outstanding food, an excellent, compact white wine region and the friendliest locals anywhere, Mudgee – just a few hours from Sydney – is an extraordinary destination. Here’s our vital guide to Australia’s top tourism Town*.
There’s something about exploring regional towns of new South Wales. There’s nothing quite like them; they’re very different to country towns in the rest of Australia – or the world for that matter.
And as for Mudgee specifically, it’s even a lot more special than that.
With a friendly culture you’d think inspired the famed hospitality of the USA’s Midwest and a culinary capability on a par with the most delicious parts of Europe, Mudgee really does punch above its weight.
And its rolling hills, misty mornings and busy broad streets rattling with life create a thriving oasis in a lush landscape of serene farms, beguiling wineries and well-mannered bushland.
*Mudgee took out the winner’s medal for Australia’s top tourism town 2021.
Essential guide to Mudgee, NSW
Obviously this is not an exhaustive guide, just based on things we’ve experienced and really enjoyed.
For a lot more detail and even a lot more ideas, head to the Mudgee visitor information Centre. The staff are outstanding and the centre is well worth checking out too.
We’ve broken this guide down into five sections – you can click on each of these headings to take you straight there.
1. Where to Stay
2. Where to Eat
3. Where to Drink
4. Wineries to Visit
5. What to Do
1. Where to Stay
– Parkview Hotel
Perfectly located in the centre of Mudgee, ideal across the road from the visitor Centre and – as the name suggests – the park, the Parkview hotel is a beautifully renovated 1870s building and once a pharmacy.
The substantial rooms, lofted ceilings and runaround balcony give you a real sense of space and comfort, and the adjoining cafe downstairs does the best coffee in town.
– Mudgee Homestead Guesthouse
Just a little out of town, the Homestead is home to the most comfortable bed I’ve ever slept in. aside from that, this grand country manor with kangaroos on the front lawn and stunning views out over the valley supply such a kicking back stay.
You can read our full review on this stunning guesthouse here.
– Peppertree hill Cottages
In the nearby village (about 15 minutes’ drive) of Eurunderee, these spacious self-contained two-bed cottages are the best escape without sacrificing convenience.
Views from your own veranda over the hills and valleys of the countryside are spectacular, and a nightly fire pit amongst the sculptures on the lawn is a lot of fun too.
– Glenayr farm – luxury villas and glamping
For true seclusion and romance, the villas on Glenayr farm supply the utmost digital retreat. set on 340 acres, this option really gives you a feeling of space.
Bring all the food and drink you need with you and bunker down or make forays into town to come back and play with the fire pit or your wood-fire heated hot tub on the veranda. Bliss.
Check out our review and video walkthrough of Glenayr farm here.
2. Where to Eat
Food in Mudgee is unbelievable. I challenge you to have a bad meal here. Venues like to use local produce and the skills in the kitchens here do justice to the outstanding ingredients.
Breakfast and lunch
– Alby & Ester’s Cafe
Tucked away in a pretty little courtyard, Alby and Ester’s is a Mudgee institution. everything is good here, but the jaffle toasties, which change all the time, are superb.
– Warakirri cafe by Indigiearth
Owned and run by the extraordinary Sharon Windsor, who herself grew up in the scrublands between Gunnedah and Coonabarabran, Warakirri is a cafe with a difference: although the majority of the dishes appear to be regular cafe fare, Sharon has incorporated bush tucker into them in some form or another.
The food is delicious, the story behind Warakirri – an Ngemba word indicating ‘to grow’ – is fascinating and the shop here stocks all kinds of local produce and indigenous crafts.
– Mudgee corner store Cafe
Stocking the best bacon egg rolls in the whole region (a big statement but I stand by it), this little cafe is well worth a check out when you’re hungry.
Behind the cafe is Olive A twist – a little bakery where you can pick up artisanal sourdough and scrumptious cakes.
– The Coffee house at the Parkview
We might be wrong but at time of writing, this was the best coffee in town. The food is also exceptional here – in fact their bacon egg roll also comes with a hash brown! Mudgee corner Store, the gauntlet has been cast.
– 29 nine 90 yum cha in Rylstone
Taking yum cha to a whole new realm, this unexpected treasure out in Rylstone, a village about 45 minutes from Mudgee, is quite something.
Na Lan makes all the dumplings herself by hand and they’re all delicious. There’s an a la carte option but you can also let Na Lan choose which ones to serve. Don’t worry, you can depend on her! and remember to bring a cooler bag – you can get pack of frozen dumplings to take home.
Check out our full review on 29 nine 99 here.
– Zin house long Lunch
The dining element of Lowe family Wines, Zin house is the utmost foodie extension to a winery cellar door.
It’s the sweet spot between fine dining and enjoying a hearty meal in a country manor, and the long lunch – a terrific culinary journey through five courses – is simply incredible. You can also book this for a long dinner too.
Check out our review of Zin house and its long Lunch here.
– Every winery in Mudgee
Pretty much all the wineries here offer an outstanding cheese plate or charcuterie board at the very least, so if you’re on the wine-tasting trail and you feel a bit peckish, fret not!
– eat where you’re staying
If it’s provided, breakfast – especially if you’re staying at the Mudgee Homestead – is always a good idea to agree to. They also do a killer afternoon tea btw.
Dinner
– Paragon Hotel
Homely, hearty, friendly and family oriented, the Paragon is a real centre point of Mudgee’s community. You see everyone here, from tradies to families, young couples to the a lot more senior clientele, friends’ catch-ups to after-work soaks.
And the food is well matched to the pub’s hospitality: generous, fun and so good you’ll come back for more. The burger specials, by the way, are insanely good.
– Roth’s white wine Bar
Continually licensed considering that 1923 (and selling a drop or two from under the counter for quite some time before that according to legend), Roth’s white wine Bar is a lively, knock-about venue with terrific beers, a enormous white wine list and some outstanding food to boot.
The wood-fired pizza oven turns out an exceptional variety of Roma style pizzas as well as terrific American diner sides not to be missed.
– Cade kitchen & Bar
The best restaurant in the town, Cade kitchen and Bar is set in one of the oldest remaining buildings in Mudgee. once a coachhouse, the restaurant still shows some of the old fixtures from its 1850s heritage.
Renée Cade – head chef and owner of this fine-dining eatery – has infused every dish with her exceptional skills and vision. This is a dinner to remember.
– Pipeclay Pumphouse
Long lauded as the best restaurant in the region, the Pipeclay Pumphouse really takes things up a notch and is where all the locals will recommend you eat when you ask them. and for good reason.
Just out of town near the Robert Stein Winery and perched on the edge of the property’s lake, the Pipeclay Pumphouse is beautifully romantic. The modern menu is full of tempting dishes, each one adding to the food theatre of the place with its immaculate plating.
You can read a lot more about the Pipeclay Pumphouse in our full review here.
3. Where to Drink
We’ll get to the wineries in a moment – they should have their own section really.
– Paragon Hotel
Fun and friendly, the Paragon is one of those terrific country pubs that manages to maintain the atmosphere of the place in spite of being so big. but plenty of space, terrific choices behind the bar and really well done classic pub fare sees this as our much-loved Mudgee boozer for a cheeky few.
– Woolpack Hotel
Right next to Mudgee’s famous clocktower roundabout, the Woolpack is ideal at the heart of town. This famous pub is terrific for a couple of late-night pints – or lunchtime pleasers of course – with a bubbly atmosphere and a good range of drinks.
Breaking tradition, the food here is from adjoining Jumbucks – a modern Chinese fusion restaurant. It’s incredibly popular with the locals and the grub looks excellent.
– Roth’s white wine Bar
From the outside, Roth’s looks like a pleasurable little white wine bar with a well-stocked bottle shop next door, but as you go in, you realise there’s nothing little about this exceptional venue.
From the front bar, the place stretches back for the whole block through stone archways past a substantial pizza oven to what’s known as The Shed. get hold of a glass – or why not a bottle – and soak up the fun vibe of this the oldest running bar in town.
4. Wineries to Visit
There are so lots of terrific wineries in Mudgee and its surrounding area. These are some we’ve been to and can highly recommend. the best thing about this white wine region is it’s quite compact and close to town.
You can check out quite a few cellar doors in a short space of time and pop back into Mudgee for dinner.
And if you want to check out the wineries properly, why not book Sabrina the split-screen Kombi through country Kombi to excursion the region in style?
– Burnbrae Wines
Especially if you’re staying at Glenayr Farm, this winery is your best stop. The wines are exceptional and the platter they can knock up for you is the best dinner while you enjoy the sun go down from your private rental property in the hills.
Make sure you give plenty of attention to Coco, Burnbrae’s cellar dawg. I think it’s the law.
– Rosby Wines
Rosby Wines brings together both exceptional white wine and terrific art in one beautiful, special cellar door. kick back underneath the trees and take pleasure in a tasting then wander through the gallery of local and national art. Gerry and Kay Norton-Knight and their daughter Amber make this a charming experience – a lot more than just a wine-tasting.
– De Beaurepaire Wines
Driving to this cellar door is an experience in itself as the road leads you through the extraordinary expanses of grapevines growing in this micro-terroir, said to be the closest to that of burgundy in Australia. The story of how this winery pertained to be, hidden in the hills outside Rylstone, is fascinating, and the French-style Pinots and Chardonnays speak for themselves.
– Robert Stein
Sampling outstanding Chardonnay and Shiraz amidst the atmospheric barrels of this family-run winery is a terrific experience. and with the outlook of grapevines leading to the low mountains in the distance, you get the real feeling of being in white wine country here. remember to try the rum cask tawny.
– 10’s Estate
This brand new winery is in fact much a lot more than that. Although it does grow and make several white wine varietals, there’s also an massive cherry orchard here as well as olives and a host of other produce. The cellar door is unexpectedly grand, while the tasting service is Mudgee friendly!
– Lowe family Wines
Perhaps the most striking cellar door, Lowe family Wines has set up its massive tasting lounge in one side of the wine-making barn. Behind a rack of barrels, you can hear the winemakers hard at work while you sip through the range and nibble on one of the expansive platters on offer here.
– Moothi Estate
Meaning ‘nest in the hills’ in Wiradjuri language (and possibly the corrupted origins of Mudgee), Moothi certainly is that. A stunning cellar door overlooking a lake and vines with rolling land stretching out before it. The white wine and food here are not to be missed – especially if you like a ploughmans.
– Logan
Just because this is one of the larger wineries nor because it’s the first you come to as you reach Mudgee, don’t think Logan’s isn’t worth a stop in. amazing staff, bankable wines and actually a terrific way to lower yourself into the warm bath that is this friendly town.
5. What to Do
– Mudgee visitor information and regional Art Centre
Even if you know what you want to do in Mudgee, your first stop must be the Mudgee Visitor’s Centre. The shop here is great, resources and info are amazing, the staff are really helpful, and the art gallery is really worth a look.
– follow the art down to the river
From the art gallery at the visitor’s centre, you can follow the sculptures all the way down to the river and along the bank. They’re all by local or Aussie artists, and are a show of the talent that’s here.
– Sculpture garden at Rosby Wines
Each year the Norton-Knight family run an extraordinary sculpture exhibition on the grounds of the winery, pulling in artists and their works from all over the country, as well as showing off some of Kay Norton-Knight’s exceptional work – though she’s too modest to admit it!
– white wine tasting – obviously
The close proximity of the wineries around Mudgee make this an much easier spot to explore different cellar doors than the hunter Valley or even the Barossa.
But if you want an even a lot more elegant way to get about and not worry about having to drive, check out country Kombi, where you’re driven from cellar door to cellar door in a stunning split-screen kombi called Sabrina.
– Cheese tasting at High Valley Cheese
Sample some of the best cheese you’ll taste – in particular the pesto fetta, which you’ll find included in lots of a menu around town. The chilli fetta though is a bit of an unsung hero, and the blue is pretty good too.
– Mudgee Honey Haven
Of course, the honey they sell here is delicious, but there’s a substantial range of local produce available at this store just outside town. We took our pal Jenna’s recommendation and gotten a jar of the California style olives a