Flock at the Carrington

Flock at the Carrington is the restaurant and beer garden attached to The Carrington Inn, a heritage-listed 1885 building on Bungendore's main street about half an hour from Canberra. Check before you plan a visit: the venue's own site currently notes the restaurant and beer garden are temporarily closed and reopening soon, so the details below describe the setup as it operates when the doors are open.

The inn dates to 1885 and takes its name from the kookaburras on the Carrington logo - Flock is the collective noun for them. Inside sits the Mahogany Bar, brought out from Bath in England, while the real draw for dog owners is outside: the Elm Park Garden and rear courtyard, open to the sky and shaded by mature trees.

The dog setup

The venue's policy is straightforward: behaved dogs are welcome on a lead in the Elm Park Garden and courtyard. This is an outdoor-only arrangement - the heritage dining rooms and bar are people territory. The garden has genuine shade under established trees, which matters on a hot plateau afternoon, and it sits back from the Malbon Street traffic.

Worth knowing

The kitchen has leaned modern Australian pub fare - pork belly, burgers and sausages from local producer Landtasia - and the garden doubles as a events space, so weekend live music can make it a louder room than a weekday lunch. If your dog is noise-sensitive, time your visit accordingly. The venue is at 21-23 Malbon Street in central Bungendore, with street parking out front.

Close by with the dogs

Bungendore's walkable main street of galleries and woodwork studios suits an on-leash loop before or after a meal, and Dandeleo Dog Park gives the dog a proper off-leash run nearby. If you are heading back towards Queanbeyan, the fenced Barkley and Scentral Bark dog parks at Googong are a short detour.