Bendigo : Where to Eat
Delight in supreme local produce done every which way in Bendigo – fine dining in an old glass factory, inventive lunches in a cosy café or top tipples and tapas in a buzzing laneway bar.
Find locally roasted coffee, celebrated steakhouses, and exquisite contemporary dining experiences that showcase the toil and creativity of the area’s growers and makers.
Cafes
Percy and Percy: Start the day right with a hearty, wholesome breakfast and superb coffee at Percy and Percy, a former grocery store and milk bar. Select from the well-balanced menu of fresh, modern café fare like Persian eggs with Meredith goats cheese and soba noodle salad. Brewhouse Coffee Roasters: Kick back in this roomy warehouse café for breakfast, lunch and outstanding coffee. Sip on house blend or single origin brews while you tuck into tasty comfort food – think all day breakfast and lunch along the lines of eggs benny, taco bowls, hot chips, toasties. Pick up some freshly roasted beans to take home.
Harvest Food & Wine: Visit this all-day eating hall for fresh baked pastries and an exciting range of rotisserie meats, fresh salads and sides. Harvest also serves as the cellar door for wine label North Run. Eat in or grab a delicious takeaway lunch. Located in the heart of the Bendigo Arts Precinct.
El Gordo: A taste of Spain down Chancery Lane. Savour preserved seafood and other delectable small bites and bocadillos, along with great coffee, or wine, craft beer and sangria. Open for breakfast and lunch, with some late-night events.
Restaurants
The Woodhouse: Savour the woodsmoke in the air and permeating your wood-grilled, premium-grade steak at this warm and inviting steakhouse. Pizzas are also given wood fire treatment to great acclaim. An impressive drinks list of local and international wine, beer and cider rounds things out perfectly.
Masons: Inside an old glass factory, Mason’s serves up Central Victoria’s best produce artfully and deliciously. Book in advance for a stunning paddock-to-plate dining experience. Try the popular Lunch Roaming Menu, where seven seasonal tastes are served within 50 minutes. Awarded a chef’s hat in Good Food Guide 2019 for the third year running.
Bars & Pubs
The Dispensary: Head down sweet little Chancery Lane to this excellent gastrobar. Browse the extraordinary Beverage Bible, including craft beers, single malt whiskies, gins and cocktails galore, and the menu of modern Australian starters, bites and mains. Come for lunch, dinner, and everything in between.
Handle Bar: Step into the secret garden behind Get Naked Espresso for a chilled-out, outdoor bar experience. Craft beer and live gigs are the order of the day here, with an exciting rotation of brews and musos. Located in Bendigo’s Arts Precinct and open Thursday to Sunday.
Rifle Brigade Hotel: Lay down your weapons – while still known locally as the gun club, it’s pure pub fun at this 1887 establishment. Beer, wine, spirits aplenty to go with an extensive menu of pubgrub faves. Kick back on the splendid balcony overlooking View Street.
More information For more ideas on where to wine and dine in Bendigo, visit bendigotourism.com or visitvictoria.com
