The Stunned Mullet Restaurant & Bar, Port MacquarieCredit: Destination NSW
Enjoying oysters at The Stunned Mullet Restaurant & Bar, Port Macquarie.
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The seaside town of Port Macquarie and surrounds on the Mid North Coast, a four-hour drive north of Sydney, offer the chance to make some remarkable food and wine discoveries. Here’s how to explore the area’s boutique wineries, craft breweries and fine-dining seafood restaurants.
Discover Hastings Valley wine
The Hastings Valley wine industry had been dormant for about 60 years when John and Eve Cassegrain brought it back to life in 1980. Combining the family’s French winemaking heritage with modern Australian techniques, Cassegrain produces wines including chambourcin, chardonnay and semillon, and specialises in the traditional French method for making sparkling wine. Drop in for a tasting at the cellar door, 15 minutes’ west of Port Macquarie, and visit the winery’s restaurant, Twotriplefour, which offers a farm-to-table menu championing local produce. Then explore the estate on foot or horseback. with the Port Macquarie Horse Riding Centre.
In the town of Port Macquarie, Douglas Vale Historic Homestead & Vineyard produces varietals such as villard blanc and chambourcin. Call in for wine tastings, cheese platters and self-guided tours.
Get lost in a maze
Made from native lilly pilly trees, the architect-designed maze at Bago Maze & Wine, near the country town of Wauchope, half an hour south-west of Port Macquarie, offers 2km of hedges, paths and hidden walkways in which to lose yourself. If anything can inspire you to find the exit it’s the prospect of a tasting at the Bago cellar door, overlooking the maze and vineyards. The winery produces sparkling, fortified and varietal wines including chambourcin and chardonnay — try a tasting paddle and enjoy a cheese or charcuterie platter. While you’re in the Wauchope area, call in on The Byabarra café and bar, 30 minutes west of town, for hearty lamb shanks or a beef and Guinness pie with hinterland views.
Cassegrain Wines, Port Macquarie Credit: Destination NSW
Paddock-to-plate dining at Twotriplefour Restaurant located onsite at Cassegrain Wines, Port Macquarie.
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Cassegrain Wines, Port Macquarie Credit: Destination NSW
Paddock-to-plate dining at Twotriplefour Restaurant located onsite at Cassegrain Wines, Port Macquarie.
Bago Maze and Winery, Wauchope Credit: Destination NSW
Couple enjoying a visit to Bago Maze and Winery, Wauchope.
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Bago Maze and Winery, Wauchope Credit: Destination NSW
Couple enjoying a visit to Bago Maze and Winery, Wauchope.
Pair great seafood and wine
You’re never far from a great seafood meal in Port Macquarie. Head to Whalebone Wharf for some of the best views in town, right on the Hastings River. Established in 1971, the restaurant serves high-end seafood — choose a local eastern rock lobster from the tank, or share a platter paired with something from the Australian and international wine list.
Speaking of wine lists, another Port Macquarie standout restaurant, Bills Fishhouse, offers an impressive selection of the best wines that New South Wales has to offer, to accompany its seafood menu that specialises in local, sustainable ingredients.
And you should also make time for a visit to The Stunned Mullet, which offers an extensive, award-winning wine list alongside specialties such as Glacier 51 toothfish, sourced from a sustainable Australian fishery in Antarctica. You’ll find it across the road from Town Beach.
Say cheers to craft beer
After sampling your share of wine, check out Port Macquarie’s thriving craft beer scene. Wicked Elf opened its new taproom and beer garden in January 2021, offering its range of beers from pale ales to pilsners, as well as limited-release and seasonal brews, plus live music, and food from the Botanic at Wicked Elf restaurant.
Around the corner is the Moorebeer Brewing Co, with a taproom that offers not just beers from the existing Moorebeer range (including Hipster IPA and Copy Cat Pale Ale) but pilot batches too. Grab a burger, and listen to some live tunes while you’re there.
Meanwhile, at Black Duck Brewery and Bar you’ll find an eclectic range including Platypus Aussie Pale Ale and Black Bird Traditional Dark Ale, and non-beer alternatives such as Gingerhol Alcoholic Ginger Beer — as well as brewery tours, wood-fired pizzas and more live music.
Enjoy breakfast in bed
Enjoy a grazing platter on arrival and a breakfast hamper in the morning when you book a pamper package or family farm-stay adventure at Telegraph Retreat, a sprawling property offering Australian Federation-style cottages on native bushland a 20-minute drive north of Port Macquarie. Keep an eye out for passing kangaroos and wallabies as you enjoy your food and wine.
In town, Sails Port Macquarie, refurbished in 2018, is a 4.5-star resort perched on the edge of the water. The Boathouse Bar & Restaurant has a deck overlooking the bay, and there’s a poolside bar and terrace for cocktails and snacks.
Whalebone Wharf, Port Macquarie Credit: Destination NSW
The interior of the Whalebone Wharf seafood restaurant with views across Hastings River, Port Macquarie.
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Whalebone Wharf, Port Macquarie Credit: Destination NSW
The interior of the Whalebone Wharf seafood restaurant with views across Hastings River, Port Macquarie.
Telegraph Retreat Cottages, Cooperabung Credit: Destination NSW
Children greeting the miniature farm animals during their stay at Telegraph Retreat Cottages, Cooperabung.
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Telegraph Retreat Cottages, Cooperabung Credit: Destination NSW
Children greeting the miniature farm animals during their stay at Telegraph Retreat Cottages, Cooperabung.
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Corowa Whisky & Chocolate, CorowaCredit: Destination NSW
Couple enjoying a visit to Corowa Whisky & Chocolate, Corowa.
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Feast on the riches of one of Australia’s most important food bowls on a road trip through the Murray, named after the mighty river that flows through this southwest area of New South Wales. Float down the river on a historic paddlesteamer wine cruise, stop by farm gates to sample incredible fresh produce, and dine at chic restaurants and bars in this unique culinary playground.
Take the back roads for gourmet treats
Head off the beaten path along The Backroads Trail, a 250km driving route that passes through the small pastoral towns of Barham, Moama, Mathoura and Deniliquin on the upper reaches of the Murray River. Sink your teeth into fresh olives, avocados, free-range pork, honey and citrus fruit from farm gates along its loops and trails, and taste the region’s wines at vineyards such as Restdown Wines. While you’re at this winery, venture out along the Restdown Wetland Walk to encounter Aboriginal cooking hearths and an old sheep camp.
Cruise along to The Old School Winery & Meadery in Womboota to pick up wine, pottery and honey mead. Or seek out Ivy Joyce in Barham to indulge in a warm space, offering local produce from farms for a truly paddock to plate experience in the heart of Murray River country. For more snacks and meaty fare such as British-style pork pies and sausages, head to Pacdon Park’s factory shop in Moama.
You can work up an appetite as you build your own itinerary on the theme of food, paddocks and produce, and find suggested routes and maps to Murray River farm gates, at the Echuca Moama Visitor Centre.
Wine and dine along the river
Embark on a wine tour by water in Moama, where the first steamboats made their way up the Murray in 1853. Take a Murray River Paddlesteamers Wharf to Winery Cruise from the town to Morrisons Riverview Winery for a leisurely lunch. Or drive along the river, stopping in at Three Black Sheep for risotto and woodfired pizzas, and tasting crisp dry whites and full-flavoured reds at St Anne’s Vineyards, where you can nibble on a cheese platter overlooking a scenic lake.
Head east along the riverside roads to rest and recharge in the town of Tocumwal, known for its riverside beaches, golf courses, glider flying and iconic Big Murray Cod statue. Start the following day with a solid foundation of breakfast pizza (topped with bacon, eggs and a hash brown) at The Old Bank and indulge in a scoop of ice-cream or sorbet from Tocumwal Ice Creamery – flavours include rocky road, green apple or macadamia. If you’re in town on a Saturday, pick up honey, fruit, vegetables, olive oil, dressings and other condiments made by local producers at the Tocumwal Foreshore Markets.
Continue your odyssey along the river to Corowa, the birthplace of Australian Federation. Immerse in the town’s rich turn-of-the-20th-century colonial heritage as you make your way to the former 1920s flour mill housing Corowa Distilling Co. Here you can book a whisky tasting and behind-the-scenes tour and buy locally made chocolates and sweets from sister shop Junee Licorice and Chocolate Factory. Work off an indulgent afternoon with a walk along the river before settling into the stylish Circa 1936 hotel, which is housed in an Art Deco former bank on the main street of Corowa.
Celebrate regional ingredients in Albury
From Corowa, follow the Riverina Highway eastward to the city of Albury, a food, wine and culture hub. Taste how seasonality and locality are expressed at The Proprietor, a former butcher shop turned cafe offering brunch treats such as fruit toast with Beechworth honey and whipped ricotta, and banana waffles with Gundowring vanilla ice-cream. Or try the all-day breakfast offering at Mr Benedict, from cheesy bacon waffle with popcorn chicken to one of its signature eggs benedicts, including one with cider-braised ham hock.
At The River Deck restaurant, local ingredients are celebrated alongside stunning river views, and dishes may include chicken Caesar salad with Milawa eggs or beef brisket braised in coffee by Albury roaster The Brothers Cup. At tiny and elegant Bistro Selle, complement warm Gooramadda olives with a buttery Australian chardonnay and fresh market fish. Yardbird offers a bold-flavoured menu featuring dishes like scorched Albacore tuna, along with meats grilled in a Spanish woodfired oven.
In between meals, stroll along the Yindyamarra Sculpture Walk and take in the contemporary artworks by Aboriginal artists that line the Wagirra Trail. Meander through the Murray Art Museum Albury’s contemporary photographic collection, Aboriginal art and works by renowned Australian artist Sir Russell Drysdale. Afterwards, order lunch or dinner at the museum’s excellent Canvas Eatery – try the saltbush lamb rump or one of their Neapolitan-style pizzas.
The Old School Winery & Meadery, Womboota Credit: Destination NSW
Couple taste tasting mead at The Old School Winery & Meadery, Womboota
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The Old School Winery & Meadery, Womboota Credit: Destination NSW
Couple taste tasting mead at The Old School Winery & Meadery, Womboota
Morrison's Riverview Winery and Restaurant, Moama Credit: Destination NSW
Food and wine available from Morrison's Riverview Winery and Restaurant, Moama.
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Morrison's Riverview Winery and Restaurant, Moama Credit: Destination NSW
Food and wine available from Morrison's Riverview Winery and Restaurant, Moama.
Corowa Whisky & Chocolate, Corowa Credit: Destination NSW
Corowa Whisky & Chocolate located in a 1920âs old flour mill in Corowa.
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Corowa Whisky & Chocolate, Corowa Credit: Destination NSW
Corowa Whisky & Chocolate located in a 1920âs old flour mill in Corowa.
Canvas Eatery, Albury Credit: Destination NSW
Food and wine available at Canvas Eatery in Albury.
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Canvas Eatery, Albury Credit: Destination NSW
Food and wine available at Canvas Eatery in Albury.