I was born and grew up in the UK but now live in the beautiful city of Perth, WA, however we always get back to the UK at least once a year to visit my parents in Essex. As it’s normally for a month we like to travel around visiting friends and relatives. There are also some great country pubs in Essex where we go for gourmet lunches and dinners!
The Peter Boat, Leigh-on-Sea, Essex, is one of our favourite pubs. Sitting on the banks of the Thames Estuary it’s a great place for lunch and then a walk through the High Street. Although there are at least four other pubs in this small street, The Peter Boat is always the most popular. I started going here when I was 17, and over 40 years later it’s still a number one choice for me!
Catching up over a gourmet lunch
Part of the Thames EstuaryCockles and Jellied Eels
West Mersea, Essex
We had lunch here one day at a place called The Oyster Bar. What a great find this was. A very casual cafe but serving gourmet seafood. There are some cute houses around here as well.
Hubby’s favourite – jellied eels
Fresh crab and prawn salad
Waiting for their fish and chips inside The Oyster Bar
An old house in West MerseaCute little house
Overlooking the River BlackwellThese boats no longer look seaworthy!
Southend on Sea
We had been recommended the next place by my uncle who like my hubby is a great seafood eater – they see food and eat it! Sorry couldn’t resist. Anyway this “restaurant” is called Billy Hundreds and I’ve added a link as the history is fascinating. Briefly:
“Over 140 years ago my Great Grandfather William Pullum worked as a fish porter in the famous Billingsgate Market in London, his porters badge number was 100.
He was known as Billy Hundreds..” to read more click on the link above.
It’s a Spanish tapas place, just a small shack on Southend Beach and on a windy day sitting underneath the alfresco blinds you almost feel you could be blown away. The menu is adventurous specialising in fish tapas but also with many other fishless dishes. Also the wine menu is pretty decent too.
I’ve taken the liberty of adding a photo of my Auntie Val eating alfresco at this restaurant!
Tilbury Fort is a great place to visit and somewhere I had never visited before, even after all those years living in Essex. It’s located on the Thames Estuary and was built in the reign of Henry VIII in 1539, due to international tensions between England, France and the Holy Roman Empire.
Is someone locked in?Overlooking the Thames EstuaryThe entrance to Tilbury FortLooking out onto the moatOld Wooden BridgeUp on the rampartsTunnel underneath the fort
There is a lovely pub for lunch nearby called The World’s End.
It’s always nice to get back for a visit, but nothing beats our home in Perth, WA
We always visit my native country at least once a year for around a month from Perth, WA which is now our home. I was born in London, worked in London for 16 years and lived there in my twenties for a while, however I was brought up in Essex. So Essex is not far from London around 35 minutes by train into the City, Fenchurch Street, and we always like to spend a few days there. We only go for day trips and mostly to shop and eat! We usually go to the East end of London for the markets, very rarely venturing into the West.
Although I used to know London pretty well it has now changed so much I find it hard to navigate around without using Google Maps! There are so many new buildings and streets its getting more like New York every year. I love it though that there are still the old churches and pubs dotted about in between all the new buildings. The food is not like it used to be years ago, just the basic Egg and Chip cafe or the more upmarket Steak houses. You can now eat anything at any price and it will always be great.
The photos I’ve added are from days out over the past couple of years.
Pubs and Bars
Lunch at Davy’s Bar, just outside Fenchurch Streetsign inside the bar!Outside The Prospect of Whitby, Wapping
The Prospect of Whitby, as you can see from the sign, is said to be the oldest riverside pub in London dating back to 1520. It has been used in many tv series. All that remains of the original building is the 400 year old stone floor. I used to go here in my twenties and wanted to revisit. I was quite disappointed that it now only served the basic pub food, whereas many years ago it was a “white tablecloth and silver service” establishment. Still the views are amazing across the river.
I zoomed in across the river to snap this with my Canon Powershot SX730
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Having a quick pint!
The Ship in Talbot Court, EC3 dates back to 1895. A great traditional pub hidden in a little alley.
After leaving beautiful Perast we headed off to Croatia again taking the scenic route. After much thought as to how to make this journey I decided to book a driver, although more expensive, as it seemed the most comfortable way to go. Our driver took the coastal route and was able to stop where we asked so I could take photos of the stunning coastline. It also meant that we got to take the mini car ferry across the Bay of Kotor.
Day One
We stayed in a little bay just passed Mlini called Srebreno although the address of the hotel was in Mlini. We had an incredible apartment called One Suite Hotel, big enough for four adults with two toilets and completely fitted out kitchen and most importantly a licenced bar on site! The hotel was approximately five minutes from the beautiful bay of Srebreno with its own ferry pier with boats directly to Cavtat and Dubrovnik both 30 minutes away.
After checking in we went in search of lunch and also a nice restaurant for dinner later. Right on the beach is a newly built Sheraton, slightly out of place I thought in this sleepy village. Srebreno is an extremely well looked after village and many of the buildings seem very new, although there is still a sleepy small place feel about it. I loved it on sight and as we wandered along the seafront was happy that I had chosen this place rather than Dubrovnik.
Against the good advice I was given I did not buy reef shoes to go into the sea. There are very few sandy beaches in Croatia and this one was no exception, most are pebbles. So with flip flops on I walked down to the edge of the pebbles and into the sea and threw my flip flops back onto the beach. The water was very “refreshing”. Getting out was a problem and I most certainly did not look like Ursula Andress/Halle Berry in 007 more like a creature from the deep treading on Lego. Walking on pebbles is painful.
That night for dinner we went to Marinero, up the hill in between the pine trees. We asked the waiter for his recommendations and had a local dish, Brudet, which is a fish stew made with whatever fresh fish they have on hand.
Brudet, Croatian Fish Stew – so delicious
Day 2
After breakfast we walked down to our little pier and caught the ferry into Dubrovnik. Our plan today was just to walk around the old town. Although getting into the old town is free you do have to pay to walk the ramparts. Even though it was September the place was so busy with many tour groups and queues everywhere, so we decided against walking around the walls. Apparently to get the best of this place I read that you should actually stay inside and then you have the place to yourselves in the evening and early in the morning.
Tonight’s restaurant was Puntazella. Another fabulous place with great food and service. We actually went here twice as it was so good.
Sunset through the pine trees from Puntazella
Day 3
Today we took the bus to Cavtat, a beautiful historic town, southeast of Dubrovnik. It takes about 20 minutes by boat or bus. With its tree-lined harbour and wonderful old buildings its a great way to spend the day exploring.
A map showing the bay with Srebreno, Mlini and Plat, with Cavtat and Dubrovnik
Squid Ink risotto
After getting the bus back we spent the afternoon relaxing on the beach and hobbling in and out of the sea. That evening we walked around the bay into Mlini itself for cocktails and then back for dinner at Portun. Once again a wonderful restaurant just across the road from our hotel.
Day 4
I think today was the highlight of our trip, an excursion to the Elephiti Islands. These three islands consist of Sipan, Lopud and Kolocep. Sipan is the furthest away from Dubrovnik with Kolocep being the nearest. The day trip (leaving from Dubrovnik) included time at all three islands plus a delicious lunch on board with free flowing wine and beer!
Our first stop was Kolocep and we stopped here for around 45 minutes, enough to have a quick walk around and a drink. Next up was Lopud this was also for 45 minutes. Enough time for you to get a feel of the islands and take a few photos. I could just have easily stayed on both for a few days. Then we were back on board for lunch and onto the last island of Sipan where we spent nearly 3 hours. Sipan has one of the few sandy beaches in Croatia. To get there we had to walk for a while before then taking a golf cart down a dirt track, I was adamant that I wanted to see it though!
Leaving Dubrovnik
Our Boat
Built in wine rack
Enjoying the local Rose before heading back
I would really recommend this trip, it’s really easy to book once you are in Mlini as there are ticket centres everywhere.
Day 5
As we had a late flight back to the UK we could enjoy the whole day, so we headed back into Dubrovnik by bus this time. Even though Dubrovnik is now just a tourist attraction and extremely busy I could still enjoy walking through the old town and soaking up the history within its walls. There are so many alleys, doors and courtyards to walk around and cafes to stop and have a drink. The only thing missing (much to Anthony’s dismay) were shops, proper shops! He does love a department store which I’m glad to say there were none.
Waiting for the bus
The bus stopped at the top of the hill and we had to walk down so many steps!
And that concludes our short trip to Croatia. We had two more weeks in the UK before flying back to Perth. Still a long wait for our two boys Zac and Rufus who were enjoying their own holiday in kennels ):
Why Perast and not Kotor? Well after much research I decided on Perast as I had read it was so much more peaceful than Kotor. It’s just a few kilometres north west of Kotor and consists of just a small promenade situated around a beautiful bay. It was described by a taxi driver as the Vatican of Montenegro, which I thought was very apt. Not many cars are allowed here it’s very strictly controlled.
I had booked a small waterfront apartment called The White Terrace. It was a fabulous place and the owner Bob picked us up from Tivat airport. With only two days here we had to make the most of this time.
The promenade is lined with apartments and restaurants and on our first night we ate at the oldest restaurant Armonia. We had a lovely table right on the waterfront, food and wine we’re delicious.
The next day after breakfast we had a walk along the promenade and took in the beautiful views .
Our apartment on the first floor
After this we took the local bus into Kotor to have a look around the old town. The contrast between the two places is staggering. Kotor is where the cruise ships dock almost docking right onto the street. Spilling out passengers by the dozen the pavements were packed with tourists.
We decided to just have a walk around the old town ourselves and soak up the atmosphere. Kotor did not disappoint. It has a vast history being founded in the fifth century and is now a UNESCO world heritage sight.
Our daily lunch.. Ripe juicy tomatoes with creamy mozzarella
Could it get any closer
On the hunt for a decent shop
Love a good window box
After an afternoon spent here as nice as it was, we were glad to get back to peaceful Perast. We thought we’d have a swim from the little platform in front of the apartment, well Anthony plunged straight in whereas I did it the hard way down the ladder. What a shock, very cold and as we found out later there are icy springs spouting every so often, at least we went in.
With just one night to go we ate at the fabulous Konoba Skolji restaurant where I had read some great reviews. We chose to share the famous ” lamb under the bell”, slow roasted lamb, absolutely delicious.
And that was the end of two fabulous days in Perast.
The next day we were going to Rafailovici for two more days before heading into Croatia.
Rafailovici
I decided the easiest and fastest way to Rafailovici was by taxi also more comfortable.It was less than an hours drive and we were there by 1pm.It’s just past Budva and supposed to be quieter, I never like to stay in the most popular place and prefer to stay just outside the main area.
Our taxi driver was quite chatty and wondered why we were going to Budva as he said it was horrible! This wasn’t the first time we’d heard this opinion.So I really wasn’t looking forward to the next two days.On the positive side it was only two days and it was somewhere new.
After checking into Hotel Aleksander which was right on the seafront we headed out for lunch and a look around. Some photos of my first impressions.
Fish pate, a typical local delicacy
Couldn’t find a bed of nails so next best thing is a bed of boulders
A much needed mojito 🍸[[[[[[We did have a swim and the water is crystal clear but as the water is a bit cold made it very quick. After a wonderful dinner at the hotel overlooking the sea we headed back for an early night.
Perfectly grilled sea bream
So the next day after breakfast we took a hotel van and driver to Lake Skadar,
The lake is located in Zeta – Skadar valley and is surrounded by mountains, and it’s 7 km away from Adriatic Sea. Two Thirds of Skadar Lake is in Montenegro and the rest is in Albania. Skadar Lake is the largest lake in the Balkan Peninsula.
We chose the two hour boat trip, but one hour would have been enough for me. If you ever visit Budva it’s worth having a trip out here as the lake and scenery are beautiful.
Ruins of Besac Castle
Any chance to drink the delicious Montenegren wine
For our last night here we headed into Budva itself. The atmosphere here is completely different to Rafailovici, for a start there were so many more English tourists whereas I had heard no English at all in Rafailovici. It seemed to be more for local Montengrens holidaying. Budva like Kotor has an old town which we wandered around, it’s an amazing place and I loved it here.
It took absolutely ages to find the restaurant we wanted to eat in, we had actually found it straight away really but were told it was just a museum. It was only when going back and asking if there was a restaurant there the girl said oh yes at the back! We ate at the Citadella restaurant which has amazing views overlooking the sea.
And that was that. I’m so glad we got to visit Montenegro and see the wonderful sights, eat delicious food and drink divine wine, but most of all to meet the lovely friendly people of this country.
A gastronomic four days in Melbourne eating my way around the world! A quick visit to see Laurence and Maddie who have just moved there from Perth.
Melbourne has to be one of the best places to eat what you want at any time you want.
Our first night was tapas at Bombas. A super busy restaurant on Lonsdale Street. Some of the dishes we ate below served with a cold glass of Alberino:
Beef tartare
Scallops with spicy harissa
Whole deep fried prawns
Chargrilled broccolini with yellow bean and pine nut picada
Then up to the rooftop cocktail bar for a nightcap
A pint of sangria for me!
Thursday
Today Maddie and I went sightseeing while Laurence worked the day away. There is so much to see and do in this wonderful city it was hard to know where to start. But with google at hand I downloaded some walking maps and off we set. We chose the Secret Garden walk and headed off. Melbourne has some beautiful parks and its easy to get lost in them. Photos below were taken in the Queen Victoria Park.
For my second night we opted for Greek and walked over to Melina on the Rooftop. Forgot photos of the food but as you can see below we enjoyed it all. Great views from this restaurant.
Awesome view
Friday
Into my third day now and Maddie suggested the Melbourne Museum. I’m not a museum person by choice but fair’s fair and we hopped on a tram to have a look. I was very pleasantly surprised and we really enjoyed looking around the place. There was a fantastic tapestry display showing. Such intricate and delicate work. Here’s some shots I took:
Just outside the Exhibition Centre
Next off we took a tram to the Docklands to have some lunch and a little look around. This suburb is located on Victoria Harbour and is west of the city. Its hard to believe that there are that many people here to fill the numerous apartment blocks!
Some intricate detail has gone into these apartment buildings.
Still keeping with the European theme for dinner Maddie and I walked to Hardware Lane to Max on Hardware, a great Italian place. Hardware Lane is a brilliant place for restaurants and bars if you’re not sure what to eat or where to go in Melbourne! We had superb service at Max’s and enormous servings of food.
Lamb Shanks in red wine for me and Seafood pasta for Maddie
We met up with Laurence after at Cookie for more cocktails. I found out people in Melbourne seem to be extremely friendly after a random stranger insisted on buying me a cocktail! An eclectic bar with a great vibe, a mix of all ages so didn’t feel out of place.
Saturday
Today I was determined to find the famous laneways of Melbourne. There is a detailed walk on this website – happiness and things – so I wasn’t wandering around aimlessly. These were the lanes we covered : Strachan Lane – Duckboard Place and AC/DC Lane – Hosier Lane – Centre Place – Block Arcarde – Royal Arcade – Union Lane – Tattersalls Lane. Some of the artwork is fantastic, some just scrawled graffiti and apparently they change all the time. We also had breakfast at a very busy cafe in Centre Place called RMB cafe – there doesn’t seem to be a website for it. But its quick service and a massive variety of eggs to chose from. Some shots of the artwork I took below:
Saved the best dinner till last – the pièce de résistance. A whole new cuisine and continent tonight – Japanese Tepanyaki. After walking through Chinatown we came upon the Ginza and luckily for us they had places for three. I say places and not table as you share with others – up to 24 a square with the two chefs in the middle. Even though it was on the pricey side the entertainment value was worth it. It was a very noisy restaurant but with people’s laughter as the chefs performed like actors on a stage.
Firstly you chose your set from the menu, then a waitress comes and puts a large white bib around you with your set number on so the chefs know what to feed you. It all starts very civilly with a bowl of miso soup, but then watch out as you are asked to open your mouth to start catching your food, then you have to catch eight bowls, then a bowl of rice and finally for the chosen one have an omelette fired at you like bullets. I highly recommend this place for a great night out – although not on a first date!
Flamegrilled Wagyu Beef
Trying to catch her food
Getting ready for firing the omelette
Catching the eight bowls
Maddie trying to catch her food!
Melbourne I will be back to try out some more of your fantastic restaurants and the many sights you have to offer!
Adding onto our Laos/Vietnam trip we flew to Hanoi from Luang Prabang and planned to stay here for three days. We decided instead of organised trips we would just explore Hanoi on our own. I had booked three days at Hotel Nikko a very large Japanese hotel near Hoan Kiem Lake. The hotel was fantastic with magnificent views over the city. Both photos were taken from our room. I loved all the gadgets on the toilet!
Hanoi is the capital of Vietnam and the second largest city in Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh being the largest. Its chaotic and noisy 24 hours a day with horns blaring and hundreds of motor bikes whizzing by. If they can’t get by on the roads then they just use the pavement.
As we arrived quite late we had dinner at the hotel, unfortunately we were not very impressed. The restaurant is also where they serve breakfast and they have a smoking area inside but its just an alcove, so you can smell smoke constantly – Japanese business men are big smokers.
The next two days and nights were just spent walking around and eating amazing food. Hanoi has some of the best restaurants I’ve ever eaten in. It’s an incredibly busy city and you take your chances when crossing any road. Red lights don’t seem to mean much here! The sights we took in were the Old Quarter, the Citadel and St Josephs Church. Some photos below:
A very kind lady let Anthony pose with her goods
Inside the citadel
St Joseph’s Church
Heavy loads
Inside the citadel
Graduating students
Sunset from the room
Bonsai Tree
One of the restaurants we ate in was Pots and Pans which I see now from their website is permanently closed. At the time of visiting this was a teaching restaurant to help young people get a good start in life. Another was Verticale a French restaurant, which served gourmet French food with a Vietnamese twist and the staff and service were impeccable, probably one of the best meals I’ve eaten was here!
After Hanoi we drove to Ha Long Bay for a one night/two day cruise, that will be on the next post!
The second part of our trip to Laos was to the incredibly beautiful Luang Prabang. This tiny town is encircled by mountains and sits on the banks of the Mekong and Nam Khan River. We flew Lao Airlines from Vientiane and had arranged for a driver to take us to our hotel. We stayed at the very elegant Belle Rive Hotel just across from the river. It is an old French colonial building with rooms that are more like small apartments with your own private entrance. Luang Prabang has such a lovely laid back atmosphere. Hardly any cars on the roads, people cycling by and boats meandering along the river makes for a very relaxing time.
Luang Prabang
The Belle Rive Hotel
The hotel offered a free sunset cruise which we just had time to board. It took us on a leisurely trip along the Mekong. Below is a slide show of some of the shots I took.
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We had dinner that night at L’Elephant, a beautiful French restaurant not too far from our hotel.
A perfectly cooked steak
The next day we were picked up by our driver – a cousin of our driver in Vientiane – at 10 a.m for a river trip to Pak Ou Cave, including lunch on the river. Then onto to Kuang Si Waterfalls and the Bear Park with a short stop to a paper making village. Luang Prabang is very famous for making paper. Some photos below of our day.
Young monks on the river
Relaxing on the boat
Mekong River
Wooden pier
Buddha images inside the cave
From inside the cave
Lunch on the river
Kuang Si Waterfalls
Pretending to be the three eyed raven – GOT fans
I managed to get some clear shots but there were actually many people swimming in these water falls, although it was extremely slippery.
I just managed to get two shots as the Centre was closing. Very cute baby bears.
For our final day we had our driver just for the morning where we were going to Mount Phou Si, which is a 100 m high hill in the centre of the old town. Today was also the end of the Buddhist Lent and all the young monks were getting ready to sail along the Mekong that evening in the lighted boats.
Young Monks getting their paper mache items ready
Model of Laos Airline Plane
Steps leading up to Mount Phou Si
Views from the top
On top of the world!
Our last night in Luang Prabang was spent on the river front at our hotel having dinner and watching the Lighting Festival. “The day is celebrated by illuminated boat processions handmade with bamboo and banana trunks, colourfully decorated with candles and money. Each family has to make one, each person has to throw out one illuminated little boat on the Mekong, wishing good luck for the future and paying respect to the spirit of the waters. There are more than 20000 boats sailing slowly down the river during the night” from the website www.luangprabang-laos.com/Festival-of-lights-209. We didn’t actually see 20,000 boats but saw a few.
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This is where I needed a more professional camera to catch the brightly coloured boats.
So that concludes Luang Prabang. The thing I liked best about this wonderful city was the absolute serenity and peacefulness of it all.
Da Nang is the third largest city in Vietnam and most people visit here for the amazing beaches. Its close to Hoi An and Hue. It has a great laid back atmosphere and also offers a range of accommodation from luxury to budget.
We drove from Hue with Hue Private Tours again and this time went through the tunnel. Arriving at our hotel – Belle Maison – too early to check in, we looked for a place for lunch. Strangely the manager would not recommend any seafood restaurants around the hotel as he said the fish might not be too fresh! So we headed away from the beach across the river to the Waterfront restaurant. A great find and we had a gourmet lunch.
Burrato cheese and tomato salad with mango
fresh rice paper rolls
Crab cakes with chilli and mango salsa
Back to the hotel for check in and found we had been upgraded to a family size room with ocean front views!
Great view but so many people!
Heading down to the beach to check out the water we found there was not much room to move! There were a crazy amount of people in the sea, most could not swim as they were all in rubber rings, there was a small mountain of them on the beach for hire. This part of the shoreline is extremely popular with local families. Also hardly any wear swim suits! Just swim in their clothes.
Later we went up to the 21st floor to have cocktails at the Sky Lounge. Stunning views!
Passionfruit Mojito
Sky 21 Lounge
For the next couple of days it was just going to be relaxation – no more trips. So the next day we tried further down the beach where it seemed less crowded and found some nicer sunbeds in front of the Holiday Beach resort. Great service from the staff on the beach there.
Da Nang has the most amazing coast line and it goes on for miles. The sea is lovely and warm and not rough at all – just the way I like it!
More cocktails that night and then dinner at Madam Lan’s with a couple of fellow Australians who we had met at the hotel. After reading good reviews about this restaurant must say we were all a bit disappointed with the blandness of the food.
The next day we headed off to the Novotel for breakfast, as breakfast at the Belle Maison was so busy, a table was an hour long wait! Took some snaps on the top of the hotel there.
So after breakfast we thought we would have a look at another beach much further along the coast. The Centara Sandy Beach Resort offered day tickets for a reasonable price where we got to spend the day around the pool and their beach front. Had an incredible afternoon here and I think it will be our next holiday destination.
Finally finished off our three days here with dinner at the Waterfront restaurant.
To sum up Da Nang will definitely be on my list again and I can honestly say that Vietnam is now my favourite country in Asia.
Hue is the ancient capital of Vietnam and is a city in Central Vietnam, and sits on the banks of the Perfume River. There are many historical monuments here and we hope to visit a few in the three days we will spend here. Australian passport holders do require a visa which is easily obtainable online. Vietnamese currency is the dong.
We flew into Da Nang to meet our driver Alex, who I had organised online through Hue Private Cars. It was a great service, so nice to be met at the airport instead of waiting in line for a taxi and be bombarded by different companies trying to offer you a taxi. I had agreed on a route beforehand to Hue which was over the Hai Van Pass and not through the tunnel. The day was perfect for travelling the three hour drive to our hotel in Hue. There was breathtaking scenery on the way and we stopped at a very tranquil place for lunch just past Lang Co Beach.
Hai Van Pass
Hai Van Pass
View from the top
Lang Co Beach
Lang Co Beach
Waiting for a La Rue
Arriving at our hotel at around 4pm we checked in to a fantastically large room. We were staying at the Saigon Moirin. This hotel dated back to 1901 and the French owners have tried very hard to keep it in line with its origins. Charlie Chaplin and Paulette Goddard stayed here on their honeymoon and every night we were treated to the film “The Dictator” on the screen in the garden!
Views from our room and the hotel:
Enjoying a cocktail
Saigon Moirin Garden
From our balcony
Sunset from the balcony
Busy Bridge
corridor to our room
The road in front of our hotel was extremely busy, with the traffic lights sometimes working sometimes not. So Anthony just grabbed my hand and off we went, dodging motor cycles to get to the otherside. How the motor cycles miss each other is a mystery!
Dinner that night was at a Vietnamese restaurant called Elegant Vietnam which I had read good reviews about. We were not disappointed especially with the good wine list! The service was fantastic and food excellent.
For the next two days I used the hotel concierge to organise some trips for us as they had such interesting trips on offer. On the first day we were driven to some very famous tombs and the hidden bridge. To begin with we went first to the hidden bridge – Thanh Toan. It was incredibly hot!
Elegant Vietnamese Gentleman
Plowing the fields
Baby chicks
Hue, Vietnam
Red Tiled Thanh Toan Bridge
We then went to Khai Dinh Tombs and Minh Mang Tombs. Below are some shots from Khai Dinh. Beautiful ceramic tile decoration.
Dinner that night was at Les Jardines de la Carambole just across the river. What a fantastic restaurant and great service too. It is off the beaten track so you need to “google map” it. Delicious food and good wine.
Yallingup is in the South Western region of Western Australia. Its a great spot to visit for a short break especially from Perth. The drive takes just under three hours.
With so many places to stay it was so difficult to decide, we eventually chose the Sienna Lodge and it did not disappoint! Situated in between Barnyard Winery and Cafe Lavender on Caves Road, it was just a short drive into Yallingup and around 10k from Dunsborough. Its owned and managed by a very friendly Lithuanian couple – Raminta & Egis Rusilas, they also own the beautiful “Barnyard Vineyard”.
Sienna Lodge
Freerange as you can get!
Arriving just after 4pm we dropped our bags in our room and headed over to take a look at the beach and then happy hour at the iconic Caves Hotel. A few snaps of the wild coastline of South West WA.
Dinner that night was at the gastronomic restaurant of Lamonts and as it was so busy Kate Lamont was waiting tables herself. Always a good idea to book ahead as this place is nearly always full.
Next morning as the Barnyard cafe only opens for breakfast on weekends we headed into Dunsborough for our freerange poached eggs on sourdough toast with coffee and freshly squeezed orange juice. Back to Sienna to decide where to have our next feast but first a stop in the Barnyard cafe for a midmorning glass of wine and a little look around.
Testing the local vintage
As there are so many wineries, we again had the difficult task of choosing where to go for lunch. We wanted to try something new so we headed over to the Brookwood Estate.
The menu had some tasty tapas options which was perfect for lunch.
prosciutto wrapped fillet mignon and grilled prawns with chill and coriander aoli
Dinner that night was in Caves Hotel as it was just down the road from us, also many places were fully booked due to the school holidays. Caves is always a good choice as it has such a great atmosphere, you can be casual and eat outside or dress up and eat inside. Food is always good and portions so large that one dish is enough for two. We had a chef’s platter to start, and sticky ribs to share. There were leftovers!
Some sculptures that caught my eye
Skateboarding chick
Stuffed Jeans to go!
The late afternoon sun shining on these trees at Caves Hotel
By the next day it was already time to check out. Time fly’s when you’re having fun, theres only so much you can eat and drink in two days! We drove into Yallingup and had an excellent breakfast in the general store which is also the Post Office, just by Caves House. Its not that well advertised that they even do breakfast. On the drive back we were recommended to drop by the Bunbury Farmers Market. Its a great place to stock up on fresh local produce. We even bought some lunch here and stopped at Heron Point to eat it.
And that was our very short two night stay over, until the next time we fancy a break!
