It's time to head towards one of our favourite weekend away destinations: the South Coast of NSW. On the way down we will be stopping and visiting a new art museum with its cafe that is well worth a visit. We will also be staying at a beautiful house in a quiet town where all we have on the agenda is to relax and enjoy all that the small town has to offer.
It's 11am when Mr NQN and I load up the car with food, drink, luggage and Mr NQN's kite surfing equipment and wave goodbye to our housesitter Yuki and our dogs Teddy and Milo and start the drive south towards the South Coast. Two hours later we reach our first stop. Our itinerary has been crafted by the lovely people at South Coast Experiences and includes a visit to the Bundanon Art Museum and a stay at Ocean at Bendalong.
The South Coast is built around little seaside towns with an abundance of natural beauty. Bundanon Art Museum is a slight detour, many driving to the South Coast on holidays may not think to turn right when they reach Nowra as they spearhead further down the coast but it's a stop well worth making. It is also a great spot to visit on a South Coast holiday for a long lunch and a museum visit.
Bundanon was bestowed to the Australian people in 1993 by Australian artist Arthur Boyd. When we arrive the sun is scorching and we take the curved path up to the museum. The glass and black metal building emerges into view, a long, dramatic structure cantilevered across a grassy gully. The converted flood bridge is where people can stay overnight and immerse themselves in the art gallery experience.
The Bundanon property spans 1000 hectares of bush and parkland and is home to the art museum, accommodation, event space as well as Ramox cafe. The cafe is named after the part ram part ox mythical creature featured in Boyd's paintings. During the 2020 bushfires a lot of Boyd's artwork along with Picasso and Sidney Nolan was moved to Sydney for safe keeping. Across the expansive grounds today there is an event happening this weekend and a wedding, accounting for everyone dressed up in floor length gowns.
While Ramox is called a cafe, what is plated is a level up; heirloom tomatoes are paired with a sobrassadadressing or hawaij spiced chicken is made with chermoula and yogurt. Prices are reasonable, service is friendly and personable and there's an indoor as well as an large covered terrace setting. Ramox is also licensed with a range of wine from Cupitt's Estate winery. Guests also have the option to order a picnic to eat on the grounds at $40 for two.
The Tilba dairy halloumi comes as a thick slab of creamy halloumi, pan fried until light golden with a drizzle of honey, crushed pistachios and oregano. It's the right amount of addition to an already wonderful cheese.
That bright summer sun that beat down on us is also responsible for the beautifully sweet and meaty heirloom tomatoes, served quartered with diced pears and a sobrassada dressing with blood orange and ricotta. The combination is clever and thoughtful bringing out the best in all of the ingredients.
The beetroot salad is also a good pick, with roasted beetroot both in chunks and a fine dice with torn clouds of buffalo mozzarella, sliced plums and caramelised yogurt.
Then we come to the more sizeable portions and the pasta is given a Turkish treatment with mezze manici pasta (short, ridged tubes like a squatter rigatoni) with a delicious Georgian Adjika chicken stew, cotton-soft dabs of chevre and herbs on top.
The Hawaji spiced chicken is half a chicken portioned into four pieces. The chicken is tender and full of flavour with the herby chermoula to the creamy natural yogurt. I'd recommend getting some flatbread to eat with the chicken and salad. Dear Reader, promise me that if this and the pasta and tomatoes are on the menu you'll order them.
We paired it with the fresh and crunchy baby cos salad drizzled with ajo blanco (Spanish almond and bread soup), fresh dill, fat shavings of parmesan and crunchy smoked almonds.
After lunch we enter the Art Gallery and walk through the exhibits. The current exhibition is called art is by Miwatj Yolŋu – Sunrise People and features sculptures, paintings and mixed media. The art is by senior and emerging Yolŋu artists from the Yirrkala Community in East Arnhem Land. Guests also have the option to explore the Homestead & Arthur Boyd's Studio located around 25 minutes drive from the museum.
An hour later we arrive in the town of Bendalong where a sign displays the local events like Yoga and community meetings. We arrive at our accommodation for the weekend. Oceans at Bendalong is located right on the beach bordering the Conjola National Park. Enter the mud room with the Moroccan style floor tiles and explore the two level house.
This luxe holiday property is designed to sleep 14 and includes a whole floor devoted to teens and small children where they have their own enormous modular lounge and bunk bedroom and bathroom/laundry. Just outside this is the manicured garden, an outdoor shower for any post beach showers and hammocks to laze about in and create memories.
The décor is coastal chic and the space is architecturally designed to allow for natural airflow from the nearby ocean breezes. Fling open the French doors and you can practically smell the saltwater. The kitchen is modern and equipped with good quality appliances and everything to make dinner although the fridge is empty and there is coffee and tea available. While there was no milk or provisions at the time of our visit, I've since been told that all new guests will receive a provisions hamper with milk, cheese, eggs, bread, relish and butter. The window opens up to a stone servery and there's also a breakfast nook and a cute little built in bar to make cocktails every evening (or lunchtime, hey you're on holiday).
There are four bedrooms upstairs branching out from the corridor. We choose the bedroom with the small ensuite attached for Mr NQN while I spread out in the main bathroom with its large soaking tub. The bedrooms are all slightly different but each has its own appeal and there isn't a short straw among them.
If you're visiting in winter the upstairs is furnished with a modern gas fireplace while the downstairs has a wood fireplace. There are large televisions in both rooms and comfortable lounges if you want to listen to anything apart from the waves crashing and the birds serenading impending sunset.
Bendalong is its own little quiet nook, set among a trail of other quiet towns on the South Coast, so it's advisable to bring food and drink along if you want to stay close to accommodation. That evening we ate food that we brought and watched television and relaxed. The wifi is out so it was back to old skool television, something that we haven't watched in years. It's 1am by the time that we shower and go to bed.
The next morning wifi has been restored and I have a relaxing lie-in. I begrudgingly open one eye and see that the time is 10:30am. We have a late breakfast in the breakfast nook and Mr NQN goes out to get coffees from the Bendalong general store Hub 2 minutes drive or 20 minutes walk away. The iced chai latte is excellent as is the coffee (tip: get the large, the small coffee is very small). From Wednesdays to Saturdays from 5pm-7pm they have wood fired pizza nights.
At lunchtime we hop in the car for the short 8 minute drive to the nearby town of Cunjarong to have lunch at The Deli. We make it just in time to put in our lunch order at 1:25pm and take a seat. There are Adirondack chairs to relax in with stump stools and tables as well as picnic tables surrounding the deli cafe and a free book exchange.
I had read good things about their The Deli's burgers so I order one of these as well as a toasted wrap. Mr NQN wolfs down his half of the burger with the lot letting me know that if I don't want the entire half he will happily eat it. The small side of hot chips is plenty and they come out piping hot with chicken salt on top.
The wrap fillings change every day and I enjoy the slightly tricky to eat but satisfying taco wrap filled with wilted spinach, cheese and taco beef mince.
Mr NQN spends the rest of the day kite surfing from Berringer Lake while I work out and watch tv. I don't know how time passed, nor do I care to examine it too closely. But by the end of the weekend away my shoulders no longer bear a weight and we make plans to return.
So tell me Dear Reader, do you bring food and drink along to weekends away or do you mostly eat out? What do you do on your time off? Sport, watching tv or something else?
NQN and Mr NQN were guests at Bundanon and Ocean at Bendalong and this was arranged by South Coast Experiences but all opinions remain her own. Other meals were independently paid for.
Ramox Cafe and Bundanon Art Museum
170 Riversdale Rd, Illaroo NSW 2540
Hours: Wednesday to Sunday 10 am–5 pm
Phone: (02) 4422 2100
https://www.bundanon.com.au/art-museum/
Ocean At Bendalong
North Bendalong
https://whereweescape.com.au/listings/ocean-at-bendalong/
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