Highlight – Breathtaking vineyard views
Lowlight – Food was a let down
“Vines” Yarra Valley Platter - A taste of the Yarra Valley & surrounding regions
Eye fillet wrapped in sopressa served on a bed of baked semolina cake, and a
warm mixed pepper salsa topped with olive tapenade
Butter puff pastry filled a with spiced chicken farce served on a cucumber and yoghurt sauce
FOOD?
We came here for a Saturday lunch and decided to start our meal with the “Vines” Yarra Valley antipasto platter and two glasses of the Helen’s Hill Ingram Road Brut. Each item was presently neatly on the plate and I enjoyed each mouthful, especially the cold meats. It was a great beginning to the day but unfortunately it ended there.
There was a lack of variety of mains on the menu with only five choices including one vegetarian option. Since my other half chose the eye fillet and I wasn’t keen on the vegie tart or lamb skewer, I was stuck with the choice between the baked flat head fillet and the chicken puff pastry. I decided to go with the latter. The pastry pouch contained a decent amount of chicken farce which was slightly on the dry side and further worsened by being placed in a pile of unappetizing yoghurt. I wasn’t fond of the chicken and yoghurt combination which resulted in me consistently trying to scrape the yoghurt off the meat.
In regards to the eye fillet, we ordered this medium rare but it came out medium. The olive tapenade was way too salty and when combined with the sopressa it was a salt overdose! Everything else on the dish was quite average.
SERVICE?
Service was lovely and very accommodating considering we had to change our booking a couple of times. Staff were very attentive and polite.
AMBIENCE?
With floor to ceiling windows overlooking luscious vineyards, the views were nothing less than picturesque. The tables were very spread out from one another giving the room a more spacious feel.
VALUE?
With the Entertainment Book mains are buy one get one free, otherwise mains average around $30 for lunch and up to $38 for dinner. Considering the standard of food, I don’t think the meals are worth the price tag.
BOOKINGS?
Although the restaurant wasn’t very busy when we went, bookings are recommended and can be made online via their website or by phone.
out of 10!
Vines Restaurant at Helen’s Hill
16 Ingram Road, Coldstream VIC 3770
03 9739 0222
2-4-1 main course up to $35 value
FOOD CHEE 