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| This statue shows a Blue Heeler dog - the first ones were bred near Aberdeen in the 1840's |
Where we stayed
I've stayed at the John Hunter Motel (91 Maitland St, Muswellbrook Ph 02 6543 4477) a couple of times with Miss 13 a few years ago. It was ok, but nothing special. The decor was old and worn then, but the bed was comfortable enough. We ate at the restaurant on the first occasion. The food was nice, but it was expensive and the second time my daughter preferred to go to McDonalds next door. I felt that it was quite expensive for the night - but we had not prebooked, it may be cheaper through Wotif etc.
This year we have stayed at Noahs Mid City Motor Inn twice - both times in the same room! If all the rooms are like this one then anyone staying here should be happy. The room looks to have been renovated recently and are lovely. The bed was comfy and although the room was smallish, overall it was quite comfortable. We had breakfast at the motel on the first occasion. It was a buffet type arrangement with all the usual breakfast items. Breakfast is only available Mon - Fri. Although the motel is on the highway (all the motels in Muswellbrook are), I didn't find it too noisy at night.
Where we ate
Carmens "A Little Taste of Italy" 91 Bridge St, Muswellbrook Ph 02 6542 5166
We really enjoyed the meal we had here. It's a lovely little restaurant attached to Noah's Mid City Motor Inn. I had a really yummy seafood risotto while DH enjoyed his steak. It's advertised as family friendly & certainly seemed that way from the few family groups that were there.
Artiste Expresso Bar 1-3 Bridge St Muswellbrook Ph 02 6541 2277
Artiste is a small cafe adjacent to the Art Gallery with a number of tables outside. We've had breakfast here twice. The menu is listed on the wall and has a simple variety of foods. The gluten free cake range is larger than most cafes. The breakfasts we had were simple but quite tasty. We were told all the sausages, ham etc used were gluten free and gluten free bread is available on request.
Lucky Star Bistro 113 Bridge Street, Muswellbrook Ph 02 6543 1700
The Lucky Star is a part of the Muswellbrook RSL Club. We ate here on two separate occasions, once with just DH & I, the other with our kids & other family members. I had steak & vegies both times as it's usually what I have when there's nothing else that is gluten free and it was what I felt like at the time. It came with a vegie dish that had been cooked in I think oyster sauce which I put to the side. While there with our daughter, the waitress said to let them know & they would leave that off. The chinese meals others tried looked good, my son found the sate a bit hot, but loved it anyway!
Hunter Belle Cheese Cafe 75 Aberdeen Street (New England Highway) Muswellbrook
Ph 02 6541 5066
Hunter Belle Cheese is a small cheese factory that has cafe & gift shop on the premises. There are viewing windows where you can watch the cheese being made, a tasting area and a pretend cow that the kids can try their hand at 'milking'. We ate here with our 3 kids and everyone enjoyed their chosen meal. There were a couple of gluten free choices. I chose the pumpkin soup (without the included bread after checking that the soup was gluten free) for Miss 13, while I had the Nundle trout with potato pancakes & poached eggs. My serving was larger than expected but yummy nonetheless. The menu looks to have changed since we were there.
The cheese made here is really good. There are a number of different ones to chose from as well as butter & yoghurt. Our favourite is the washed rind, Mr 12's was a Italian herb & garlic cheddar. There is also a range of fudge (which we sampled on a later visit) and gelato made on the premises. Throughout the cafe, which is quite large with rustic timber tables and chairs, there are various gift items to purchase most with a cow or cheese theme. We found it to be a relaxed place where the kids enjoyed checking out the cheese making process.
Lucky Star Bistro 113 Bridge Street, Muswellbrook Ph 02 6543 1700
The Lucky Star is a part of the Muswellbrook RSL Club. We ate here on two separate occasions, once with just DH & I, the other with our kids & other family members. I had steak & vegies both times as it's usually what I have when there's nothing else that is gluten free and it was what I felt like at the time. It came with a vegie dish that had been cooked in I think oyster sauce which I put to the side. While there with our daughter, the waitress said to let them know & they would leave that off. The chinese meals others tried looked good, my son found the sate a bit hot, but loved it anyway!
Hunter Belle Cheese Cafe 75 Aberdeen Street (New England Highway) Muswellbrook
Ph 02 6541 5066
Hunter Belle Cheese is a small cheese factory that has cafe & gift shop on the premises. There are viewing windows where you can watch the cheese being made, a tasting area and a pretend cow that the kids can try their hand at 'milking'. We ate here with our 3 kids and everyone enjoyed their chosen meal. There were a couple of gluten free choices. I chose the pumpkin soup (without the included bread after checking that the soup was gluten free) for Miss 13, while I had the Nundle trout with potato pancakes & poached eggs. My serving was larger than expected but yummy nonetheless. The menu looks to have changed since we were there.
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| My Nundle trout with potato pancakes was delicious |
The cheese made here is really good. There are a number of different ones to chose from as well as butter & yoghurt. Our favourite is the washed rind, Mr 12's was a Italian herb & garlic cheddar. There is also a range of fudge (which we sampled on a later visit) and gelato made on the premises. Throughout the cafe, which is quite large with rustic timber tables and chairs, there are various gift items to purchase most with a cow or cheese theme. We found it to be a relaxed place where the kids enjoyed checking out the cheese making process.
Where we went
Muswellbrook has a newly redeveloped park which the kids loved. Highbrook Park now has a huge enclosed slide + other cool playground equipment. Turn into the road next to the showground, follow it to the T intersection & turn left, the park is on the right. There are toilet facilities, a number of picnic tables and a bike track.
The weekend we stayed, the St Heilers Heavy Horse Field Day was on which I was very excited about. I love heavy horses and had seen signs advertising it on many of our previous trips to Sydney but it was never the right weekend. We went on the Sunday. There weren't a lot of classes running (apparently the Saturday is busier), but we enjoyed wandering around checking out the stalls and of course the many heavy horses. The kids and I enjoyed a ride in the wagon which had the added advantage of giving us a different view of what was going on. Lots of photos were taken!
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| This four in hand won their class pulling a slide with a large log on it. |
We did visit Denman, but it was on Sunday and basically the only things we found open were the cafes. Another day we drove down to Singleton, then came back via Jerry's Pains. We had a map we'd picked up at the Information Centre, which had a lookout marked on it that looked out over the Coal operations. We went to have a look, it was freezing cold so we didn't stay out of the car long. It was also really noisy, basically it looked out over the centre of the mine operations, complete with giant dump trucks etc.
There are a range of shops in a couple of different places. An Aldi, Coles and Harvey Norman are close to the Showground, while the rest of the shops are in the main street and a complex just behind the main street. DH & the kids loved the hobby shop, while I enjoyed the 2nd hand bookstore - unfortunately didn't find anything interesting enough to buy. Three op shops are spread along the main street. We found some good bed linen & towels at the Vinnies and a cheap rice cooker, mugs and some hardcover books at the Lifeline.
