Piknik

Piknik occupies a converted old service station at 1195 Queenscliff Road, Swan Bay, on the Bellarine Highway between Geelong and Queenscliff, part cafe, part pantry, part plant nursery. It trades Wednesday to Saturday from 7am to 2:30pm (kitchen to 2pm) and Sunday from 8am to 2pm, closing Monday and Tuesday. The wood-fired room handles the cold months; the courtyard handles the dogs.

The dog setup

The outdoor courtyard and front seating are dog friendly, and the courtyard is undercover and enclosed, which makes this a rare all-weather stop with a dog: rain and cold do not end the visit. Keep dogs leashed and settled, and bring a bowl if the shared water is out. Indoor tables are people only. The nursery next door makes a short on-lead wander between courses easy.

Worth knowing

The menu leans on Geelong and Bellarine produce through breakfast, brunch and lunch, with the spicy scrambled eggs and bruschetta regular picks, plus house-made cakes and chutneys in the pantry. Local wine and beer cover the afternoon end. Weekend brunch is the busy stretch; weekday mornings are quieter and easier with a dog in tow.

Getting there and parking

Parking is on site directly out front, and the highway position makes it an easy pull-in on the B110. It sits roughly midway along the Bellarine taste trail, about 20 minutes from both Geelong and Queenscliff.

Make a day of it

The Point Lonsdale Dog Beach is a short drive down the peninsula for an off-lead run, and Basils Farm next door in Swan Bay is the other dog-friendly table on this stretch. The Shelly Beach via Queenscliff Beach walk rounds out a full morning out.

More options are on the Victoria dog friendly cafes guide and the Swan Bay destination page.

Pepsi: the enclosed courtyard is the trick here, it works on cold Bellarine mornings too. Pair coffee with a lap of the nursery.