EAT - Merricks General Wine Store, Merricks
Merricks General Wine Store suits spring better than any other season. The room fills with light by mid-morning, the garden out back starts to justify lingering, and the kitchen’s habit of building dishes around whatever the Merricks corridor is growing makes the menu feel genuinely current rather than decorative.
Breakfast is good, but lunch is the session to book. The seasonal menu leans on local produce - expect something with asparagus or broad beans right now - and the wine list is anchored by Elgee Park and Baillieu bottles that you will not find poured this casually anywhere else on the Peninsula. Order a glass of the Elgee Park Chardonnay alongside whatever the kitchen is running as a shared main.
The room itself is the point: unhurried, genuinely of its place, with a retail shelf at the back that sells the same pantry goods the kitchen uses.
Book ahead; weekends fill by Thursday. Allow 90 minutes at the table. Address: 3460 Frankston–Flinders Road, Merricks.
Pair this with a walk through the Merricks Foreshore Reserve before or after lunch - ten minutes south down the Balnarring Road.
WALK - Boneo Plains Native Grassland Reserve, Boneo
The Boneo Plains Native Grassland Reserve is easy to miss and worth the stop. Spring is the one window when the golden weather-grass (Eulalia aurea) stands tall and the small wildflowers that live between its tussocks - bulbine lily, chocolate lily, native daisy - are visible at knee height.
The perimeter trail is flat and takes around 45 minutes at a comfortable pace. The grassland is not dramatic in the way the cape tracks are. It is quiet and specific: a remnant of the grassy plains ecosystem that once covered a far larger area of the southern Peninsula, now reduced to a few protected parcels. Walking it in October, when it is at its most botanically active, makes the scale of what has been lost legible in a way that a sign at the roadside cannot.
Go early morning when the light is low across the tussocks. Wear closed shoes; the grass is dense and there is occasional ground-nesting bird activity.
No booking required. Access off Boneo Road near Rosebud West. Allow one hour including the drive from Rosebud township.
Pair this with a coffee at the Rosebud foreshore strip on the way back toward the highway.
DISCOVERY - The Curious Pantry, Dromana
The Curious Pantry has opened on the main strip in Dromana, and it fills a gap the town has had for years: a daytime food shop that takes the produce of the surrounding wine country seriously and does something with it.
The fit-out is simple - a counter, a few shelves, jars and bottles sourced from Peninsula producers alongside a short eat-in menu. Early reports from the first week of trading point to a Peninsula honey and cultured butter toast that justifies the stop on its own, and a rotating selection of local preserves to take home. The coffee is from a Peninsula roaster; the milk is local.
This is a new opening and kitchens find their rhythm over weeks, not days - but the bones are right. It is worth a visit now while the menu is still being shaped and the owners are behind the counter themselves, which is usually when a place like this is at its most interesting.
Check current opening hours on their website or social channels before visiting, as hours may vary in the first weeks of service. Dromana main strip.
Pair this with a walk down to the Dromana foreshore, five minutes from the shop.
Quick Reference
Merricks General Wine Store 3460 Frankston–Flinders Road, Merricks Breakfast and lunch; bookings recommended Book directly through the venue
Boneo Plains Native Grassland Reserve Off Boneo Road, near Rosebud West Open year-round; no booking required Allow 45–60 minutes including the perimeter loop
The Curious Pantry Dromana main strip, Dromana New opening; check website for current hours before visiting
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Questions readers actually ask
FAQ
Where is Merricks General Wine Store and when does it serve lunch?
Merricks General Wine Store is at 3460 Frankston–Flinders Road, Merricks. It serves breakfast and lunch; bookings are recommended and can be made through the venue directly. Check current service hours on their website before visiting.
Where is the Boneo Plains Native Grassland Reserve and how do I get there?
The Boneo Plains Native Grassland Reserve is off Boneo Road near Rosebud West. Park on the verge near the reserve entrance and walk the perimeter trail - allow around 45 minutes for the full loop. No booking required; open year-round.
Where is The Curious Pantry in Dromana?
The Curious Pantry is on the main strip in Dromana. Check their website or social channels for current opening hours, as they are newly open and hours may vary while the kitchen settles in.
