Tasting Byron Bay

Byron Bay has always ranked up there as one of my favourite places to visit. When we lived in Sydney, I used to say I wanted to retire up that way – or, specifically, to Bangalow in the Byron hinterland. It wasn’t just about how beautiful the area was, but more so the spiritual and creative vibe of the place. It still retained some of the 1970s hippie cool and was the home of yoga, alternative therapies, crystals, tarot, aura readings, and anything else you could think of. Peace and love, yeah, man.

These days, however, it’s lost much of that. Thanks to celebrities flocking to buy there (in particular a couple of Hemsworths), sea-changers during Covid and the influence of, well, influencers, house prices have soared, and any ideas we might still have harboured about settling in the region are long gone. While it’s still an essential stop on the backpacker highway, it’s also a magnet for more well-heeled travellers.

Anyways, it’s been years since we did more than just call in for fish and chips on our way up the coast.

Sarah, however, spent a long (rainy) weekend there last November with a group of friends and came back full of foodie places we had to go to. So that’s what we did last weekend, with her as cruise director.

Here’s where we ate … and drank …

After a wander through Bay Grocer (and managing to resist their chicken and ginger congee), Sarah took us to Byron Bay General Store for brunch.

Sarah said I had to try the truffled mushrooms on sourdough with house-made cashew cheese, savoury granola and a chive and watercress salad, so I did. And it was the best mushrooms on toast I’ve had. While I was a tad iffy about the cashew “cheese” (seriously, it’s not cheese, so don’t call it that), it’s such a Byron ingredient and all worked so well together. I even made a comment about how I could be vegan with food like this – before realising I’d chosen a side of bacon as well. Maybe not. Grant had a bacon and egg roll – which was also good.

This set us up nicely for the next item on Sarah’s itinerary – a tasting session at Cape Byron Distillery.

Cape Byron Distillery is in a lovely rainforest setting on the road out towards Bangalow, and today, with the rain softly falling, was quite magical. Or was that the gin? Sarah said when she was last there, one of the resident koalas was in a tree just off the deck. Sadly, he didn’t come to visit today.

While we all played a game of bananagrams, Sarah and I sampled the gin flight. Grant, not a fan of gin, was happy to be the designated driver. (Okay, happy might be taking it just a wee step too far…)

I followed this up with a tasting paddle of whisky and pondered the question if Scotch whisky is without an e and American and Irish whiskey is with an e, should Australian whisky have an e too? I’ve decided it shouldn’t – and so has Cape Byron Distillery.

While I was whiskying, Sares had an espresso martini and Grant a no-alcohol spritzer.

Day drinking not quite done, we called into Stone & Wood, a Byron-based brewery, so Grant could finally have a drink. I’d had enough, so I chose their no alcohol beer instead.

The rest of the afternoon was spent in town, with a walk to the beach and around the shops. The beach is still (sadly) showing some damage from Cyclone Alfred back in March and isn’t at all as I remember it being.

The main street is now also quite different from how it used to be. If you’re into designer fashion and influencer brands, you’d be very happy indeed. Even though I’m not much of a shopper, there were, however, some stores where I could have spent ages and plenty of money and I came home with a pair of rubber boots by Merry People that I’d been coveting for a couple of years.

Dinner was at Osteria Morelli in Lennox Head. With a short menu, an emphasis on local produce and handmade pasta, the dishes are designed to be shared.

We began with (excellent) focaccia, house-made whipped ricotta, and some pickled local vegetables. To follow, we shared two pasta dishes between the three of us – and they were two of the best pastas we’d ever eaten. As Sarah said, ten out of ten, no notes. Sadly the lighting was crap, so my photos are too. Trust me when I say it all tasted much better than it looked.

On Sunday morning we skipped breakfast and headed to the markets at Bangalow. Sarah and Grant picked up a snack from one of the food trucks while I got one of the worst tarot readings I’ve had in my life (no judgement, please). Let’s just say I wrote it down as soon as I got back in the car, and it will be appearing (almost word for word) in the third Clementine Carter mystery.

Before heading back home, we had lunch at Light Years back in Byron Bay.

We shared the smashed cucumber with wood-ear mushrooms (Grant’s dish of the day and a close second for Sarah and I), the miso-butter corn ribs (my dish of the day), some fried chicken with a spicy tamarindy firecracker sauce, and Shandong Chicken (Sarah’s dish of the day).

The Verdict?

While Byron is not as I remember, the food is definitely better. Plus, I still love the countryside, especially around Bangalow. We’ll be back for a more extended stay as I’d love to see more of the small towns in the area and find out whether commercialism has reached Nimbin.

More Info?

Byron Bay is located in the Northern Rivers region in NSW, 258km south of where we are on the Sunshine Coast. The closest airport is Ballina, 35 kms (about a half hour drive) south of Byron.

While we couldn’t get affordable accommodation for the three of us in Byron for one night (most places were either too expensive or required a minimum of two nights), we managed to get a comfortable Airbnb in Lennox Head, a 20-minute drive south of Byron.

Lennox Head is worth a visit on its own, with some great cafes and restaurants, a good art gallery and, if you’re inclined to shop, boutiques.