The Beach House(Port Macquarie)

The Beach House sits on the waterfront at 1 Horton Street, Port Macquarie, looking over the Town Green and the Hastings River, and it runs a coastal pub-style menu with outdoor seating that takes dogs. It works as a refuel mid-waterfront-walk or an early dinner spot after a day on the coast, with the water a few steps from the table.

The dog setup

Dogs are welcome in the outdoor verandah and exterior seating, not the indoor dining room, and the waterfront tables are the pick for a dog-in-tow visit. Staff are used to canine guests and often bring out a water bowl, but carry a travel bowl for busy service. The outdoor area fronts the Town Green, so there is room to settle a larger dog out of the walkway, and a well-anchored spot along the low perimeter fence suits a dog that prefers watching the world from just outside the traffic.

Worth knowing

The kitchen does big, crowd-pleasing pub food: the chicken schnitzels are the signature for sheer size and crunch, and the rest of the menu runs to fish and chips, barramundi, burgers, nachos and salads, with weekly deals such as Schnitzel Your Way Mondays and Tuesday burger specials. Doors open from 11am daily, trading to 10pm Monday to Thursday and Sunday and 11pm on Friday and Saturday, so it covers lunch, sunset drinks and dinner. Weekend evenings are the busy stretch; a quiet weekday lunch is the easy window with a dog.

Getting there and parking

The venue fronts Horton Street on Port Macquarie's Town Green, a flat walk from the CBD and the coastal path. Parking around the Town Green and Horton Street is metered but workable, with larger car parks a block or two back, and the waterfront boardwalk runs straight past the door.

Close by with the dogs

The Town Green lawns and the riverside boardwalk give you an on-lead leg-stretch either side of a meal, and the Town Breakwall path starts nearby for a longer waterfront route. For a proper beach run, Nobbys Beach is a short drive south, Stuart Park Fenced Dog Park covers the off-leash fix, and Tacking Point Tavern is another dog-friendly sit-down option in town.

More options are in the dog-friendly restaurants across NSW list and the Port Macquarie dog-friendly guide.

Max: stationed himself along the perimeter fence, performed a full schnitzel audit, and gave the Town Green two paws up.