A Unique Shared Dining Experience

MERNE RESERVATION TERMS AND CONDITIONS

We are excited for you to come and take in the Bellarine Peninsula fine dining experience on offer at Merne at Lighthouse – you won’t be disappointed.

We offer a multiple-dish grazing menu, as well as a selection on mains and desserts, to be shared while absorbing the view from the dining room. Our food is sourced locally as well as responsibly. We see the produce as the hero and use modern cooking techniques to elevate and highlight, without masking its natural beauty.

You can make a reservation by contacting us here, or you can make a booking using the form below.

MAKE A RESERVATION
GROUP BOOKINGS (10+)

MAKE A RESERVATION

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CANCELLATIONS

Please note we are a small restaurant in a regional area and depend on our honoured reservations.

Cancelling a reservation at short notice has a large impact on our business as it can be difficult to fill due to the lack of passing traffic.

If you need to cancel a reservation we would appreciate at least 48hrs notice.

CHILDREN

Children are welcome at Merne, however we do not offer a children’s menu. Children are welcome to dine off our grazing style menu. We can if required, offer a simplified meal off our menu.

GIFT VOUCHERS

Please state in your booking notes if you wish to utilise your gift voucher.

Gift vouchers are valid for three years.

We unfortunately do not offer gift voucher extensions after three years.

 Please note we no longer sell gift vouchers.

We kindly ask you to not redeem your gift vouchers on public holidays. 

TRANSPORT

Taxis and Uber are available on the Bellarine but sometimes can be unreliable. For transport options we recommend www.drivemebellarine.com.au/ 

Be sure to browse our menus to see the fine local produce you will enjoy upon visiting Merne. If you’re looking for a Bellarine Peninsula wedding venue or somewhere to host a stylish private event, we also have several great function packages.

Our menu can easily be adapted to all dietary requirements including gluten free, vegetarian, and pescatarian. Please advise of your dietary requirement/s when making a booking.

TWO COURSE – $89 PP

Grazing Course 1  (all four dishes are served)

Alchemy bakehouse bread with olives from the grove  

Corn waffle, jalapeno, coriander, desert lime

    Burrata, oyster mushroom, broad bean, celery seed, hazelnut

Ocean trout, lemon gum, yuzu, nori, edamame, radish

Mains (choose 2 per table)

Nettle pasta, pumpkin, pine nut, horseradish, sauce verde

Flathead, mandarin, ginger, fennel, green bean

Spatchcock, golden beetroot, asparagus, chickpea, sesame

Slow cooked pork, cauliflower, tomato kasundi, sunflower, miso

Side dishes (complimentary with mains)

Zucchini, freekeh, mint, black garlic, blood lime

    Kipfler potato,  garlic, leek, parsley, cornichon

 

Dessert (optional +$19)

  Golden syrup dumplings, brown butter, passionfruit, banana gelato

    Chocolate parfait, cacao, malt, strawberry, raspberry ice cream

  Today’s cheese, paste, fig, walnut, lavosh

FOUR COURSE – $119 PP

Grazing Course 1 (all four dishes are served)

Alchemy bakehouse bread with olives from the grove  

Corn waffle, jalapeno, coriander, desert lime

    Burrata, oyster mushroom, broad bean, celery seed, hazelnut

Ocean trout, lemon gum, yuzu, nori, edamame, radish

Grazing Course 2 (both dishes are served)

Cuttlefish, sweet potato, pickled chilli, charred cucumber

Kangaroo, buckwheat, parsley, pecorino, pickled walnut

Mains (choose 2 per table)

Nettle pasta, pumpkin, pine nut, horseradish, sauce verde

Flathead, mandarin, ginger, fennel, green bean, sweet & sour

Spatchcock, golden beetroot, asparagus, chickpea, sesame

Slow cooked pork, cauliflower, tomato kasundi sunflower, miso

 

Side dishes (complimentary with mains)

Zucchini, freekeh, mint, black garlic, blood lime

    Kipfler potato,  garlic, leek, parsley, cornichon

Dessert to share

  Citrus pie, biscoff, nougat, coconut, mint gelato

At Merne we cater for all menu requirements. Vegetarian, pescatarian and allergy/intolerance menus, are all constructed on the day of dining to reflect the seasons. Please advise of all dietary requirements when making your booking.

10% surcharge on public holidays

MAKE A RESERVATION

Wine and Craft Beer List

Merne is situated at Lighthouse Olive Grove, a property that Oakdene vineyards purchased in 2015. Oakdene continues to shine prominently in wine shows across Australia and we are proud to showcase the wines from this amazing local producer.

Our drinks list reflects of what we like to drink ourselves. Its a comprehensive selection of both domestic and international wine and craft beer.

View Our Drinks Menu

Guest Reviews

Best on the Bellarine Peninsula

We are very fortunate living on the Bellarine Peninsula-great beaches, surf, markets, wineries and food. It is the latter where Merne showcases the best of the Bellarine. 3 of us had lunch on Saturday and could not fault the fixed price menu (we chose the pork and barramundi for shared mains) both were superb. A good wine list and we were recommended the Spence 2016 pinot noir from the Moorabool valley-great choice. We loved it so much we have booked again in 2 weeks to show other friends from outside the area the best of the Bellarine.

John C –Tripadvisor

A hidden gem with unique menu!

It is truly a hidden gem…..a good drive out from SE Melb but worth the effort! Upon arrival, the small but cosy dining area is well presented and has huge glass windows that allows you to see out into the open hills! We were repeatedly surprise by each serving, the so very well presented courses and favours! The food tasted amazing as it is uses plenty of organic grains and surprisingly WELL BALANCED, which is a massive effort and expresses the High level of cooking skills and knowledge by the chefs! The level of SERVICE is AMAZING too which we very much appreciated! Will be back soon as their menu changes with each season.

Ivan8883 - Tripadvisor

A Bellarine Treasure

This is our third visit to this wonderful place, and once again the experience was fantastic. Only a few kilometres from the heart of Portarlington, off the Queenscliff road and hidden amongst an olive grove, the setting is low key and relaxed. The staff are pleasant, welcoming and well informed. Choose from two set degustation options, we had the four courses and as has been the case previously, enjoyed all aspects. Presentation, design and flavours were perfect. The wine menu supports the best of the Bellarine’s vineyards as well as an exciting selection of craft beers.

68rustyjefferson – Tripadvisor

READ MORE ON TRIPADVISOR

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From the Journal

Merne at your Doorstep (2021)

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A Return to Merne

Merne at Lighthouse has welcomed the news this week that we can finally reopen the doors. Thursday September the 24th is the day. We will continue to keep our regular hours of Thursday through to Monday for lunch and Friday and Saturday evenings for dinner. With the...

MERNE AT YOUR DOORSTEP IS BACK!

Celebrate in style! As COVID 19 has closed our restaurant doors again, Merne has decided once again to bring our banquet feast to you. So on Friday and Saturday evenings only (commencing Friday 7th August), we will deliver to the Bellarine Peninsula, encompassing,...