If you're in the King Valley to enjoy some of the foodie treats the region has to offer, you'd do well to base yourself at Lindenwarrah. The hotel is in a prime position to visit all of the gourmet delights of Milawa and the surrounding valley, with wineries, smoked meats, fancy mustards and chutneys and some of the best cheese in Victoria within walking distance.
Lindenwarrah has the atmosphere of a country house, with comfortable lounges for playing games if it's too cold or wet outside and lovely views of vast swathes of vines right outside the windows. The hotel is family friendly, and when we visited there were children tearing up and down the halls and firmly ensconced in the lounges, playing games to while away the time.
Rooms are spacious and comfortable, with a connecting balcony for enjoying the views over the vines or the hotel's pretty garden (ground-floor garden rooms have direct access to the outside).
The hotel's Merlot restaurant (named after the vines it overlooks) is open for breakfast and dinner. Breakfast is buffet style, which as everyone who has been to a hotel knows, is the best way to do breakfast, as you can load up on bacon, eggs, mushrooms, beans, tomatoes, cereal or pastry without judgement. Dinner is a la carte, with an emphasis on high-quality, fresh produce and extra little touches like bread with olive oil and housemade dukkah. The room itself does not quite match the delights on the plate – it feels cold and a little sterile, more like a high school gymnasium than a high-end restaurant. But the views out of the huge windows are pure country elegance and the food is beautifully presented and full of flavour, so you can forgive a sort of strange room.
Lindenwarrah is next door to the King Valley's favourite winery, Brown Brothers, and it's an easy five-minute stroll from one to the other – so leave the car at the hotel if you're planning on sampling some of Brown Brothers' 50+ wines on offer at the cellar door or indulging in a long lunch with matching wines. It's also an easy stroll into the village of Milawa, where you'll find gourmet shops selling everything from smoked meats to olives and chutneys. A little further down the road (about a half-hour stroll, so you might want the car for this one) you'll find Milawa Cheese, which is famous throughout Victoria for its innovative and flavoursome cheeses.
Other wineries in the King Valley are a short drive away, as is Hurdle Creek Gin. Lindenwarrah makes the ideal cosy, comfortable base for your next foodie adventure.
