When it comes to dining in style, picnics are the new black in Melbourne and we love to get our picnic on! Picnics can be one of the cheapest and most popular ways of enjoying food and wine with family and friends.
As the demand for portable, alfresco dining increases, I have rounded up some of our favourite local picnic spots and gathered some of our favourite food and wine to ensure you throw out the blanket in the most tasteful style!
Best Melbourne Picnic Spots
You’ll find Studley Park in the Eastern suburb of Kew, a 10 minute drive from the city centre. The picnic grounds offer great views of the Yarra River and natural bushland. The park is home to the oldest operating boathouse in Australia, where you can hire yourself a very cute row boat (or canoes and kayaks) and have some fun between sips and bites with your crew.
The Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne are beautiful. Set on the outskirts of the city on nearly 100 acres of landscaped gardens, there are an endless variety of places to throw out your blanket. Set yourself up next to one of their historic buildings or on the south bank of the Yarra River. If you have kids, be sure to pop by the Children’s Garden – it’s lots of fun!
Werribee Park Formal Garden
Head West, 30 minutes from the CBD and you’ll arrive at Werribee Mansion. The grand homestead is surrounded by 10 hectares of formal gardens, featuring a scenic pond and original grotto. Home to one of our favourite music festivals So Frenchy, So Chic, the grounds are immaculately maintained and there is no trouble finding a shaded spot to enjoy a peaceful picnic.
Is there a more iconic suburb in Melbourne than St Kilda? Their Botanical Gardens have beautiful lawns for a picnic and you can also have some fun on their giant chess board or enjoy the view over looking the ornamental pond. If you have a family, pull up a spot near the children’s play space or get in early and secure a posy under the gazebo.
It’s a bit of a road trip, but we promise it’s worth it! Lysterfield Park is home to a beautiful lake and is a very popular spot for not only picnics, but also paddle boarding, sailing, horse riding, mountain biking and walking. There are plenty of beautiful spots to get comfy with your basket of treats, and lots to see and watch whilst you enjoy the atmosphere of the park and lake.
At Home
Let’s be honest, Melbourne’s weather is not always friendly to our picnic game. So what better place to plan a beautiful feast with family and friends than in your very own backyard. If the rain or winds roll in, then you can move things inside for a perfect indoor picnic! It’s also perfect for date night. You can plan a romantic picnic in the comfort of your own home around busy work and family schedules.
THE FOOD
We filled our picnic blanket with some of our favourite grazing foods including fruit, cheese, bread, cookies and cupcakes.
Most of the produce comes from our local green grocer and supermarket. The gorgeous, pastel coloured iced vanilla cupcakes are from The Cupcake Queens, who have 9 locations across Melbourne, including their gorgeous new store at Chadstone Shopping Centre where I picked these ones up from. Finally the shortbread and ginger quote cookies were made by the talented Emma from Sweet Mickie – check out more of her creations on Instagram via @sweetmickie.
THE WINE
What better way to eat our favourite foods, than with a girl’s best friend, wine! We loaded our picnic baskets up with a selection of various wines from which were ever so friendly gifted by Vinomofo, including a Riesling, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir.
The Vinomofo team work directly with the best producers in the world to find the wines we love, and curate them to our taste. Just like a humble picnic, there is no snobbery at the ‘Fo – they live by their credo to step up, care more, keep it real (and the prices low), do some good and have fun. After all, everybody should be able to enjoy good wine and delicious bites, with great friends in the best Melbourne picnic spots!
To stay hydrated, we mixed it up with natural artesian bottled Fiji Water and local organic juice from Green Press.
Be sure to shout out any of your favourite Melbourne picnic spots in the comments below!
GET YOUR PICNIC ON!
OUR FAVOURITE PICNIC STYLES
Bromley by Wolf Blass collection - MELBOURNE GIRL
[…] Like to know some of our favourite local picnic spots in Melbourne to ensure you throw out the blanket in the most tasteful style? Check out our ‘6 Places to Picnic in Melbourne‘ post here. […]