GRACE. bar + eatery

02/06/2026

NOT QUITE ROCKET SCIENCE

We're feeling very chuffed to be featured in this month's R.M.Williams OUTBACK magazine. Huge thanks to Sue Wallace for telling our story, Georgie James Photography for showing us off so well and Elizabeth Costello and Victoria's High Country for managing the logistics.

Highlights include:

• Confirmation that Matthieu abandoned aerospace engineering after six months, proving the aviation industry's loss was hospitality's gain.

• Erica somehow got quoted more than Matthieu in a story about Matthieu, and she was wearing the right boots in the photoshoot

• We still think feeding our neighbours once a month is one of the best things we do.

• Nan (Grace) is still the star of the story.

A terrific reminder of just how lucky we are to do what we do in Explore Rutherglen

29/05/2026

BACK TO NORMAL...UNFORTUNATELY.

Flying back from a week in Tassie tonight after fully embracing the slower pace of life; Huon Valley, Freycinet, the freshest seafood, excellent wine, amazing food and asking ourselves at least 14 times: 'Should we just move here?'

Sadly, responsibilities.
And children.
And a restaurant.

So here we are again.

✨ Grace. open from 5pm tonight, business as usual
☕ Little g. coffee window back tomorrow doing coffee + pastries as normal

Bookings are doing a gentle little sprinkling across the weekend kind of thing, which honestly feels quite civilised for once.

See you soon. Slightly begrudgingly.

21/05/2026

SOME OF US ARE LEAVING THE BUILDING ✈️🍷

(and some of us are returning, Alicia 🩷)

☕ Little g. coffee window is taking the weekend off because all the coffee makers (aka Katie + Erica) have fled.

No Sixpence Coffee. No pastries. No lovingly made flat whites. We trust you’ll all cope respectfully.

Meanwhile, Grace. is open as usual.

🔥 Friday + Saturday nights are doing their usual 'better book that' thing…although unexpectedly, so are lunches 🤔

A pre-emptive thank you to our incredible team holding the fort while:
🧘 Katie heads off to further refine her yoga teacher energy, and
🦪 Erica + Matthieu head to Tassie for their first kid-free holiday in 11 years.

Yup! At this point we'll probably spend the first 24 hours just staring silently at a wall.

Thank you ❤️ Rachael, Riley, Paige, Alicia, Teresa and Dakota ❤️

Have a happy weekend, friends.

Explore Rutherglen
📸 Georgie James Photography

18/05/2026

👩🏻‍🌾 𝙉𝙀𝙄𝙂𝙃𝘽𝙊𝙐𝙍𝙃𝙊𝙊𝘿 𝙉𝙄𝙂𝙃𝙏 👩🏻‍🌾

TUESDAY MAY 19 - yes, TOMORROW tonight!

This month's menu is pure nostalgia...if your Nan was fancy and matched wines with dinner 😆

Fish fingers. Scotch egg. Roast chook and proper gravy. A little truffle here, a little quince tarte tatin there. Comfort food, but wearing a good jacket.

A few early tables and a couple of bar stools still going if you feel like avoiding cooking and romanticising your childhood for a couple of hours

Producers + Suppliers:
Loddon Estate, Scion Wine, Woodstock Flour, Gelatina, Murmungee Basin Produce, Warrina Produce, The Little Kombi Company (Woody + Kate's eggplants), the Le Lievre Family (Wahgunyah quince) + Grace. kitchen & home gardens.

𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝘿𝙞𝙨𝙝𝙚𝙨:
$35 - ‘nan’s roast chook’ | free range chicken breast, yorkshire pudding, paris mash, petite pois à la française, gravy

$12 - quince tarte tatin, oat crumble, buttermilk gelato

𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙒𝙞𝙣𝙚𝙢𝙖𝙠𝙚𝙧:
$10 matched glass
Scion Wine ‘23 Viognier

𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙎𝙣𝙖𝙘𝙠𝙨:
• fries, truffle oil
• flatbread, truffle honey cream cheese
• fancy fish fingers | crumbed king george whiting, tartare
• scotch egg
• pickled pork croquette, honey mustard mayo
• king prawn slider
• confit trout + potato, cured trout, herbs

𝘽𝙍𝙄𝙉𝙂 𝙊𝙉𝙀 | 𝘽𝙐𝙔 𝙊𝙉𝙀
Got a special bottle in the walk-in robe you’ve been wanting to open and share with friends? BYO it free of charge to Neighbourhood night with our ‘bring one, buy one’ approach. Simply buy another bottle from our list and you can enjoy them both (and take home the leftovers, of course)

**MENU + DIETARIES**
* No alterations to the ‘dish’ of the night, other than Gluten Free
* Vegeterian main option available

Explore Rutherglen

14/05/2026

IT’S BOBBIE BURNS TIME AGAIN 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🍷

This weekend sees us back catering the annual Campbells Wines Bobbie Burns Dinner for what is either our 7th or 8th year involved… honestly we’ve lost count.

What we do know is that it’s Erica’s 16th consecutive Bobbie Dinner, which feels both impressive and mildly concerning.

But never fear, we are fully staffed and the restaurant is operating as normal while part of the crew heads off to Campbell’s.

🔥 Friday night - fully booked
✨ The rest of the weekend - plenty of room to move

And then there’s Tuesday’s Neighbourhood Night. Which, in completely unsurprising news, is chokers without even releasing a menu.

Just a few early dine times left if you’re happy embracing either:
👵 nursing home dinner time
or
🧒 small child with a strict bedtime energy 😆

Otherwise, business as usual: good food, good wine, good people.

See you soon 🍷

01/05/2026

MAY IS HERE
(and so is everything worth booking).

A little update regarding Mother's Day, May Neighbourhood Night and visiting us through the cooler months.

Pinch and a punch for the first of the month. May’s arrived, somehow already acting like it owns the place. As the weather shifts, so do we. Grace becomes a much smaller venue. Suddenly everyone wants the fireplace (but I refuse to light it until June 1st). With the courtyard and kerbside packed u...

21/04/2026

👩🏻‍🌾 𝙉𝙀𝙄𝙂𝙃𝘽𝙊𝙐𝙍𝙃𝙊𝙊𝘿 𝙉𝙄𝙂𝙃𝙏 👩🏻‍🌾

On the third Tuesday of every month, we throw open the doors for a locals’ night done our way.

We cook with what’s best in our neighbourhood (and a little beyond when it makes sense), sourcing through our local butcher and growers wherever possible. Expect generous plates, seasonal produce, and a menu that changes every time.

Always paired with a standout Rutherglen wine. Always a good time.

It was a sell-out, but with some cracking weather we've opened reservations for outside dining. Grab a last minute table via the below link.

https://www.milkinkitchen.com.au/neighbourhood-night

TUESDAY APRIL 21 - yes, tonight!

𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙉𝙚𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙗𝙤𝙧𝙝𝙤𝙤𝙙 Producers + Suppliers:
Discovered Wildfoods, Cofield Wines, Murmungee Basin Produce, Grace. kitchen & home gardens.

𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝘿𝙞𝙨𝙝𝙚𝙨:
$35 - bbq venison backstrap, pumpkin puree, gochujang + pumpkin seed dressing, kimchi, kale

$12 - caramelised white chocolate mousse, blackberries, lavender, tuile, white chocolate meringue

𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙒𝙞𝙣𝙚𝙢𝙖𝙠𝙚𝙧:
$10 matched glass
Cofield Wines ‘25 Grenache

𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙎𝙣𝙖𝙘𝙠𝙨:
• fries, kaffir lime + chilli salt
• spicy prawn cannoli
• korean beef croquette
• beef san choy bow, eggplant nam prik, gem lettuce, peanuts
• calamari, chilli mayo, coriander, lime
• cured salmon, coconut, kaffir lime, cucumber
• smoked duck breast, green papaya, ganny smiths, bean shoots, fried shallots, nuoc cham

𝘽𝙍𝙄𝙉𝙂 𝙊𝙉𝙀 | 𝘽𝙐𝙔 𝙊𝙉𝙀
Got a special bottle in the walk-in robe you’ve been wanting to open and share with friends? BYO it free of charge to Neighbourhood night with our ‘bring one, buy one’ approach. Simply buy another bottle from our list and you can enjoy them both (and take home the leftovers, of course)

**MENU + DIETARIES**
* No alterations to the ‘dish’ of the night, other than Gluten Free
* Vegeterian main option available

Explore Rutherglen
Victoria's High Country

17/04/2026

ORGANISED CHAOS, PROFESSIONALLY DELIVERED.

We have not thought about Grace. this week. At all.

School holidays have absolutely kicked our butts in a wholesome, chaotic, snack-demanding kind of way...

Somehow though, business as semi-normal this weekend:

💍 Sunday - a casual little wedding (as one does)
🍽️ Monday night - mostly full
🔥 Tuesday Neighbourhood Night - at capacity. Don’t even ask.

The Neighbourhood Night menu: let’s just say it has not been 'fully' written. It will happen in its usual highly professional timeframe of 'a bit later'. Might just do Vegemite on toast and see how we go 🍞

Our main menu is locked in and stable until after the June long weekend, which is comforting because at least one part of life is under control.

☕ Little g. coffee window is open as usual
Sixpence Coffee, pastries, and general weekend survival supplies available Sat + Sun, 9-12.

We’re not ahead.
We’re not behind.
We’re just…in it.

Care to join us?

Georgie James Photography - showing our actual chaotic state 😆

Explore Rutherglen
Victoria's High Country

09/04/2026

✨ 𝙉𝙀𝙒 𝙈𝙀𝙉𝙐 𝙒𝙀𝙀𝙆 ✨

Right on schedule. Eight weeks, a few strong opinions, and a couple of late pivots…new menu has landed.

A few things to get straight to the point:

• Indigo Valley Lamb + rosemary croquettes with sherry caramel mayo
• burrata with pumpkin skin XO, still not over this one
• Discovered Wildfoods venison tortellini with Markwood Mushrooms bringing proper autumn energy
• parisienne gnocchi is back, with a bang
• duck and steak…speak for themselves, but really, the horseradish+ pink peppercorn butter...STOP IT 🤤

The rest you can discover when you get here.

Bookings recommended. You’ve got about eight weeks before we do it all again.

Explore Rutherglen
Victoria's High Country

📸 Georgie James Photography - seared tuna, heading into the entree section 😍

02/04/2026

EASTER HOURS 🐣

We’ll be open Friday – Monday from 5pm ‘til late (no lunch service + Little G taking a break).

We did the usual Easter aka Public Holidays maths…

Yes, Matt and I could do it all ourselves because apparently business owners are “free” (lol). No payslip = no value, right? 😅Hard pass.

So instead, we’ll be home with the kids, stealing their chocolate eggs and pretending that’s a solid business strategy.

Thanks for understanding, running a small venue in a regional town is a constant juggle, but we’re here for the long game (and the good times).

See you from 5pm 🥂