Canonical: https://peninsulainsider.com.au/eat/hatted-restaurants/ Publisher: Peninsula Insider Published: unknown Modified: 2026-04-24 Format: public main text, generated from the canonical page; imagery and interactive controls omitted. Dates and caveats below retain their page meaning; this format is not a new fact check. Eat & Drink Hatted Restaurants # Hatted Restaurants on the Mornington Peninsula The Good Food Guide awarded 15 hats across 11 Peninsula venues. Four venues carry two hats - the highest recognition in the region. What distinguishes the Peninsula's hatted scene is its context: these are not city strip restaurants. You eat in a converted 1940s farmhouse on a biodynamic property, a 40-seat room inside a sculpture park estate, or a cave-like dining room beneath a boutique winery hotel. The long lunch is the defining format. The four two-hat venues are Barragunda Dining (Cape Schanck), Laura at Pt. Leo Estate (Merricks), Tedesca Osteria (Red Hill), and Ten Minutes by Tractor (Main Ridge). Each is different in character. Barragunda is the Peninsula's newest and hardest booking. Tedesca is the most farm-forward. Laura is the most internationally credentialled. Ten Minutes by Tractor is the most established. Below the two-hat tier, seven one-hat venues cover a wider range of formats - from Doot Doot Doot's formal dinner-only room at Jackalope Hotel to Rare Hare's walk-in wood-fired outdoor sessions on the same estate. The list is ordered by hat count, then by editorial weight. Researched from published sources. Every venue listed was reviewed April 2026 or later. Sources disagree on at least one fact here and an editor is reviewing it. · Source: Good Food Guide 2025 Ranked by Good Food Guide recognition ## 15 hatted and hatted-adjacent rooms Two-hat venues first, then one-hat, then the AGFG-recognised rooms working below the GFG list. [All dining venues →]() Restaurant [Red Hill]() ### [Tedesca Osteria]() 1175 Mornington-Flinders Road, Red Hill VIC 3937 Brigitte Hafner's single-set-menu osteria inside a restored Red Hill farmhouse with the wood oven running all service. long lunch fireplace [Read notes]() [Book]() Photo: Courtesy of Visit Victoria Winery [Merricks]() ### [Pt. Leo Estate]() 3649 Frankston-Flinders Rd, Merricks VIC 3916 A sculpture park walk followed by a long bay-view lunch in the glass-walled restaurant. long lunch anniversary [Read notes]() [Book]() Photo: Provided image Winery [Main Ridge]() ### [Ten Minutes by Tractor]() 1333 Mornington-Flinders Rd, Main Ridge VIC 3928 Estate-grown pinot noir alongside a seasonal degustation rooted in the Ridge vineyard. long lunch anniversary [Read notes]() [Book]() Winery [Merricks]() ### [Willow Creek Vineyard]() 166 Balnarring Rd, Merricks North VIC 3926 The vineyard at the heart of Jackalope Hotel, a showpiece single-site program and the home of both Rare Hare and Doot Doot Doot. cellar door walk [Read notes]() [Book]() Photo: Two Palms Australia, courtesy of Visit Victoria Winery [Red Hill]() ### [Montalto Vineyard & Olive Grove]() 33 Shoreham Rd, Red Hill South VIC 3937 Single Vineyard Pinot Noir and a Sunday lunch beneath the olive grove canopy. long lunch cellar door [Read notes]() [Book]() Photo: Paringa Estate Winery [Red Hill]() ### [Paringa Estate]() 44 Paringa Rd, Red Hill South VIC 3937 A serious single-vineyard producer with one of the Peninsula's most dependable restaurant terraces. cellar door long lunch [Read notes]() [Book]() Winery [Red Hill]() ### [Polperro]() 150 Red Hill Road, Red Hill VIC 3937 Small-production cool-climate pinot and chardonnay poured in one of the prettiest tasting rooms on the ridge. cellar door view [Read notes]() [Book]() Winery [Red Hill]() ### [Port Phillip Estate]() 263 Red Hill Rd, Red Hill South VIC 3937 Rammed-earth architecture, an estate dining room and six vineyard suites in Red Hill South. anniversary long lunch [Read notes]() [Book]() Winery [Tuerong]() ### [Yabby Lake Vineyard]() 86-112 Tuerong Rd, Tuerong VIC 3933 Tom Carson's single-block Chardonnay and Pinot Noir program, poured from a relaxed cellar door with one of the Peninsula's loveliest lunch decks. cellar door long lunch [Read notes]() [Book]() Restaurant [Merricks]() ### [Laura at Pt. Leo]() 3649 Frankston-Flinders Rd, Merricks VIC 3916 An intimate fine-dining room at Pt. Leo Estate, with seasonal menus and an unhurried view across the grounds. anniversary long lunch [Read notes]() [Book]() Photo: Peter Foster, courtesy of Visit Victoria Restaurant [Merricks North]() ### [Doot Doot Doot]() 166 Balnarring Rd, Merricks North VIC 3926 A multi-course dining experience at Jackalope Hotel, with a dramatic room and a seasonal menu. anniversary first date [Read notes]() [Book]() Photo: Peter Foster, courtesy of Visit Victoria Restaurant [Red Hill]() ### [The Epicurean]() 165 Shoreham Road, Red Hill South VIC 3937 A long table in Red Hill’s historic coolstore and packing shed. long lunch [Read notes]() [Book]() Restaurant [Cape Schanck]() ### [Barragunda Dining]() 165 Boneo Rd, Cape Schanck VIC 3939 Chef Simone Watts's farm dining room on a 1000-acre regenerative estate at Cape Schanck, one of the Peninsula's most compelling new voices. anniversary long lunch [Read notes]() [Book]() Photo: Courtesy of Visit Victoria Restaurant [Merricks]() ### [Rare Hare at Willow Creek]() 166 Balnarring Rd, Merricks North VIC 3926 Jackalope's relaxed lunch room, wood fire, vineyard views, and plates built for sharing over most of an afternoon. long lunch cellar door [Read notes]() [Book]() Restaurant [Red Hill]() ### [Many Little]() 166 Red Hill Rd, Red Hill South VIC 3937 Sri Lankan flavours in a European wine-bar setting, from the Polperro team, paired with natural wines and small Peninsula producers. first date anniversary [Read notes]() [Book]() ## Frequently asked questions ### How many hatted restaurants are on the Mornington Peninsula? The Good Food Guide awarded 15 hats across 11 Peninsula venues - four two-hat restaurants and seven one-hat restaurants. The Australian Good Food Guide recognises additional venues including Lancemore Lindenderry Dining Room (two AGFG hats) and Paringa Estate (one AGFG hat). ### Which hatted restaurants accept walk-ins? Rare Hare (Merricks North) is walk-in only - no reservations taken. Many Little Bar & Dining (Red Hill South) takes walk-ins for some sessions. Montalto's Piazza is walk-in daily as a casual alternative to the main restaurant. All other hatted venues require bookings. ### How far ahead do I need to book? Laura: four months ahead. Barragunda: book immediately when dates open - extremely hard to get. Tedesca: weeks ahead for Friday to Monday lunch. Ten Minutes by Tractor: four to eight weeks for weekend lunch. Doot Doot Doot: two to four weeks ahead. ### What are the best hatted venues for a special occasion? Laura at Pt. Leo Estate is the strongest special-occasion choice - the sculpture park setting, Relais & Châteaux membership, and consistent two-hat recognition make it the clearest destination-restaurant argument on the Peninsula. Barragunda Dining is the newest and most talked-about; Tedesca Osteria is the most personal and farm-driven. Related guides ## More ways to eat on the Peninsula ### [Fine Dining]() The destination dining rooms worth planning a whole Peninsula day around. [See the list →]() ### [Long Lunch]() Two to three hours at the table, estate wine, and a reason not to drive home at noon. [See the list →]() ### [Full Hat Guide]() The complete Good Food Guide hat table with booking realities and what each restaurant actually is. [Read the guide →]() ## The Insider Note The Peninsula worth knowing. An occasional email. What's on, where we'd go and what's worth knowing next. Independent editorial. Sent when there is something worth knowing. Unsubscribe any time [Privacy]()