10 of the most beloved Bendigo restaurants for seasonal feasting

Chloe CannBy Chloe Cann
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Bendigo’s dining scene has flourished in recent years, plating up a delicious and diverse spread of farm-focused fare.

A Central Victorian city sitting pretty amid farmland, Bendigo abounds with quality produce, locally reared meat and locally grown grain right at its doorstep. Whether you’re in the market for a long, meandering lunch or a fancy sit-down dinner, this Goldfields city delivers with flair. To further entice, Bendigo and the neighbouring region of Heathcote are strongholds for wine growing, so visiting one of the best Bendigo restaurants will often accompany a knockout regional pour.

When you’re looking for a break between activities in the region, relax at one of these standout restaurants.

The shortlist

Best family-friendly spot: Borchelli Ristorante
Best casual eats: El Gordo
Hottest new opening: Terrae Restaurant
Best for large groups: Malayan Orchid

1. Alium Dining

an arched window at Alium Dining, Bendigo
The upscale restaurant features elegant stained glass windows. (Image: Alium Dining)

If you’ve only got time for one lengthy lunch or dinner, make a booking with Alium Dining . A special occasion standout, this is undoubtedly one of the best Bendigo restaurants, masterfully shining a light on fresh local and seasonal produce while a dedicated and informed team keep the mood light and welcoming. Sink into an inside table or one in the street-facing courtyard to make sure you catch the eye of envious onlookers. The food itself? Delicately balancing flavours and technique to create unfussy, generous plates, the team nails the likes of Confit pork belly with peach chutney, chimichurri and parsnip chips while the grill menu (which is larger at dinner than lunch, FYI) always boasts excellent cuts with Hasselback potato, a salad and your choice of sauce.

Cuisine: Modern Australian

Average price: $$$$

Atmosphere: Warm yet refined

Review: 4.5/5

Location: 17 View Pt, Bendigo

2. Terrae Restaurant

a close-up of a dish with wine at Terrae Restaurant, Bendigo
The menu at Terrae Restaurant is Modern European with meat-focused mains. (Image: Leon Schoots)

Another restaurant championing the region’s renowned produce (including goodies sourced from the team’s own kitchen gardens), Terrae Restaurant is a newer jewel in Bendigo’s culinary crown. Located inside Hotel Ernest Bendigo, one of the best Bendigo accommodation picks, this fine dining, achingly chic restaurant opened in December 2024 to level up the local foodie scene to soaring heights. A minimalistic fit-out allows sensational plates to steal the show, spanning a tight collective of house-made pastas (think carrot agnolotti with rabbit and broad beans), meat-focused mains (like the charcoal grilled beef with dauphinoise potato) and one killer cheese menu.

Cuisine: Modern European

Average price: $$$-$$$$

Atmosphere: Elevated

Review: 4.5/5

Location: 10-12 View St, Bendigo

3. Ms Batterhams

the Gothic-style diner with an alfresco spot at Ms Batterhams, Bendigo
The two-storey red brick Gothic-Revival-style diner is tucked in the historic Mackenzie Quarters. (Image: Visit Victoria)

Ms Batterhams is perched in a plum spot. This slick lounge bar is housed within the historic Mackenzie Quarters – a two-storey red brick Gothic-Revival-style that dates to 1877 and formerly housed a school – within the city’s renowned arts precinct. Head chef Travis Rodwell’s Chef’s Share menu changes with the seasons but frequently pays its respects to European destinations such as France, Greece and Italy. Think Confit pork cheek with pico de gallo and a wagyu M7 scotch fillet with tomato and sherry salsa, sweet potato with chorizo butter and lime. Open since early 2020, Ms Batterhams has established itself as one of the best spots to fine dine in Bendigo.

Cuisine: Modern Australian

Average price: $$$

Atmosphere: Elegant

Review: 4/5

Location: 10-12 MacKenzie St, Bendigo

4. Ghosty’s Diner

the dining interior of Ghosty’s Diner, Bendigo
Nab a cosy spot in the retro booth. (Image: Visit Victoria)

Step into the set of Seinfeld with a visit to Ghosty’s Diner , Bendigo’s all-day eatery complete with retro booth seating, a record player and low-slung pendant lights. All your classic diner cravings are met, including a collection of five hearty burgers and optional add-ons like bacon jam. There are also three-cheese toasties, pastrami on rye, fried chicken, disco fries and popcorn cauliflower. It doesn’t get much more Americana-indulgent than this.

Cuisine: American comfort food

Average price: $$

Atmosphere: Chilled out

Review: 4/5

Location: 35 View St, Bendigo

5. The Woodhouse Bar & Grill

a large share steak spread at The Woodhouse Bar & Grill, Bendigo
Feast on prime cuts at The Woodhouse Bar & Grill. (Image: Leon Schoots)

Get your caveman on at The Woodhouse Bar & Grill —an unapologetic temple of beef. Beamed ceilings, dim lighting, brick walls and roaring fireplace will greet you, as will the smoky scent of redgum blazing on the woodfired grill. Then, you’ll spy dry-ageing loins hanging in chiller cabinets. Offering premium cuts sourced from Australian farms, pure grass-fed scotch fillets and F1 grain-fed wagyu eye fillets are among this Bendigo restaurant’s culinary attractions. Not into steak? You’re also sorted with the menu’s raw bar selection of outstanding seafood delicacies such as yellowfin tuna with apple and mint consommé, plus a market fish and seasonal pasta on the mains menu.

Cuisine: Steakhouse

Average price: $$$$$

Atmosphere: Sexy

Review: 4/5

Location: 101 Williamson St, Bendigo

6. El Gordo

Huevos Rancheros at El Gordo, Bendigo
Huevos Rancheros is a classic Mexican dish with fried eggs and salsa. (Image: El Gordo)

Whether you’re rolling into El Gordo for brunch or pulling up a pew for a booze-laced lunch, this tapas bar delivers the fun. Located on Chancery Lane, it’s a little slice of hipster Melbourne laneway life in the heart of Bendigo. Pick your poison from a rotating menu of authentic tapas plates including dazzlers like the cured meat Bresaola with orange, Jamon croquetas and everyone’s beloved patatas bravas. Signature Portuguese tarts with homemade pastry is a non-negotiable chaser—trust us.

Cuisine: Spanish tapas plates

Average price: $$

Atmosphere: Casual

Review: 3/5

Location: 3/70 Chancery Lane, Pall Mall, Bendigo

7. Harpoon Social Club

Japanese food and drinks at Harpoon Social Club, Bendigo
Harpoon Social Club offers a variety of cuisines. (Image: Harpoon Social Club)

Although this snug Bendigo restaurant hangs its hat on ramen, there’s oh so much more to Harpoon Social Club ’s playful menu, which toys with a number of cuisines spanning Asia and beyond. For example, the half a dozen bao buns crammed with 5-spiced pork, tofu and more, plus the burnt cabbage with homemade sticky sauce. There’s even a hot jam bao with matcha ice cream for dessert. Leave your wheels at your digs to take full advantage of the drinks list, where an extensive array of Japanese beers, saké and spirits should keep you lubricated. It’s also an accommodating spot for vegans and gluten-free diners, too.

Cuisine: Japanese

Average price: $$-$$$

Atmosphere: Relaxed

Review: 4/5

Location: 36 High St, Bendigo

8. Red Smoke Bendigo

While Red Smoke Bendigo ’s street-facing windows earmark the address as a ‘tapas, bar and grill’ restaurant, it’s this CBD hot spot’s barbecue that leaves a lasting impression. Think tender, melt-in-the-mouth brisket with maple sauce, smoky, chargrilled bourbon-glazed baby back ribs, and slow-cooked free-range pulled pork. Expect generous serves and very reasonable prices at this popular spot, which also boasts all the classic barbecue accompaniments you could wish for, like homemade slaw, mac and cheese, cornbread and pickles.

Cuisine: Barbecue

Average price: $$-$$$

Atmosphere: Rowdy

Review: 4/5

Location: 61 High St, Bendigo

9. Malayan Orchid

the restaurant interior of Malayan Orchid, Bendigo
The space is the perfect spot for a nightcap. (Image: Malayan Orchid)

A local institution, Malayan Orchid has been going strong since 1993. What keeps locals coming back for more is the consistently good Chinese and Malaysian staples (that’s a big yes to drunken chicken, honey prawns, thai green curry and san choy bao) paired with warm and friendly service. The house banquets are also a steal (and holy grail for indecisive diners who want to sample the full gamut of dishes). They start from $45 a head if you’re dining with a minimum of three pals, otherwise couples can do the more extensive $75 per person set menu, which never disappoints.

Cuisine: Pan-Asian

Average price: $$$

Atmosphere: Lively

Review: 3.5/5

Location: 155/157 View St, Bendigo

10. Borchelli Ristorante

Lean into serious comfort food at Borchelli Ristorante , an Italian fine dining establishment in Bendigo where flavours transport you all the way to your favourite European vacay. A two-level Bendigo restaurant with al fresco tables on the pavement and even more on the upstairs balcony, the romantic spot dishes up classics like Pork Cotoletta and pastas of every red-sauce and white-sauce description. Additionally, there’s the wonderful Pasta Misto (which translates to ‘mixed pasta’) platter, filled with any three pastas or risottos that take your fancy. Kids can keep the indulgence rolling with ice-cream and sprinkles, while grown-ups can’t refuse the likes of tiramisu and chocolate Jaffa mousse topped with honeycomb and berries.

Cuisine: Italian

Average price: $$$

Atmosphere: Family-friendly

Review: 3.5/5

Location: 18 Mitchell St, Bendigo

Originally written by Chloe Cann with updates by Kristie Lau Adams

Discover the best places to stay in Bendigo

Chloe Cann
Chloe Cann is an award-winning freelance travel and food writer, born in England, based in Melbourne and Roman by adoption. Since honing her skills at City St George's, University of London with a master's degree in journalism, she's been writing almost exclusively about travel for more than a decade, and has worked in-house at newspapers and travel magazines in London, Phnom Penh, Sydney and Melbourne. Through a mixture of work and pleasure, she's been fortunate enough to visit 80 countries to date, though there are many more that she is itching to reach. While the strength of a region's food scene tends to dictate the location of her next trip, she can be equally swayed by the promise of interesting landscapes and offbeat experiences. And with a small person now in tow, travel looks a little different these days, but it remains at the front of her mind.
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Explore historic wine towns and sculpture trails on a 3-day self-guided Murray River cruise

    Ricky FrenchBy Ricky French
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    Slow down and find your rhythm on a Murray River journey through time and place. 

    Trust is a funny thing. It seems not that long ago that my mother was insisting on pouring the milk into my cereal bowl, because she didn’t trust me not to slosh it over the table, and yet here I am on the Murray River at Mildura in far north-west Victoria, being handed the keys to a very new and very expensive luxury houseboat. 

    After a crash course in how not to crash, I’m at the wheel of the good ship Elevate – pride of the All Seasons fleet – guiding her upstream past red-ochre cliffs as pelicans glide above the rippled river and kookaburras call from reedy banks. There’s a brief moment of breath-holding while I negotiate a hairpin turn around a jagged reef of skeletal, submerged gum trees, before a cheer rings out and calm descends as the timeless river unfurls in front of us.    

    Murray River
    The Murray River winding through Yarrawonga. (Image: Rob Blackburn)

    Setting sail from Mildura 

    Murray River birds
    Home to a large number of bird species, including pelicans. (Image: The Precint Studios)

    A journey along the Murray River is never less than magical, and launching from Mildura makes perfect sense. Up here the river is wide and largely empty, giving novice skippers like myself the confidence to nudge the 60-tonne houseboat up to the riverbank where we tie up for the night, without fear of shattering the glass elevator (the boat is fully wheelchair accessible) or spilling our Champagne.  

    My friends and I spend three days on the water, swimming and fishing, sitting around campfires onshore at night, and basking in air so warm you’d swear you were in the tropics. The simplicity of river life reveals an interesting dichotomy: we feel disconnected from the world but at the same time connected to Country, privileged to be part of something so ancient and special.  

    Stop one: Echuca  

    19th-century paddlesteamers
    A historic 19th-century paddlesteamer cruises along the Murray River. (Image: Visit Victoria)

    The six-hour drive from Melbourne to Mildura (or four hours and 20 minutes from Adelaide) is more than worth it, but you don’t have to travel that far to find fun on the river. Once Australia’s largest inland port, Echuca is the closest point on the Murray to Melbourne (two hours 45 minutes), and you’ll still find a plethora of paddlesteamers tethered to the historic timber wharf, a throwback to the thriving river trade days of the 19th century. The PS Adelaide, built in 1866 and the oldest wooden-hulled paddlesteamer operating in the world, departs daily for one-hour cruises, while a brand-new paddlesteamer, the PS Australian Star , is launching luxury seven-night voyages in December through APT Touring.  

    The town is also a hot food and wine destination. St Anne’s Winery at the historic Port of Echuca precinct has an incredibly photogenic cellar door, set inside an old carriage builders’ workshop on the wharf and filled with huge, 3000-litre port barrels. The Mill, meanwhile, is a cosy winter spot to sample regional produce as an open fire warms the red-brick walls of this former flour mill.  

    Stop two: Barmah National Park 

    Barmah National Park
    Camping riverside in Barmah National Park, listed as a Ramsar site for its significant wetland values. (Image: Visit Victoria/Emily Godfrey)

    Just half-an-hour upstream, Barmah National Park is flourishing, its river red gum landscape (the largest in the world) rebounding magnificently after the recent removal of more than 700 feral horses. The internationally significant Ramsar-listed wetland sits in the heart of Yorta Yorta Country, with Traditional Owners managing the environment in close partnership with Parks Victoria. Walkways weave through the forest, crossing creeks lined with rare or threatened plants, passing remnants of Yorta Yorta oven mounds and numerous scar trees, where the bark was removed to build canoes, containers or shields.  

    The Dharnya Centre (open weekdays until 3pm) is the cultural hub for the Yorta Yorta. Visitors can learn about the ecological significance of the Barmah Lakes on a 90-minute river cruise, led by a First Nations guide, or take a one-hour, guided cultural walking tour along the Yamyabuc Trail.  

    Stop three: Cobram 

    Yarrawonga MulwalaGolf Club Resort
    Yarrawonga Mulwala Golf Club Resort. (Image: Visit Victoria)

    Continue east to Cobram to find the southern hemisphere’s largest inland beach. Swarming with sun-seekers in summer, the white sand of Thompson’s Beach is shaded by majestic river red gums and dotted with hundreds of beach umbrellas, as beachgoers launch all manner of water craft and set up stumps for beach cricket. But the beach is at its most captivating at sunset, when the crowds thin out, the glassy river mirrors the purple sky, and the canopies of the gum trees glow fiery orange. 

    The region is also home to some fine resorts and indulgent retreats. Yarrawonga Mulwala Golf Club Resort has two riverside championship golf courses, luxury apartments and self-contained villas. While not strictly on the Murray, the historic wine town of Rutherglen is rife with boutique (and unique) accommodation, including an exquisitely renovated red-brick tower in a French provincial-style castle at Mount Ophir Estate. Fans of fortified wines can unravel the mystery of Rutherglen’s ‘Muscat Mile’, meeting the vignerons and master-blenders whose artistry has put the town on the global map for this rich and complex wine style.  

    Stop four: Albury-Wodonga 

    First Nations YindyamarraSculpture Walk
    First Nations Yindyamarra Sculpture Walk is part of the Wagirra Trail. (Image: Carmen Zammit)

    Follow the river far enough upstream and you’ll arrive at the twin border cities of Albury-Wodonga. The Hume Highway thunders through, but serenity can be found along the five-kilometre Yindyamarra Sculpture Walk – part of the Wagirra Trail that meanders through river wetlands just west of Albury in Wiradjuri country. Fifteen sculptures by local First Nations artists line the trail, conveying stories of reconciliation, enduring connection to culture, local Milawa lore and traditional practices. It feels a long way from Mildura, and it is, but the pelicans and kookaburras remind us that it’s the same river, the great conduit that connects our country. 

    A traveller’s checklist  

    Staying there

    New Mildura motel Kar-rama
    New Mildura motel Kar-rama. (Image: Iain Bond Photo)

    Kar-Rama is a brand-new boutique, retro-styled motel in Mildura, with a butterfly-shaped pool and a tropical, Palm Springs vibe. Echuca Holiday Homes has a range of high-end accommodation options, both on the riverfront and in town. 

    Playing there

    BruceMunro’s Trail of Lights in Mildura
    Bruce Munro’s Trail of Lights in Mildura. (Image: Imogen Eveson)

    Artist Bruce Munro’s Trail of Lights installation, comprising more than 12,000 illuminated ‘fireflies’, is currently lighting up Mildura’s Lock Island in the middle of the Murray. Murray Art Museum Albury (MAMA) is a hub for contemporary art, with a rotating roster of exhibitions, and is a major outlet for young and First Nations artists. 

    Eating there

    Mildura’s diverse demographic means it’s a fantastic place to eat. Andy’s Kitchen is a local favourite, serving up delicious pan-Asian dishes and creative cocktails in a Balinese-style garden setting. Call in to Spoons Riverside in Swan Hill to enjoy locally sourced, seasonal produce in a tranquil setting overlooking the river.