Restaurant Review: The Village Larder

Location: 81 High St, Woodend
Phone: 03 5427 3399
Link: thevillagelarder.com.au
Overall Impression: 5/10

The Village Larder is a cosy cafe in Woodend, just down the road from J and I's favourite pub of all time, Holgate. We had lunch here recently and although there are hits and misses, we found the food overall to be enjoyable. Unfortunately, the service we received was extremely disappointing. We waited for between 45 minutes to an hour for our soups and meals. The restaurant was far from full so it was difficult to see why the wait was necessary.

"Pappa Pomodoro" - Italian Thick Tomato Soup with Goats Cheese, Chive Flowers and Fried Basil $14.50
 The soup was far from the traditionally hearty soup we expected. It tasted watery and lacked flavour, leaving much to be desired.

The Village Larder Pork Burger with Cheddar, Egg, Baby Chard Leaves, House Mayo & Beetroot Relish $19

Roasted Western Plains pork ciabatta with house mayonnaise, fresh apple, rhubarb relish and cress $18

This was delicious. The tender morsels of pork were perfectly seasoned. The fresh apple and rhubard relish added the perfect level of acidity to the luscious mayonnaise and indulgent pieces of pork crackling. The ciabatta was beautifully light. This was certainly the highlight of our meal at The Village Larder.

As a whole, this was not an unpleasant dining experience. However, there was a very long and unjustified wait for the food. When the food finally did arrive, it was clear that the standard of the offerings lacked consistency across the menu.