The restaurant offers magnificent views through wonderfully large windows to the treetops and shores of the lake. Large expanses of outdoor deck also offer the opportunity for aperitif with beautiful views.

Guests enjoying drinks at dusk will likely witness the daily ritual of the resident kookaburra family flying in to be fed and the flocks of cockatoos circling the 40 year old gums, silver birch and poplars looking for their evening perch.

Regular guests will tell you of their favourite season and of memorable dishes. Perhaps the butter poached pheasant with chestnuts and Farrow in Autumn, the spring lamb with asparagus and morels. The duck with orange braised witlof; the golden roasted free range chicken of summer with corn and yabbies, or the truffled Pecorino tart with artichokes Barigoule, eel, Murray Cod and trout; rabbit and hare, speak of local waterways and fields.

Wild damsons, Winter Nealis pears, quinces and yellow crab apples feature in fabulous desserts and, in time honoured country fashion, are also made into delicious preserves for enhancing leaner seasons. Each seasonal menu takes you on a trip down country lanes, through the orchards and across the farm paddocks of the region.

Cocoon yourself in the comfort of our Argyle Library Bar, order a martini or two and start to unwind.

Booked in for dinner? Arrive a little early for a drink. Limited seats are available.

*Please note that the Piano Bar is available for guests either dining or staying at Lake House.

The Lake House in Daylesford, for yet another year, remains one of the shining lights in high-quality, country hospitality in this country. While the setting may be bucolic, the wine list is truly international, and it also covers a profusion of great Australian producers, as well. The list is tightly curated and very impressive, and leaves almost no stone unturned in its pursuit of excellence in winemaking and site expression. With four pages of this list dedicated to Chardonnay – four pages well spent – this list beyond offers an abundance of choice, both of wines from close to home and from across the globe, but also between non-wine beverages (i.e. cocktails, beers, premium spirits, non-alcoholic, and everything in between). A pleasure to read through this, and even better to be doing it while sitting in the restaurant. Bravo.

Lake House has never rested on its laurels. Every one of its 40 years of operation has seen change, even though the dreamy, other-worldly effect it exudes the moment you drive through the front gates has never wavered. Even when the changes have been major, such as the recent addition of a working farm that loads the restaurant’s menu with ingredients pulled from the ground mere hours before they appear on your plate, these changes are made with one particular purpose.

That purpose is hospitality, the most obvious of terms that’s also the hardest to get right. It’s the sense of being cared for, that you’re genuinely welcomed and appreciated. These days it is daughter Larissa and her husband Robin Wilson who lead that welcome, maintaining the warmth and commitment to quality that has been a Lake House signature since the beginning.

In a troubled world, Lake House offers an oasis of calm, a place where you can eat, drink and sleep beautifully, and be reminded that life can be good too. And that’s truly iconic.

Gourmet Traveller Annual Restaurant Guide 2024 – 2025 

Enjoy a multi course a la carte lunch or dinner in the award-winning Lake House restaurant for two.
Restaurant Vouchers are a monetary amount of $490 towards lunch or dinner in the Lake House Restaurant.

If you would like to increase the amount to cover additional courses, beverages, an overnight stay etc: you may select a Bespoke Voucher which can be for any prescribed amount.

In this book, Alla Wolf-Tasker shares her love for the region and Lake House, her admiration for great producers both local and across Australia, with wonderful recipes, captivating stories and magnificent imagery.