There are a number of decisions you must make about your wedding day, and you will need to prioritise the ones that are important to you. Especially if you are on any kind of budget.
It might be all about the dress, or the band, or even the honeymoon. It might be all about celebrating with your family and friends and inviting as many of them as possible to your big day.
For some, it is about the feast. Having a gourmet foodie wedding is now a wonderful reality; no more must you face endless rows of stale cold canapes or bland chicken or beef. Food is life, and for some, the key to an awesome party.
In Victoria, locals are blessed with an extraordinary range of quality produce. Some award-winning chefs have made an artform out of showcasing fresh, seasonal food and wine. For fresh seafood, rich local fruit, organic and grass-fed meat and desirable desserts, wedding-goers in the Melbourne area can be treated to something truly delicious.
If you love your food and want to offer your guests something gastronomically sumptuous, then this is the list of venues for you.
Here are 10 gourmet foodie wedding venues in Melbourne and regional Victoria:
Lake House Daylesford
Good food is very often worth travelling a little way for. Established by chef-hatted extraordinaires and described by Gourmet Food Traveller as ‘the success story of regional dining that everyone looks for’, couples choose this place for the feast but rave about every aspect of their wedding service. Produce is often hand-picked for a morning delivery. Local lamb, rare breed pork, grass-fed beef, freshwater fish, sheep and goat’s milk cheese, heirloom fruit from old orchards and windfalls from local gardens arrive at the kitchen. Lake House has championed supporting small sustainable producers and growers and developing a local food culture.
The Epicurean Red Hill
With a name like the Epicurean, you just know you are going to get incredible food. While the Epicurean Group has a number of gorgeous venues, we have chosen Red Hill on the Mornington Peninsula for the stunning setting and wonderful wine that match the unforgettable food. A unique regional venue with magnificent local produce as the highlight of your day, you will be happy you made the trek to this beautiful vineyard region.
Royal Mail Hotel Dunkeld
A little further afield In the Victorian Grampians, the Royal Mail Hotel is home to Australia’s largest working restaurant kitchen garden. Almost all of the produce showcased on the menu is grown on-site and harvested daily by the kitchen team. The neighbouring farm supplies beef and lamb which are born and bred for use specifically in the Royal Mail Hotel dining room, and further produce is grown and foraged for in surrounding orchards, olive groves and wild pastures. For food with a zest for creative whim, innovation, and sustainability, this is a rare place.
Vue De Monde
From the innovative mind of Shannon Bennet came the French-inspired Vue De Monde, which perches high above the lights of Melbourne. As a premium event space, their mission is to offer restaurant quality with professional service. Menus are tailored to each event and include degustation style, gastronomic menus for up to 138 seated guests and cocktail and canape offerings with a twist.
Fenix Wedding Reception Venue
Overlooking the Yarra Valley in Richmond is Fenix, restaurant, and legend of wedding venues. With their award-winning menus that will wow your taste buds, and a variety of dining options including cocktail, buffet and sit down service. Fenix offers an unforgettable culinary experience. They believe exceptional events require exceptional food and their menus are designed to impress. Their approach to food is fresh and innovative; they love creating simple yet mouth-watering menus which reflect the seasons and incorporate widely sourced ingredients.
Max’s Restaurant at Red Hill Estate
Max took a working holiday through Europe in the 1990s and when he returned home to the Mornington Peninsula, he opened what has become a dining institution. Max’s Restaurant offers a seasonally changing menu with a focus on local sustainable produce. Their menu may feature mussels from Flinders, cheese from Red Hill, berries from Main Ridge, organic vegetables from Baxter, honey from Moorooduc and more. Stunningly beautiful and locally sourced food heaven.
Coombe
The birthplace of Dame Nellie Melba, and exquisitely refurbished into a restaurant and wedding venue is Coombe. Reviewed as one of the most unique gourmet and cultural destinations in the world, this award-winning estate offers a world-class dining experience, supported by its homegrown wines and on-site providore.
Syracuse
Hidden away in the Melbourne CBD, Syracuse is becoming famous for its gourmet food experience, and menus that are designed around fine wine. For intimate weddings with only very special guests, you can choose from 3-course dining or an unforgettable banquet. Although this elegant venue exudes effortless charm, behind the scenes they are working endlessly to create the most perfectly designed food for your incredible day.
Zonzo Estate
Few top wedding venue lists these days seem to exclude Zonzo in the Yarra Valley, and with very good reason. Winning awards for their hearty Italian cuisine, they have built their reputation on the celebration of a ‘shared table’ that brings together family and friends. With an astounding respect for fresh food and simple flavours, your guests might need to let out their belts a little by the time they leave your wedding reception here.
Sault Restaurant
Travelling again to the magnificent Mt Macedon region, we come to the lavender fields at Sault. With delicious, mouth-watering food as a focus of their restaurant, it is very much worth the trip. If you are looking for a wedding day that will indulge your culinary senses, Sault showcases fabulous regional produce, complemented with their own herbs, vegetables, and trout smoked on site. Entice yourself with their seasonally changing, Modern Australian cuisine.
Catering by the Farm Café
Get married in true foodie style with a gourmet feast supplied by the Farm Café at the Collingwood Children’s Farm. with a focus on truly delicious food. They pride themselves on abundant shared tables using the best local and free-range produce available to make beautifully presented, generous and most of all tasty food. They can also provide wedding cakes, cheese towers, and even an ice-cream cart! You can choose from venues at the Collingwood Children’s Farm at their beautiful café, the lovely old farm barn and these caterers can even organise a marquee or tipi in the paddock next to the Yarra River.
Or for something completely different, why not bring the caterers to you? Melbourne wouldn’t be Melbourne without its renowned food truck culture, and there are a wide variety of ways to add a cute gourmet food truck to your day. From crème Brule to doughnuts to tacos to ice cream and everything in between, check out our Easy Wedding suppliers here.
