4 King Street, Daylesford VIC
The Lake House is located on the shores of Lake Daylesford within 21/2 hectares of country gardens that also house the iconic hotel and spa. The dining room holds Two Chefs Hats from the national Good Food Guide and multiple awards for its cellar and service.
A team, passionate about hospitality, delivers beautiful, modern, seasonal food matched with wines from one of Australia’s best wine lists. Under the direction of Culinary Director Alla Wolf-Tasker AM, the kitchen work with great Australian produce including a raft of excellent small scale local suppliers and growers, as well as their own 16-hectare Dairy Flat Farm.
Located within ten minutes of the restaurant, the farm includes 2 hectares of productive vegetable gardens, where produce is hand-picked for morning deliveries, an olive grove, heirloom orchard, vineyard and a bake house specialising in slow-fermented sourdough for Lake House guests.
The restaurant offers magnificent views through wonderfully large windows to the treetops and shores of the lake. Large expanses of outdoor deck also offer the opportunity for an aperitif with beautiful views.
Guests enjoying drinks at dusk will likely witness the daily ritual of the resident kookaburra family flying in to be fed and the flocks of cockatoos circling the 40-year-old gums, silver birch and poplars, looking for their evening perch.
Regular guests will tell you of their favourite season or memorable dish. Perhaps the Butter Poached Pheasant with chestnuts and farrow in autumn; or the Golden Roasted Free-Range Chicken with corn and yabbies in summer. Or maybe what is known as the Art of the Vegetable, a dish within each course honouring the often-humble vegetables grown at Dairy Flat. Parsnip tortellini, almond pesto, Swiss chard and fromage frais, for example.
Each seasonal menu takes you on a trip down country lanes, through the orchards and across the farm paddocks of the region.
Recreate Alla Wolf-Tasker’s signature recipe -
Seasonal Tart
on P.206 in the 2024 edition of Flavours of Australia.
Flavours of Australia
- 92 signature recipes from top Aussie Chefs
- 200 stories about the best chefs and places to eat and drink around Australia
Read the stories of some of Australia's most decorated chefs and rediscover some of our oldest family institutions. Recreate your favourite meals at home and relive your most memorable food experiences with signature recipes from our most coveted restaurants and identities.