If you’re a cheese-lover, chances are you’re familiar with Meredith Dairy goats cheese. Their creamy, rich and tangy cheeses are a fixture of all cheese boards curated by any respectable foodie. Now, the dairy producer has opened the doors to its very first farm store and cafe in its hometown of Meredith, Victoria (about an hour and a half from Melbourne/Naarm), giving visitors a chance to experience its produce straight from the source.
Sample goat cheese and local produce at Meredith Dairy cafe. (Image: Supplied)
At the cafe, you can sample the full range of Meredith cheeses alongside other fresh regional produce, like Meredith’s very own honey. (Hot tip: order the Meredith tasting plate with house-made condiments!)
Not only that, but you can try some of Meredith’s goat meat made from ethically-raised goats (also known as Dairy Capretto). This unique meat has the stamp of approval from top chefs and restaurants, like Italian restaurant Pilu at Freshwater, Farmer’s Daughters and Morena. The menu offers the chance to sample this less-common meat in different ways. You can try it for brekkie in the form of a Goat breakfast muffin with goat sausage, or for lunch with a goat ragu or braised shank (served with goat cheese, of course).
Fresh produce and goat cheese for brekkie? Yes please. (Image: Supplied)
The cafe and store opened in October, offering a new kind of paddock-to-plate experience in Victoria’s Golden Plains. Whether you’re after a relaxed country brunch, the chance to stock up on pantry staples, or just a hunk of the delicious goat cheese that made Meredith Dairy famous, it’s a worthy stop on any regional road trip.
Elizabeth Whitehead is a writer obsessed with all things culture; doesn't matter if it's pop culture or cultures of the world. She graduated with a degree in History from the University of Sydney (after dropping out from Maths). Her bylines span AFAR, Lonely Planet, ELLE, Harper's BAZAAR and Refinery 29. Her work for Australian Traveller was shortlisted for single article of the year at the Mumbrella Publishing Awards 2024. She is very lucky in thrifting, very unlucky in UNO.
Theatres have always been a cornerstone of regional Victoria, reflecting the character and history of their local communities.
From grand, gold rush-era masterpieces to Art Deco wonders to repurposed prisons, we’ve rounded up four of Victoria’s best regional theatres to catch a show at next time you’re travelling through.
Her Majesty’s Theatre, Ballarat
Her Majesty’s Theatre in Ballarat has been standing for 150 years. (Image: Michael Pham)
A monument to the immense gold rush wealth flooding through Ballarat in the second half of the 19th century, Her Majesty’s Theatre (‘Her Maj’ to locals) celebrates its 150th anniversary as the city’s premier performing arts venue this year.
Built in a classical style and immaculately preserved (thanks largely to a recent $16-million restoration), this Lydiard Street landmark is the oldest continuously operating theatre in mainland Australia, notable for its double balcony and a stage that slopes towards the front, making it one of the most audience-friendly venues in the country to see a show.
The Capital, Bendigo
The Capital in Bendigo was built in 1873 as a Masonic Hall. (Image: Michael Pham)
Denoted by its distinctive Corinthian columns, more reminiscent of ancient Greece than regional Victoria, The Capital theatre in Bendigo has been through several iterations since the first stone was laid in 1873.
Originally a Masonic hall, the renaissance revival-style building became a theatre in the 1890s, falling into disrepair for a time during the 1970s, before being restored and reopened (as the Bendigo Regional Arts Centre) in 1991. Today, the 480-seat venue hosts everything from comedy to cabaret to traditional theatre, dance, opera and live music.
Ulumbarra Theatre, Bendigo
Inside Bendigo’s Ulumbarra Theatre, a former prison. (Image: Michael Pham)
Bendigo has busted out as a regional performing arts hotspot, so it’s fitting that one of its newest venues is housed within a former prison. Meaning ‘meeting place’ or ‘gather together’ in the language of the local Dja Dja Wurrung people, the $26-million, 950-seat auditorium rose from within the red brick walls of the historic Sandhurst Gaol in 2015.
It’s an eerie feeling as you approach the imposing granite facade, pass beneath the old gallows and pick up your ticket from the box office occupying a repurposed cell block. With the building playing a main character in the show, this is performative architecture at its finest.
Rex Theatre, Charlton
The 1938-built Rex Theatre in Charlton is an Art Deco gem. (Image: Jenny Pollard)
Regional theatres don’t come more romantic than this Art Deco gem in the river town of Charlton, in north-central Victoria. Built in 1938, the 350-seat community-owned theatre provides an essential entertainment outlet for residents in the Wimmera Mallee region, as well as visitors making the trip up the Calder Highway from Melbourne.
The volunteer-run venue is the last remaining purpose-built cinema in regional Victoria, and hosts the Charlton Film Festival every February, plus three weekly film screenings (Tuesday, Saturday and Sunday).
