What better way to build an Australia tour than around what is best for your stomach? I’ve put together some of my favourite dining experiences in Australia for Distant Journeys, which combine great Aussie tucker with incredible settings to make the ultimate foodie bucket list for Australia.
Sounds Of Silence – Uluru
The Sounds of Silence dinner at Uluru is one of my most memorable dining experiences in Australia, ever. Conducted in the red sands surrounding Uluru, the Sounds Of Silence is a magnificent evening of gourmet bush tucker, Aboriginal culture and star-gazing in the endless desert sky.
Read more about my experience at Sounds Of Sillence
Harry’s Cafe De Wheels – Sydney
A Sydney institution that’s been around for 70 years is Harry’s Cafe de Wheels in Woolloomooloo. Known for its hot pies topped with mash and mushy peas, Harry’s meals can be found at outlets around Sydney but you need to come to Woolloomooloo to get a taste of this quirky cafe’s history. With walls plastered with pictures of its famous patrons – the likes of Colonel Sanders, Elton John, Richard Branson and Pamela Anderson have all dined here – Harry’s Café de Wheels is in fact such an institution it has been classified by the National Trust of Australia as a “quintessential Sydney icon”.
Monarch Cakes in St Kilda – Melbourne
Acland Street in St Kilda, Melbourne is known for its cake shops with colourful treats piled high in the windows. The shop where you’ll find all the Melbourne locals is Monarch Cakes, a polish bakery who proudly serve cakes that originate in the 1920’s. The retro decor of the shop (check out that till!) really suits the traditional produce. My favourite is their Polish Baked Cheesecake but their most famous cake is the Chocolate Kooglhoupf – I encourage you to order one if you can pronounce it!
5 Things I Love About Melbourne
Dinner On The Ghan – somewhere between Adelaide and Darwin
I’ve yet to ride on the famous red locomotive that travels from the very top of Australia to the bottom but that doesn’t mean I haven’t dreamt of dining on The Ghan. For passengers travelling on Platinum and Gold class tickets meals are inclusive. Dinner is served on white tablecloths in the federation-inspired lounge as the other-worldly Red Centre passes by the window. You can expect to be served dishes such as Nullarbor Plains kangaroo loin mignon, saltbush lasagne, and medium-rare lamb cutlets – making the meals just as uniquely Australian as the scenery.
BBQ on the Great Barrier Reef – Queensland
I bet you didn’t know you could have dinner on the Great Barrier Reef? Well at Reef Sleep you can have dinner as you watch the sun set over the ocean and enjoy breakfast as you watch the reef wake up too. Reef Sleep is an experience run by Cruise Whitsundays at their Reef World pontoon over Hardy Reef. Each night Reef World turns into a hotel of sorts, as 9 lucky guests are invited to stay the night in swags that are laid out on the top deck on the pontoon. Caretakers stay with you to cook up Aussie dishes like Kangaroo steak on the BBQ, satisfying your belly between all that snorkelling with the Great Barrier Reef’s incredible marine life.
Find out more about Reef Sleep
Further reading: Check out my Big Australia Bucket List and find out about all my favourite places in Australia here.
