All publicity is good publicity, right?

With Cam O’Keefe

The eyes of the state were fixed on a single local cellar door recently, as Dan Andrews held a press conference to announce a $170 million support package for regional tourism while visiting Bellarine favourite Oakdene Vineyards.

Whether you love or loathe the guy, he can be given credit here with helping shine a light on a great Geelong winery. Heck, the interview even showed the Premier loading his boot with a couple of cases of chardonnay – now that’s endorsement in the eyes of millions!

All jokes and any political opinion aside, this is a brilliant cellar door to visit, definitely one of my picks along the Bellarine. So good that even the locals alone are making the effort to visit, Oakdene is presently showcasing their new release Kristen Blanc de Blancs sparkling for guests to enjoy there (or take away).

I had a great weekend lunch recently at Box Office, one of the unsung heroes of Geelong West. It must be that slightly “off-Pako” location, as we tend to forget about this place when thinking about the area. It ticks all the big boxes (great breakfast-cum-lunch food offering, enormous selection of local wine and informal yet informed service) as well the little boxes too (premium wineglass stemware, both music and temperature volumes right). Having the owner of a place on hand to make sure these one percenters get hit goes a long way in saying something about how a hospitality business is run. It’s definitely worth a revisit if you haven’t been in a while.

A quick mention needs to head the way of The Cheese Society (Minerva Road, Herne Hill) who unfortunately have completely shut up shop as the owners pursue new interests. It’s a shame Geelong hasn’t been able to sustain a destination solely dedicated to all things cheese, but hopefully it’s given the taste for someone to fill their cream-filled boots. For now though, it’s RIP indeed for our many local cheese lovers out there.

If you feel like a wine dinner this coming month, there’s a few tickets remaining to the Shaw + Smith dinner being held at Man Bo on October 3. Spread over five courses, you’ll try eight wines in a banquet style Chinese feast, with the winemaker from Shaw + Smith and MMAD wines on hand to share the secrets of both wineries’ success. Hosted in the hidden, upstairs area of the restaurant, I went to one of these dinners here last month and the night was brilliant: premium wines matched to the best Chinese food in Geelong, what more could you ask for on a casual Tuesday night?

Sticking with wine, a shout out this week goes to Coffee Cartel for stepping up their wine program with the introduction of an expanded new wine list, new retail offering, food and wine pairings, and evening openings hours. Seems not just coffee is their forte, with staff trained up to answer any of your vexing vino related questions, serving wine by the glass all week during the day as well as late into the night on Friday and Saturday. I tried a glass of Mount Macleod pinot noir ($13.5 gls) from Gippsland there a few days ago (in new stemware, mind you) and it was just what my Monday afternoon needed.

How’s this for a call: some of the very best Italian food in Geelong (as in, right up there) is being served at possibly the most unassuming and unfussy lunch stop you could you think of. Where could this place be, you ask? Pucci’s Caffe Rosticceria. Their shopfront is found on the west side of Moorabool Street, just along from the stadium and opposite The Barwon Club. Before you get too excited, there’s a few exclusions you need to consider, including no liquor licence, no dinner trading hours, and no bookings.

Try not to let this deter you, though: simply walk in around lunch time and order up, enjoying daily made pasta with traditional seasoning and sauces. Basically just seriously good, fresh Italian fare, kept yet simple (as this cuisine should be)

Tune into next week’s column where I’ll cover off on a couple of the most promising new restaurant additions to our coastline, as well as some suggestions on how to make the most of your racing season drinking and eating options… until then, enjoy the publicity right?