{"id":40598,"date":"2015-04-17T14:23:56","date_gmt":"2015-04-17T04:23:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lastminute.co.nz\/blog\/?p=40598"},"modified":"2015-05-28T15:06:51","modified_gmt":"2015-05-28T05:06:51","slug":"pig-out-at-the-piggery-cafe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lastminute.co.nz\/vc\/blog\/pig-out-at-the-piggery-cafe\/","title":{"rendered":"Pig out at The Piggery Caf\u00e9!"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s a Friday morning and I\u2019m cruising through Victoria\u2019s Dandenong Ranges<\/a> with my travel bud Kate in some pretty swish wheels (thanks, Avis!).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Not being locals, we abandon the search for a radio station and lap up the scenery instead, which is dingin\u2019 breathtaking.<\/p>\n

We\u2019ve left our desks far, far behind us in Brisbane and are about to pull up at our chef-crush Shannon Bennett’s regional venture The Piggery Caf\u00e9<\/a>, which is about an hour by Hyundai out of Melbourne<\/a>.<\/p>\n\"The<\/a>\n

Let me rephrase that: it\u2019s about an hour if the person holding the compass (or iPhone) knows what they’re doing. With Lastminute Lovely Kate<\/a> behind the wheel the job falls to me, so we arrive about two hours after leaving the CBD :\/<\/p>\n

Despite our extreme tardiness, Manager Emma is super welcoming and before we\u2019ve even sat down we\u2019re planning a return visit. This looks like a place you could really make a day of.<\/p>\n

The caf\u00e9 has attracted a crowd. Inside it\u2019s packed and outside people are seated at communal tables relaxing and probably feeling pretty smug about their wise choice of place to while away the afternoon.<\/p>\n

We sit side-by-side at a high table looking out over lawn bowls, croquet, and bocce pitches. Beyond that is a 500-tree truffi\u00e8re*.<\/p>\n

The lunch menu is so jammed with tempting options that we\u2019re feeling pretty torn and would happily order pretty much anything (except for the garden soup \u2013 it\u2019s 31 degrees and, after all, who orders the soup?).<\/p>\n

The frontrunners are a lush-looking lobster roll, a Blackmore Wagyu beef burger, and the Greenvale Farm pork belly BLT from the char grill BBQ, which is smoking away in a corner of the patio.<\/p>\n\"We<\/a>\n

We\u2019re momentarily distracted from the menu by the arrival of our waiter, Manager Max. Max is, ahem, pretty cute. Did I mention he\u2019s French? \ud83d\ude09<\/p>\n

In no time we\u2019re sorted with a glass of Rob Hall Chardonnay from the Yarra Valley<\/a>, which is crisp and delicious, and we\u2019ve ordered a share dish from the char grill BBQ.<\/p>\n\"Rob<\/a>\n

Our charcoal chicken platter with stuffing, house nuggets, and an assortment of fresh salads arrives on an oh-so-on-trend wooden chopping board and a huge blue-and-white enamel plate, which we both immediately covet.<\/p>\n

Edible flowers and sprigs of dill (I\u2019m going to take a punt and say they\u2019re from the on-site veggie gardens) make it almost too pretty to eat. The chicken has been done a few ways and is perfectly cooked.<\/p>\n\"Lunch<\/a>\n

After making short work of our lunch, we order coffees. When our skinny cap (Kate) and skinny flat white (me) arrive we’re instantly transported to Caffeine Heaven. They’re Five Senses beans, but we think it\u2019s largely down to the mad skills of barista Jordan (#killingitwithcrema).<\/p>\n

\"Coffee<\/a>The Piggery Caf\u00e9 adjoins the Burnham Bakery<\/a>, but sadly for our bread-and-pastry-loving-selves we’re too full from lunch to try any of the enchanting in-house baked goods. We add it to the list for our return visit.<\/p>\n

We\u2019ve heard tales of an art deco building on the estate and we\u2019re keen for a closer look. With Max leading the way, we wander along a leafy path to the original Burnham Beeches<\/a> mansion. It was built in the 1930s and while it’s been neglected in recent years, it’s a BEAUTIFUL building. The vision is to give it a new life as Australia’s first 6-star luxury retreat.<\/p>\n

\"Burnham<\/a>And that\u2019s not the only plan afoot. Alongside the caf\u00e9, bakery, truffi\u00e8re, vegetable gardens, and emu enclosure, Shannon plans to open a dairy, steakhouse and\u2026 get this\u2026 a MICROBREWERY! Like I said, we\u2019re already plotting our return visit.<\/p>\n

We mainline more of Jordan\u2019s stellar coffee and grab a photo op with Max before hopping back in our ride and hitting the road.<\/p>\n

*I hadn\u2019t heard this one before either. Google tells me it\u2019s an orchard planted with specific tree species – in this case Oak – in order to cultivate truffles at the roots of the innoculated trees.<\/em><\/p>\n

Have you been to The Piggery Caf\u00e9? Tell us what you pigged out on in the comments!<\/strong><\/h2>\n