loves fishing so much, he can often be found helping kids cast off and catch fish.

Earlier this year, the farm was featured on the Mornington Peninsula episode of Australia’s Masterchef. The Northern Territory’s Lucy was seen catching a fish from the trout pond, which she took back to the Royal Exhibition Building in Melbourne to prepare and cook. Filmed last winter, in prime trout fishing season, the trout pond was redolent with leaping rainbow trout.  In spring the cherry trees blossom and many visitors come just to see and smell the perfumed branches.

Coming into summer, the farm is vibrant with visitors and fragrant with sweet and sour cherries, blueberries and raspberries ripening to summer perfection. You can ‘pick your own’, which allows you to enjoy the sunshine and wander about the farm choosing your own berries. At the end – the box is weighed and you’re charged accordingly ($8 a kilo).

In early November the Bergstoff variety are the first cherries to ripen, later come the Lapins, which are the most prolific variety and then the Burlaps, a big favourite with ‘pick it yourselfers’. After Christmas the most prized Morello Cherries come into season.  In autumn frozen berries are available to purchase, trout fishing is well underway and there is seasonal homemade ice cream on sale – packed full of ripe summer fruit.

Farm Gate is now a big part of the business – with freshly picked cherries, silvanberries, raspberries, boysenberries, marionberries and blueberries. Visitors and locals like to buy directly from the grower and know exactly what they are getting, where it has been grown and how fresh the berries are.  Ripe ‘n’ Ready is open from the first week of November until the last week of January. Visit ripenreadycherries.com.au for more information.

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For many, it’s a one-stop shop for their pantry needs. Best of all, their food truck is open on the weekends cooking their famous thrice cooked hot chips – hand-cut from their own potatoes grown on the farm. The veggie patch is the perfect place to sit and enjoy their delicious coffee & treats, and kids will love their 1970s Farmall tractor that takes pride of place.

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Soak in the exceptional atmosphere and regenerate your senses at one of our delightful markets. There is something for everyone from old world to modern contemporary, a labyrinth of unique treasures worth discovering.

Dedicated commitment to quality brings together over 300 talented stallholders who regularly demonstrate enormous pride in their work by producing original creations of the highest quality. It’s a proven feast for the mind, body and soul, a fascinating eclectic mix of textures, materials and colours that make up the vast range of individually designed products.

There is little doubt that on the first Saturday of the month (Sept to May) between 8am and 1pm, the Red Hill Community Market is the place to be, Set the alarm clock nice and early if you want to avoid the crowds. An early arrival will also ensure you miss the long queue’s that form at the stalls selling tiny pancakes and other tasty breakfast treats.

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The Red Hill Showgrounds come alive with the festivities of one the State’s most popular agricultural shows.
Aside from the remarkable array of animals including Clydesdales, Gypsie Cobs, cattle, sheep, alpacas, poultry, minature goats, working dogs and more, we are pleased to announce the 3rd Red Hill Cider Show. The award-winning ciders will be available for Public Tasting. Pavilions will be filled with flowers, fruit, vegetables, cooking, craft, photography and art.
The countries best to fight it out for a Victorian Title in the woodchop arena.
There will be plenty of free music, activities and attractions for the whole family. Don’t miss the Grand Parade at 3.00pm!

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The hard work has been done – the tending of the farmlands and the preparation has been completed since June – with almost 4 million strawberry plants planted by hand for this coming season. With spring firmly in place, runners have started flowering and things are on track for strawberries around late October – we can’t wait.  In the interim it’s a time to recharge and a time to enjoy all the yummy deserts and other delicacies that visitors can enjoy when they visit the café and retail store in Main Ridge.

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With a northern-Italian focus, among the rare vines are varieties such as Lagrein, Verduzzo, Arneis and Pinot Grigio, as well as more traditional Pinot Noir, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon to cover an expansive range of grapes, which are chemical free and grown on steel trellising.

Opened in 2004, the fine-food pavilion serves chef-prepared meals from a commercial kitchen with wheelchair access and both indoor and outdoor dining options allowing for bookings of up to 100 people. The pavilion boasts a roaring open fireplace inside for winter enjoyment as well as a sun dappled wraparound alfresco deck overlooking the vines for the warmer months.

In harmony with the beauty of the setting, the stunning four-bedroom homestead ‘Mootwingee’ provides the ultimate space to relax in your downtime under soaring cathedral ceilings, with an airy floorplan spilling out to the wraparound verandas with ornamental grape vines, along with a sundeck overlooking a shimmering dam. Featuring both formal and casual living and dining rooms, master with spa ensuite, large country kitchen, library/fourth bedroom and second bathroom, every need is met to raise a family in the most heavenly locale, with Balnarring Primary and the village just down the road.

On the market for the very first time and for sale as a going-concern including home and restaurant appliances, farming machinery and generators, this exceptional property includes two dams, netting sheds, wine storage, machinery sheds, chicken coop and fruit orchard.

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This motto remains the foundation of their family to this day, passed on from father, to son, to grandson and beyond and the foundation of this wonderful local Pen garden nursery in Mornington at Tully’s Corner. We love visiting because Diaco’s staff have the time and the passion to chat with you, to offer valuable, practical advice for our gardening needs. Their team lives and breathes plants and gardening is their passion – their is no faking it here. Spring is a time of miraculous transformation in the garden. Once the soil gets warm enough everything begins to go gang busters and things can get out of hand quite easily. Take your garden back this spring, arm yourself with all that you need to clean away the winter wreckage and start fresh. What more could you wish for: hands in the dirt, head in the sun, heart with nature. To nurture your garden is to feed your body and soul.

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Cellar and Pantry sell the highest quality products and match it with great service. They are constantly searching for food trends and products to introduce. They pride themselves on stocking the largest range of local beer, wine, cider and produce such as cheese and larder in the Mornington Peninsula.

Back in July 2003, Joe and Dee took possession of the keys to the Red Hill Food-Rite supermarket, as it was named at the time, and in July 2003 Cellar and Pantry was born. Dee comes from a seaside suburb in South Tel Aviv, she was eager to get back to coastal living. Joe had wonderful childhood experiences on the Mornington Peninsula on family holidays and always thought it would be great to live here one day. But Joe says it was fate that brought them here.

They were living in inner Melbourne when Joe booked a romantic weekend away to Sorrento to celebrate their first wedding anniversary. He decided that a leisurely bike ride from Sorrento to Red Hill would be fun and quite easy.  In freezing wet conditions Dee and Joe rode and rode and rode until they finally reached Red Hill. They were just around the corner from their future business, when Dee was almost run over by a car. That was the final straw for Dee; she insisted they ride back to Sorrento. After eight hours of riding in freezing conditions, they arrived to a hot spa bath and seafood dinner. Fortunately Joe was forgiven. Weeks later they spotted an ad, ‘For Sale: Food Store in Red Hill’. Dee and Joe felt extremely lucky to find a space with huge potential in a rundown state and in an ideal area. They were in the right place at the right time.

The store was once the local post office and provisions store in the 1950s. The shape of the building has evolved over time, modified by each subsequent owner, creating a lovely flow for customers to meander through the store, sipping coffee with a shopping basket in hand.

Dee and Joe have both traveled extensively and these experiences have had a huge impact on the way they run their business. The store has a Mediterranean feel with aromas of coffee, cheese, prosciutto and fresh fruits mingling with the sound of jazz and bossa nova – ambience is key.

The cellar stocks the largest range of local wine in the area; there are over 300 local wines on offer, as well as local ciders and microbrewery beers.  There are also artisan ciders from France and England, microbrew beers from Japan, Belgium, Italy and Norway and unique wines from Italy, Spain, France and Austria and Germany.

There is now a new deck along the front of the store with a servery window allowing customers to order food and coffee from outside the store. This new deli eatery offers New York sandwiches, vegetarian ficelles as well as the very popular Turkish rolls, stuffed with overnight roast lamb or crackly pork belly roast. To accompany their famous coffee they have a selection of specialty cakes and sweets made by Dee’s Kitchen in Dromana. Warm muffins are coming soon every morning, made in house as well as a liquor licence to serve local wine and beer on the deck. New café barriers and blinds create a striking look from the roadside.

Come and say hello to Dee and Joe at Cellar and Pantry, 141 Shoreham Road, Red Hill South – the store is open every day from 7.30 am to 7.30 pm.

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