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Subscribe Soul of the Town: The Best Country Pubs in Victoria
Chasing paddock-to-plate dining, live music in a beer garden, or simply a parma with new mates? These are the country pubs in Victoria that are worth the drive.
In Victoria, the country pub is more than just a watering hole — it’s the town’s soul. Steeped in gold rush history and built on generations of yarns, laughter, and hard-earned knocks, these pubs have long been the beating heart of rural life. They’re where locals gather, stories are passed down, and strangers become mates over pints and parmas. Behind their weathered facades lies a rich tapestry of culture, food, and fiercely regional pride.
From paddock-to-plate menus to tap lists brimming with local brews, these regional Victorian pubs aren’t relics — they’re vibrant sanctuaries of connection, comfort, and warmth you can taste.
High Country Icons
Star Hotel — Yackandandah
Since 1863, Yackandandah’s Star Hotel has been the beating heart of this High Country hamlet. Today it balances history with swagger: a Southern-style smoker out back delivers melt-in-your-mouth brisket and pulled pork, while the bar pours local craft beers and Beechworth wines. Folk tunes and festival bands often fill the beer garden, and locals lean in with big smiles and bigger stories.
30 High Street, Yackandandah
Tanswell’s Commercial Hotel — Beechworth
Beechworth’s Tanswell’s has lived many lives since 1873, and it shows — in the pressed-tin ceilings, in the raucous live gigs that spill into the night, in the menu where ribeye steaks share space with handmade gnocchi. By day, it’s the spot for a counter meal after goldfields exploring; by night, it transforms into the High Country’s unofficial music hall. With Bridge Road Brewers next door and locals perched for stories, this is the pub where history, beer, and bravado converge.
50 Ford Street, Beechworth
The Wandi Pub — Wandiligong
Sat in a lush alpine valley, the Wandi Pub is picture-book pretty. A weatherboard exterior and wraparound veranda invite you in, while inside it’s all memorabilia, open fires and soulful country character. But it’s not stuck in time: craft beers pour, cocktails are mixed, brunch is served on weekends. In summer, live music fills the garden; in winter, steak and red wine warm the bones. Equal parts rustic and refined, Wandi is a High Country icon with true heart.
580 Morses Creek Road, Wandiligong
Gippsland & Coastal Favourites
Meeniyan Hotel — Meeniyan
On the road to Wilsons Prom, the Meeniyan Hotel is country Gippsland at its most welcoming. This 1930s pub is all warmth and chatter: farmers swapping yarns with travellers, live music drifting through on weekends, trivia nights pulling a crowd. The kitchen champions Gippsland produce — schnitties topped with Tarwin Valley cheese, veggies straight from local farms — while the taps flow with craft beers and classic lagers alike. It’s easy, unpretentious and charming, a country pub in Victoria where you’re a regular by round two.
117 Whitelaw Street, Meeniyan
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Tinamba Hotel — Tinamba
Tinamba Hotel takes the country pub blueprint and dresses it in white linen. Established in 1874 and recently reimagined, it’s equal parts paddock-to-plate restaurant and convivial watering hole. An on-site kitchen garden delivers produce fresh to the plate, while Maffra cheddar and Gippsland beef ground the menu firmly in its locale. Locals crowd the bar for Wednesday pot-and-parma nights, while visitors settle in for something more refined. It’s farm, field, and flavour in perfect, soulful alignment.
4-6 Tinamba-Seaton Road, Tinamba
The Bay Hotel — Mornington
The Bay Hotel has stood on Mornington’s Main Street since 1889, and today it’s equal parts heritage and heart. A restored bank-turned-pub, it’s as welcoming as they come: Guinness by the fire in winter, jugs of beer on the terrace in summer. The kitchen reimagines pub classics — pot pies, fish tacos, roasts — with Peninsula produce. Sports screens upstairs, acoustic sets on weekends, trivia nights midweek: this is Mornington’s living room, a true seaside pub brimming with soul.
62 Main Street, Mornington
The Petrel Hotel — Geelong
Geelong’s oldest pub has found new rhythm. Born in 1849 and recently reborn, The Petrel pairs its heritage bones with a streak of modern mischief. Music is its heartbeat — Rocktober festivals, indie sets, and locals’ nights that feel more like family gatherings. Behind the bar, Geelong-brewed ales share space with playful cocktails, while the kitchen delivers hearty, generous plates: slow-braised lamb shoulder, towering burgers, and crowd-pleasing share platters. It’s warm, a little rebellious, and full of character — a grande dame humming to a fresh tune.
81 Pakington Street, Geelong West
Goldfields & Central Treasures
The Victoria Hotel — Rutherglen
Rutherglen’s grande dame has been reborn. After a sensitive renovation, The Victoria now blends 1840s bones with light-filled modern spaces, from a sweeping beer garden to boutique rooms made for weekend stays. The kitchen, led by award-winning chef Brendan Anderson, leans flame-first: wood-fired steaks, smoky veg, pizzas with perfect char, all matched to the region’s famous muscats and shiraz. It’s a pub, yes, but one elevated into a destination — where heritage, hospitality and a little swagger meet on Main Street.
90-94 Main Street, Rutherglen
The Cosmopolitan Hotel — Trentham
The Cosmo has known fire, ruin, and resurrection — and out of it all has emerged as one of Victoria’s most atmospheric pubs. Wraparound verandas lead to cosy fireplaces inside, while the beer garden is shaded by century-old trees. The kitchen tilts seasonal: slow-braised lamb in winter, vibrant salads in spring, always with local produce at the fore. On weekends, music floats through the garden and city escapees mingle with locals. It’s rustic charm dressed in gastro-pub finery, without ever losing its heart.
21 High Street, Trentham
The Farmers Arms — Daylesford
Daylesford’s oldest pub, The Farmers Arms, wears its dual personality proudly. In the front bar, it’s local as they come: footy talk, a pint of Hepburn pale ale, a friendly nod from the bartender. In the dining room, it’s destination-worthy, with venison pies, duck sausages, and roast pork belly worthy of a city restaurant. Chandeliers twinkle above neon signage, vines drape the veranda, and the wine list celebrates nearby makers. It’s indulgence without snobbery — Daylesford distilled into one warm, welcoming pub.
1 East Street, Daylesford
The Stanley Pub — Stanley
In a town ringed by orchards, the Stanley Pub is as refreshing as biting into a crisp apple. This tavern delivers all the charm you’d expect — memorabilia on the walls, roaring fires in winter — but surprises with an Asian-inspired menu. Think dumplings, bao, aromatic curries, alongside steaks and parmas for traditionalists. The beer garden hosts Sunday music sessions, the taps pour Beechworth brews, and locals warmly embrace visitors. Quirky, soulful, and full of flavour — a tiny pub with big personality.
6-12 Myrtleford-Stanley Road, Stanley
The Bridge Hotel — Castlemaine
The Bridge is Castlemaine’s bohemian heartbeat, found in the grassy end of town: scrappy, soulful, and always humming with live music. A rotating roster of bands play its intimate stage, posters plaster the walls, and out back the beer garden glows with fire pits and fairy lights. The menu leans creative: kransky hot dogs loaded with sauerkraut, sticky ham hocks, hearty pies. Craft IPAs sit happily alongside Coopers on tap, and the crowd is a true mix — miners, artists, city escapees, all pulled together by good music and better beer.
21 Walker Street, Castlemaine
Red Hill Hotel — Chewton
The Red Hill Hotel is Chewton’s eccentric heart — a goldfields pub that’s been everything from courthouse to morgue. Today, it’s a riot of life. Drag-queen bingo, open-mic nights, local bands shaking the old music hall; in the beer garden, fairy lights glow over wood-fired pizzas and slow-cooked stews. The front bar hums by the fireplace with pints of local ale in hand. It’s heritage with mischief, a 170-year-old pub proving the wildest stories are still being written.
163 Main Road, Chewton
Gold Mines Hotel — Bendigo
The Gold Mines Hotel is Bendigo’s grand dame, a bluestone beauty from 1872 with sweeping verandas and one of Victoria’s most stunning beer gardens. Set across an acre of manicured lawns and roses, it’s a pub that makes time feel elastic. Inside, fireplaces warm elegant dining rooms where modern Australian menus shine: scallops, Gippsland beef, lamb backstrap, all paired with Bendigo wines. Outside, the garden beckons for lazy afternoons under peppercorn trees. It’s heritage with polish — a true treasure of Bendigo.
49-57 Marong Road, Golden Square, Bendigo
Western District & Murray River
Royal Mail Hotel — Dunkeld
The Royal Mail is no ordinary pub; it’s a pilgrimage. At the base of the Grampians, it offers both fireside counter meals and one of the state’s most acclaimed fine-dining restaurants. Its gardens supply the kitchen, its cellar holds 25,000 bottles, and its views stretch across Gariwerd. Spend a weekend here — a casual parma at Parker Street Project one night, a life-changing degustation at Wickens the next — and you’ll discover a pub that defines indulgence in the most soulful, country way.
98 Parker Street, Dunkeld
American Hotel — Echuca
The American Hotel has been holding court in Echuca since 1865, and today it wears its goldfields heritage with a dash of swagger. Behind the grand façade lies a multi-level playground: rooftop bar, sprawling beer garden, and bandroom energy that rarely dips. The menu leans Americana — think wings, burgers and loaded poutine — but isn’t afraid to surprise with miso-glazed salmon or a charred cut fresh from the smoker. Local craft beers and Murray River wines keep the glasses full. Big, bold and a little brash, it’s history reimagined for a modern crowd.
239-249 Hare Street, Echuca
Victoria’s country pubs are where history meets hospitality — creaky floorboards, roaring fires, hearty plates and locals who know your name. From alpine icons to goldfields grande dames, they’re warm sanctuaries for feasting, storytelling and genuine regional connection. For more escapes, explore these farm stays and regional fine-dining favourites.
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