It’s not uncommon for cafes now to have their front counter filled with an array of brightly coloured, and sugar filled treats, though not many can claim they’re all made in house like they are at Darriwill Farm Café in Highton. “Everything is made in house – or as much of it as possible. That means sauces, soups, as much as we can, the only thing we can’t do is bake our own bread here,” head chef Josh Beaumont says.
Though the café is capable of much more than just brightly coloured treats and they dish up classic meals that are made exactly how you want them, whether that’s eggs sunny side up, scrambled or a little on the runny side.
“We just do the basics really, the simple things and done right. So you’re going to get your eggs cooked perfectly,” he says.
The café works from a seasonally changing menu, though items like the smoked salmon bagel with citrus cream cheese, rocket, house pickled cucumber, red onion and caper mayo is a firm favourite pretty much all year.
This follows on from the Darriwill Farm ethos of embracing all the of the lost qualities of traditional Australian rural food and the country store experience. This wouldn’t be made possible without the team the passionate team Josh leads.
“They’re a really good kitchen team, good people and good hard workers,” he says. “They’re all really passionate about food.”
For someone who grew up in Geelong and even did a year apprenticeship at the café, Josh knows more than most what kind of experience anyone who passes through the glass door should receive.
The Darriwill Farm café is one of those places that become part of the daily routine. There’s no pretentiousness in the venue and the quality isn’t a problem either.
“We’ve got people that come in here seven days a week, a few times a day even. Our staff know exactly what they’re going to order, we know their coffee and how they like it,” he says.
Aside from regulars becoming almost like family, Josh’s family and friends also visit the kitchen. And thanks to the open plan, they can come down and see him at work. “Because it’s an open kitchen they can come in and say hello to the staff and ask us some questions. ‘How’d you do that?’ and that sort of thing,” Josh says.
Attached to the café is the Darriwill Farm store, a chance to get the quality produce from the farm without making the trip to the farm itself. There’s a variety of chutneys, spicy sauces and all the snacks and treats from the traditional Aussie home. They’re all available to purchase, and some of the produce is used in the café as well.
Chances are you’ve had something with a particularly tasty sauce or jam on it in the café, and you’ll most likely be able to pick it up next door to enjoy inbetween café visits.
Where: Shop 10-11, 65-71 Barrabool Road, Highton
Ph: 03 5241 2933
Retail: Mon-Sat 9am-5pm; Sun 10am-3pm
Café: Mon-Sun 7.30am-5pm
By Amanda Sherring
