Where to eat in the Hunter Valley
Great wine deserves great food, and the Hunter delivers — hatted vineyard restaurants, produce-driven long lunches and a wealth of artisan providores, all set among the vines. Whether you want a special-occasion degustation or a picnic of local cheese and chocolate, here's how to eat your way around wine country.
Hatted & vineyard restaurants
The Hunter's dining scene is genuinely acclaimed. Muse Restaurant at Hungerford Hill holds two chef's hats, and EXP. at Pokolbin — also two-hatted — was named the SMH Good Food Guide's 2026 Regional Restaurant of the Year. Add one-hatted Bistro Molines at Mount View and Margan at Broke, and you have some of regional Australia's best tables. These book out, so reserve early, especially for weekend lunch.
Providores & artisan producers
Between meals, the Hunter is a grazer's paradise. Stock a picnic at the Hunter Valley Smelly Cheese Shop and Hunter Valley Cheese Co, satisfy a sweet tooth at the Hunter Valley Chocolate Company, and sample local olives, dairy and smallgoods at producers around Pokolbin. It's the tastiest way to fill the gaps between cellar doors — and to take a little of the Hunter home with you.
Breweries & distilleries
Not everyone drinks wine, and the Hunter has that covered. Hunter Distillery at Pokolbin crafts gin, vodka and liqueurs; Sydney Brewery at Lovedale pours craft beer with a meal; and IronBark Hill Brewing Co at Peter Drayton Wines combines a brewery with a cellar door. They make a refreshing change of pace on a tasting day — and a good option for the beer-lovers in the group.
Where to eat: your questions
The region punches well above its weight for dining. Standouts include the two-hatted Muse Restaurant at Hungerford Hill (Pokolbin) and EXP. (Pokolbin) — named the SMH Good Food Guide's 2026 Regional Restaurant of the Year — plus one-hatted Bistro Molines at Mount View and Margan at Broke. Book the hatted rooms well ahead, especially for weekend lunch.
Produce-driven modern Australian cooking matched to local wine, plus a wealth of artisan producers — cheese, chocolate, olives, smallgoods and dairy. The classic Hunter day pairs a long, wine-matched lunch at a vineyard restaurant with grazing at the providores. It's one of the country's great food-and-wine regions.
Don't miss the providores: the Hunter Valley Smelly Cheese Shop and Hunter Valley Cheese Co for cheese, the Hunter Valley Chocolate Company, plus olive groves, dairies and smallgoods makers dotted around Pokolbin. They're perfect for assembling a picnic or taking a taste of the Hunter home.
Yes — the Hunter isn't only about wine. Hunter Distillery at Pokolbin, Sydney Brewery at Lovedale and IronBark Hill Brewing Co at Peter Drayton Wines add craft beer, gin and spirits to the mix. They make a great non-wine stop on a tasting day, or an alternative for those who prefer a cold beer to a Semillon.
For the hatted and popular vineyard restaurants, yes — book well ahead, particularly for weekend lunches and around events and concerts. Casual cafés, cellar-door eateries and providores are mostly walk-in. If you're on a wine tour, your guide can help time a long lunch into the day. We can arrange key bookings for you.