Wombat Hill House

Wombat Hill House
Wombat Botanic Gardens
Daylesford Vic
(03) 4373-0099
Website

On our first full day in Daylesford, we stopped in at Alla Wolf-Tasker's new cafe, Wombat Hill House, for a spot of breakfast.  It's set in a cute little house in the Wombat Botanic Gardens, a very short drive out of town.

First impressions: I loved the cosy atmosphere and the bright and airy space...

Interior

... and most importantly - THEY HAVE FREE WI-FI!  Yay!!  Totally fantastic.  It seems that nowhere in Daylesford has Vodaphone reception, and it was so good to be able to check my emails and let my family know I'd arrived safely.

I was very tempted by the baked goods at the counter - think comforting options like cookies, brownies, mini carrot cakes and so on - but they were extremely expensive.  For example, a mini carrot cake with cream cheese icing, baked in something about the size of a standard muffin tin, cost $7.  Seven!!  Eek!  I really did want something sweet, so I ordered a little chocolate brownie square for $4.50.  (You can see a picture of it below).

They also have salads in the cabinet, as well as items like their house made fritters and ricotta hotcakes.

Cute! I love wombats!

Cappuccino, Cafe Latte, Brownie - $4.50

Mmm... gorgeous coffees!  The brownie, whilst small, was very rich and well made.  It was a nice little treat to go along with our breakfasts and coffees.

Ricotta hotcakes & fruit - $14 

The ricotta hotcakes seemed small when we first saw them, but perhaps this is because we've become accustomed to the gargantuan portions that many breakfast cafes in Melbourne seem to serve.  They were quite filling, and there was definitely enough there for a decent breakfast.  However, we thought the accompanying fruit might be tinned - they certainly looked and tasted tinned, and I don't think stonefruits were really in season at the time.  A bit disappointing for a $14 breakfast!  (And even more so considering that Wombat Hill House comes from Alla Wolf-Tasker, whose passion for local, seasonal, fresh produce is legendary).

***EDIT: 15/11/2011 I got a twitter message from Alla - "often use our own bottled fruit.esp late winter & spring.Peaches were done by an Italian lady."***

A much better choice, however, was the lovely vegetarian scrambled eggs.  These came with a toasted bagel, spinach, mushrooms, cherry tomatoes and goats curd.

Scrambled eggs, spinach, roasted tomatoes, mushrooms, goats curd

Despite the food being a bit overpriced and underwhelming, I did enjoy the morning at Wombat Hill House.  The atmosphere was nice, staff were very warm and friendly, and the coffee was great.  I certainly wouldn't agree with Nina Rosseau's statement that it's "nothing short of amazing", but it's still a pleasant enough spot for a relaxed holiday breakfast.

Wombat Hill House
Wombat Botanic Gardens
Daylesford Vic
(03) 4373-0099
Website

On our first full day in Daylesford, we stopped in at Alla Wolf-Tasker's new cafe, Wombat Hill House, for a spot of breakfast.  It's set in a cute little house in the Wombat Botanic Gardens, a very short drive out of town.

First impressions: I loved the cosy atmosphere and the bright and airy space...

Interior

... and most importantly - THEY HAVE FREE WI-FI!  Yay!!  Totally fantastic.  It seems that nowhere in Daylesford has Vodaphone reception, and it was so good to be able to check my emails and let my family know I'd arrived safely.

I was very tempted by the baked goods at the counter - think comforting options like cookies, brownies, mini carrot cakes and so on - but they were extremely expensive.  For example, a mini carrot cake with cream cheese icing, baked in something about the size of a standard muffin tin, cost $7.  Seven!!  Eek!  I really did want something sweet, so I ordered a little chocolate brownie square for $4.50.  (You can see a picture of it below).

They also have salads in the cabinet, as well as items like their house made fritters and ricotta hotcakes.

Cute! I love wombats!

Cappuccino, Cafe Latte, Brownie - $4.50

Mmm... gorgeous coffees!  The brownie, whilst small, was very rich and well made.  It was a nice little treat to go along with our breakfasts and coffees.

Ricotta hotcakes & fruit - $14 

The ricotta hotcakes seemed small when we first saw them, but perhaps this is because we've become accustomed to the gargantuan portions that many breakfast cafes in Melbourne seem to serve.  They were quite filling, and there was definitely enough there for a decent breakfast.  However, we thought the accompanying fruit might be tinned - they certainly looked and tasted tinned, and I don't think stonefruits were really in season at the time.  A bit disappointing for a $14 breakfast!  (And even more so considering that Wombat Hill House comes from Alla Wolf-Tasker, whose passion for local, seasonal, fresh produce is legendary).

***EDIT: 15/11/2011 I got a twitter message from Alla - "often use our own bottled fruit.esp late winter & spring.Peaches were done by an Italian lady."***

A much better choice, however, was the lovely vegetarian scrambled eggs.  These came with a toasted bagel, spinach, mushrooms, cherry tomatoes and goats curd.

Scrambled eggs, spinach, roasted tomatoes, mushrooms, goats curd

Despite the food being a bit overpriced and underwhelming, I did enjoy the morning at Wombat Hill House.  The atmosphere was nice, staff were very warm and friendly, and the coffee was great.  I certainly wouldn't agree with Nina Rosseau's statement that it's "nothing short of amazing", but it's still a pleasant enough spot for a relaxed holiday breakfast.