This is one of the posts that have been floating around my inbox for the longest possible time, until I finally plucked up the moxie to tackle it once and for all. I went over the Easter holidays, which is admittedly quite a few months gone from now. (It's a new record even for me.) Enjoy!
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One tip on road trips, one which I keep having to relearn, is to first stop at the tourist information. It's a one stop destination on upcoming festivals and local attractions, as well as coupons for restaurants and bakeries in the area. (This is kind of true regardless if you're traveling in Australia or in Europe (or even in outlet malls of the good ol' US of A.)
*****
One tip on road trips, one which I keep having to relearn, is to first stop at the tourist information. It's a one stop destination on upcoming festivals and local attractions, as well as coupons for restaurants and bakeries in the area. (This is kind of true regardless if you're traveling in Australia or in Europe (or even in outlet malls of the good ol' US of A.)
Ballarat
Two hours westward of Melbourne city is Ballarat, a town that prospered with the Victorian gold rush of 1850. Some of the restaurants that were highly recommended to us, such as Kambei Japanese Restaurant and Meigas, were closed over the Good Friday period when we went. (Luckily, we dropped by the tourist information, which had a list of restaurants that remained opened over the holidays.
The major attraction of Ballarat Sovereign Hill, an open-air interactive museum that immortalises 19th-century Ballarat at the height of its gold rush. Don't let the word 'museum' put you off, because it's actually a theme park sans rides. Cast members walk up and down the streets in period costumes; brewing boiled sweets, making candles, the whole nine yards. We even sat down to try our hand at penmanship using century-appropriate inkwells and fountain pens, and watched with some amusement as a cast member, true to character as a 19th century schoolteacher, lecture another guest for writing with her left hand. Sovereign Hill sends chills of Westworld-nostalgia up and down my spine. If only they let us dress up...
At regular intervals throughout the day, the park holds regular events from parades to candy-making. It was splendid to witness them stirring, caramelising, cooling and rolling out the boiled sweets the old-fashioned way. Well, they did make a few changes, such as using rollers that are not made of lead, or substituting the coloring ingredients to suit 21st-Century food regulations... (Thankfully!) But by-the-by, the process was virtually unchanged. And no one's going to say no to the samples of hot freshly-made candies that they were handing out afterwards. They have a selection of candies for sale as well, and the raspberry-flavored ones are superb.
Sovereign Hill
Bradshaw Street, Ballarat VIC 3350, AustraliaThere are two towns en-route from Ballarat to Castlemaine: Creswick and Daylesford.
Crestwick
About twenty minutes away from Ballarat, the pastries that comes out of Le Péché Gourmand's ovens make the drive worthwhile alone. We queued in line for about 15 minutes before we reached the counter - you can't miss the crowd. We walked away with their almond croissant, a Paris-Brest, madeleine and a chocolate tart (and a twisty pastry that I can't remember what it's called). I chose whichever that I spotted just came out of their ovens, and we loved them all, and the Paris-Brest was unanimously everybody's favourite. I initially didn't think much of their unassuming-looking chocolate tart, but boy, was I wrong. My first bite of its crisp chocolate tart shell and its salted caramel sauce slyly hidden under a layer of rich chocolate ganache made the tart a joy to devour.
69A Albert St, Creswick VIC 3363, Australia
Just a short walk away is Creswick Farmer's Market, which boasts live music, coffee, fresh produce, and various home-made knick-knacks.
21 Victoria St, Creswick VIC 3363, Australia
Hours 9am-1pm, every 3rd Saturday of the month
While in the area, Creswick Woolen Mill is available for a quick look around. The entrance fee for a self-guided tour is $15, but RACV members get in for free (yay us!) It was mildly interesting to read about the technique of wool-making and the history behind this mill, but I didn't think it was worth paying, especially since I doubt they'll turn anyone away as they want you to buy their cashmere wares. The mill is oriented predominantly towards the Chinese market: Chinese translation can be found for every sign, and every store assistant there spoke Chinese. I suspect tour groups from China make a regular appearance. If you pop around the back of the mill, like we did, you would be able to spot their herd of alpacas.
Railway Parade, Creswick VIC 3363, Australia
Daylesford
Chocolate Mill is pretty popular with the tourists, they craft truffles and a variety of chocolate drinks using Callebaut chocolate.
Chocolate Mill
5451 Midland Hwy, Mount Franklin VIC 3461, Australia
Opens daily, 10am-4.45pm
We spot people having picnics while strolling along the picturesque Lake Daylesford. The ducks are pretty friendly and do regularly invade picnic mats, to the amusement of everybody watching. Take a walk around to stretch your legs and see the sparkling lake.
Chocolate Mill
5451 Midland Hwy, Mount Franklin VIC 3461, Australia
Opens daily, 10am-4.45pm
We spot people having picnics while strolling along the picturesque Lake Daylesford. The ducks are pretty friendly and do regularly invade picnic mats, to the amusement of everybody watching. Take a walk around to stretch your legs and see the sparkling lake.
Daylesford Cider Company is a local hot spot serving up the holy trinity of hot food, alcohol and live music.
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| Pic by R |
Address
155 Dairy Flat Rd, Musk VIC 3461, Australia
Castlemaine
We didn't spend as much time as we wanted to over at The Mill Castlemaine, as we arrived pretty late in the afternoon and some of the stalls were closed for over the Easter Holidays. It's a one-stop destination for wine-lovers (there's a winery co-op), beer enthusiasts (Castlemaine Brewing Company) and coffee addicts (Das Kaffeehaus). There's a vintage bazaar in the mill, where you can pick up anything you fancy. (We bought a wicker beauty of a picnic basket!)
Castlemaine's botanical garden is situated just across the road for a slow stroll amongst the trees.
Address
1/9 Walker St, Castlemaine, Victoria 3450, Australia
Address
1/9 Walker St, Castlemaine, Victoria 3450, Australia
Bendigo
It's been a few years since I've been to Bendigo, (found here), and I'm glad to see that all the food that we've loved are still around and thriving. We visited several restaurants, some old and some new.
Following the Halal Snack Pack craze in Australia, Lady Sultan has joined the bandwagon. In hindsight, the formula for HSP seems painfully obvious. A mountain of shaved meat over a bed of melted cheese and hot fries, and drizzled generously with the trinity of barbeque, chilli and garlic sauce, is a crowd-pleaser anywhere in the world. I used to think that nothing could best my dream of digging into a mountain of hot crispy fries like one of those Fries Party in Korea's McDonalds, but the concept of HSPs has my dream beat.
Other places that serve HSP are Centreway (one of the top HSP places in Melbourne) and Turkish Kitchen.
Lady Sultan
336A Hargreaves Street, Bendigo, VIC3550
Other places that serve HSP are Centreway (one of the top HSP places in Melbourne) and Turkish Kitchen.
Lady Sultan
336A Hargreaves Street, Bendigo, VIC3550
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