Tasty touring through the Tweed Valley
It has been the locals’ best-kept secret for some time: Farm & Co Restaurant, nestled on an organic family farm in Cudgen, in the lush Tweed Valley.
It is just one delicious stop on a road trip in a region that is burgeoning with homegrown food and beverage businesses.
Just 30 minutes from the Gold Coast and 90 minutes from Brisbane’s south, Cudgen, or Goodjing, in the Northern Rivers region of NSW, is a Bundjalung word meaning red – a nod to the rich red volcanic soils of the Cudgen plateau.
The farm supplies eggs, potatoes, cauliflowers, salad greens, avocadoes, macadamia nuts, citrus fruit, herbs and honey, among other things to the restaurant, which is leased by a star-studded hospitality crew.
.jpg?rev=470a0868faed47e7b8bd8f83a5547e58&hash=DB67ABA23476C412FDB3BD278A4FC40A)
Farm and Co offers a genuine paddock-to-plate dining experience.
They come from some of the country’s biggest restaurants in Sydney, Melbourne, Tasmania and Byron Bay, serendipitously finding themselves in this spectacular region at the same time.
Farm & Co Restaurant offers a true paddock-to-plate experience and views of sunflower paddocks, avocado groves and a majestic macadamia orchard.
Banquet-style dining from Thursday to Sunday showcases a collection of beautifully curated dishes of seasonal produce.
A Thursday coal barbecue menu and Sunday brunch and picnic boxes are also available.
.jpg?rev=d6cc7da7cad84a2ead3d356168a2e1fb&hash=511D63B7B7A269DE702DC7464FCEF668)
A view from Farm and Co. Restaurant.
About 80% of the menu is dairy-free and gluten-free. Vegans and vegetarians are well-catered for.
Bread, jams, aromatic oils and pickles are all housemade. Daily supplies of mandarins, oranges and other citrus and herbs infuse syrups for sodas which are carbonated and batched in-house.
An extensive wine list features small-batch, sustainable, minimal intervention wines, with selections from Australia, New Zealand and further afield.
Veggie scraps fuel the worm farm and help feed the farm’s chickens and rescue pigs, Hank and Pepe.
Guests can soak up the farm views while dining, or purchase a farm pass and venture into the paddocks to pick sunflowers, collect macadamia nuts and visit the beloved rescue pigs.
On the last Sunday of every month, the restaurant hosts a family-friendly Day on the Lawn event, with a barbecue, live music, lawn games and pop-up bar.
.jpg?rev=1c5a6a92ad184943b5abb4d4ab0db7cc&hash=15CEC19B60473B5990A81AEE38DCA709)
Outdoor dining options at Farm and Co.
The theme changes monthly but the concept is the same: relax on a picnic rug and soak up the tunes, views and amazingly good food.
Among the stunning natural backdrop of this under-the-radar region, other local family-owned businesses are serving up ethically made, low-impact, high-flavour local fare in breathtakingly scenic locations.
Further along the road from Farm & Co Restaurant is Earth Beer Company, which brews small-batch, low-impact craft beers onsite.
Brewery tours are available and there is a taproom and beer garden where guests can taste any of the 10 artisanal brews on tap while soaking up the tranquil ambience of the surrounding farmland, with a view out to Mount Warning.
Bar snacks and baked goodies are also on offer or guests can pre-order brewery platters. Stock up and take a pack of your favourite beers home.
A smorgasboard of fruit at Tropical Fruit World. Photo Destination NSW.
It’s just five-minute drive to family-owned Tropical Fruit World, a working farm and tourism attraction rolled into one.
From its lush rainforest setting over 500 fruits are cultivated from around the world.
Choose your adventure, from family-friendly farm tours and experiences including fruit tasting, tractor tours, boat cruises and farm animal fun, or indulge at the farm café and farm fruit ice creamery.
A weekly Farmer’s Market is held onsite at Tropical Fruit World every Saturday morning from 8am, showcasing the region’s finest produce from local growers, art, baked goods, live music by local artists and kids’ entertainment.
Sampling the the product at Husk Farm Distillery. Photo Destination NSW
Another gastronomic road stop is Husk Farm Distillery in Tumbulgum, about a 15-minue drive away.
The family makes hand-crafted, multi-award-winning Husk Rum and Ink Gin in small batches.
Enjoy behind-the-scenes tours and tastings, book a restaurant table for a long lunch, or relax and snack on a picnic rug as cattle quietly graze in the nearby paddock.
Set the GPS and pack an appetite, because a Tweed Valley road trip offers a hitlist of local businesses serving up amazing gastronomic and family-friendly experiences.
More articles
Related topics
-
The information in this article has been prepared for general information purposes only and is not intended as legal advice or specific advice to any particular person. Any advice contained in the document is general advice, not intended as legal advice or professional advice and does not take into account any person’s particular circumstances. Before acting on anything based on this advice you should consider its appropriateness to you, having regard to your objectives and needs.
Insurance products (excluding Travel Insurance) are issued by RACQ Insurance Limited ABN 50 009 704 152 (RACQ). Conditions, limits and exclusions apply. This is general advice only and may not be right for you. This information does not take your personal objectives, circumstances or needs into account. Read the PDS and any applicable Supplementary PDS before making a purchase decision on this product. You can also access our Target Market Determinations on this website.
Banking and loan products issued by Members Banking Group Limited ABN 83 087 651 054 AFSL/Australian credit licence 241195 trading as RACQ Bank. Terms, conditions, fees, charges and lending policies apply. This is general advice only and may not be right for you. This information does not take your personal objectives, circumstances or needs into account. Read the disclosure documents for your selected product or service, including the Financial Services Guide and the Terms and Conditions, and consider if appropriate for you before deciding.
Except for RACQ Bank, any RACQ entity referred to on this page is not an authorised deposit-taking institution for the purposes of the Banking Act 1959 (Cth). That entity’s obligations do not represent deposits or other liabilities of RACQ Bank. RACQ Bank does not guarantee or otherwise provide assurance in respect of the obligations of that entity, unless noted otherwise.
RACQ Operations Pty Ltd (ABN 80 009 663 414 AR 000234978) and Members Travel Group Pty Ltd (ABN 45 144 538 803 AR 000432492) are acting as an Authorised Representative of the issuer of the insurance, Tokio Marine & Nichido Fire Insurance Co., Ltd. (ABN 80 000 438 291 AFSL 246 548). Any advice set out above is general in nature only, and does not take into account your objectives, financial situation or needs. Before purchasing any travel products, please consider the RACQ Travel Insurance Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) and the Target Market Determinations (TMDs) that apply to these products. Whilst the PDS outlines the Terms and Conditions of these products, the TMDs outline the intended class of customers that comprise the target market for these travel products. This will allow you to consider which products best suit your objectives, financial situation and needs and consider the products appropriateness to your personal circumstances. TMDs also outline matters involving the distribution and the review of these products. The PDS, Supplementary PDS and TMDs for each travel product can be found here.