Margan Restaurant

9 Highly Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  8      Service  9      Value  10     

We recently spent a weekend in the Hunter Valley and had dinner at Roberts, Moline's Bistro and Margan. They were all good, but Margan was the stand out. We'd all played golf earlier in the day and missed lunch, so were fairly hungry. We decided to go the 5 course degustation, but after 4 courses we were all fully satiated.

Generous serves and very good quality. The wine list had some exceptional bargains on it too (bottle shop prices for some of the German and French wines!). Service was polite and friendly. Will definitely return.

May 08, 2012 

6.5 Recommended

Food  8      Ambience  6      Service  7      Value  5     

Five of us had lunch here on a Saturday. I cannot complain about the service we received or the standard of the food both really good. However I found it overpriced. I am not a lush but when I ask/pay for a glass of wine with my meal (designated driver) I would like a decent glass of wine to enjoy with my meal not a tasting! We also found the flies at times disconcerting and at other times very disconcerting. One fell into one of our half full drinks and when the waiter noticed this he did offer a replacement, this was refused, unfortunately we did notice that we were still charged for the drink on our bill... not good PR. Don't believe I would return.

Nov 28, 2011 

8.8 Highly Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  9      Service  9      Value  8     

A must in the Hunter Valley, particularly at lunchtime to benefit from the gorgeous views. Views aside, I praise Margan for offering most of its delicious and beautifully presented dishes in both entree and main size. I highly recommend the rabbit and pistachio terrine, this is as good as it gets!

My partner too loved his entree; the smoky flavour of the chorizo worked wonders with scallops, fennel and squid ink. The skin of the pork belly could have been crispier, but I wouldn't have changed a thing to the beef cheek raviolis. For an even more special experience, pick the matching wines by Andrew Margan. I only wished they served half glasses as we had already visited quite a few wineries by lunchtime.

Margan is more so commendable that it uses sustainable practices such as creating its dishes around the vegetables from its garden and the eggs from its chickens. The staff was friendly, attentive and visibly passionate. I wish there were many more restaurants like this one! Book to avoid disappointment.

Nov 20, 2011 

9.5 Highly Recommended

Food  10      Ambience  10      Service  10      Value  8     

Amazing, highly recommended!

Ambience was very pleasant, with spacious and elegant dining room looking out over the humble veggie garden which provided some of the ingredients.

Food was superb, couldn't fault anything in all 6 courses (and the beef shin was particularly tasty).

And best of all, the service was very friendly and efficient, such a welcome change from the bored teenagers who wait at many of the most expensive restaurants in Pokolbin. Example: when perennially indecisive partner couldn't choose between the 2 wines recommended with her entree, the waitress said "I'll give you a taste, then".

From previous experience, this means she'd bring one bottle, pour a little and only get the other one if partner really didn't like it. Wrong! She comes back with both bottles, and 4 additional tasting glasses, so we can each make an informed choice. Wow!

Nothing's cheap in the Hunter, but I found this place to be fair value for the quality on offer. 6 delicious courses, 4 glasses of wine, total bill just under $200.

I was delighted with the service at the cellar door too, again it had warmth and efficiency often lacking in the more central parts of Hunter winecountry. Margan is certainly out of the way, but definitely worth the extra travel time.

Aug 29, 2011 

9 Highly Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  9      Service  10      Value  8     

All 4 of us were blown away with our experience at this place. A little out of the way (was a relatively long drive on a winding dark road) from Pokolbin where we were staying, we were relieved to find such a charming, welcoming and warm restaurant when we arrived. Cozy fireplace in the lobby (where the winery has its wine tasting), Margan restaurant itself was warmly lit, spacious and had comfortable seating (tables were far enough from each other to allow privacy and discourage eavesdropping!).

The service was everything one could ask for, friendly, warm, informative, helpful with choices and recommendations and most importantly, all the servers seemed to be enjoying themselves and you could feel that service came from the heart!

The food itself was a standout. Portions are great (not too big) and you could choose 3, 4 or 5 courses, all same portioned. We ended up having 4 courses each (one of them being dessert) and amongst the 4 of us, we practically had the entire menu and each dish was delicious. We couldn't fault the food in any way, including the presentation which was clean, pretty and a delight to look at.

Dessert was also very good. In all, we probably overate and will come next time with a completely empty stomach (or, perhaps, order 3 courses instead of 4!). One of the best things was ordering Margan wines at the cellar door prices, we had excellent wines for below $30 a bottle.

A truly memorable evening, food, service, ambience and price were all excellent.

Jul 11, 2011 

9.3 Highly Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  9      Service  10      Value  9     

Wow what a place. When you look on the map and start driving out you do start to wonder but then once you arrive its beautiful. The grounds are lovely and been that little bit out of Polkolbin its quiet and peaceful.

You are made to feel so welcome as you walk in the door all the staff are ready to help with nothing at all been a bother. The food was exceptional so fresh with most of the vegetables coming from the 1 arce garden. I highly recommend this restaurant it has everything except while dining.

Jul 07, 2011 

2.8 Not Recommended

Food  8      Ambience  1      Service  1      Value  1     

Booked a month ahead for an Easter Sunday lunch with my Mother. I'd read the poor reviews on this site, but had read quite a few positive reviews on various food blogs, plus had read about the awards won by the restaurant. Should have listened to the reviews here! We arrived a little bit early as the booking confirmation email I'd received advised to arrive 30 minutes early for some wine tasting at the cellar door.

After driving for almost 2 hours though, we were pretty keen to have a seat in the restaurant and order some bread. Nicely asked the Maitre d' if this was possible. No welcoming greeting from Miss Sourface. Our booking hadn't been written in her book for the day, and I felt like she didn't believe I'd made the booking in the first place, as we were treated quite abruptly whilst showing us to our table.

I then saw her act (fake) nice-as-pie to every dolled-up, pretentious, yuppy family that walked into the place, so the rudeness was seemingly just reserved for the not-so cashed up looking customers maybe? I'm definitely not poor, as I wouldn't be at the restaurant in the first place if I was, but going here was definitely a 'treat' for us. As we were eating our bread, we heard her calling across the restaurant that she couldn't take any more walk-ins as she had already taken "two extras", when we were clearly in earshot. I should have walked out then.

To their credit, the food was lovely. Can't fault their chefs. Perhaps, they should have provided a paper menu of the sides for the day (they're sourced from fresh garden produce, so it changes based on what is available), as the only place it's written is on a whiteboard above the kitchen. This wasn't verbally communicated to us. Ended up leaving well before we'd originally planned, as we did not feel welcome.

I'd heard so many things about Margan's being family run and homely, but it seems they've gotten too big for their boots, as the restaurant was still 90% empty when we left. Plenty of other restaurants in the Hunter to go to than wasting time and money on this one!

Apr 28, 2011 

8.5 Highly Recommended

Food  8      Ambience  9      Service  9      Value  8     

Enjoyed an excellent lunch here today in a lovely setting. A little off the beaten track perhaps, but well worth a visit if you value good food, pleasant people & a welcoming environment. We were charmed to be able to watch the free range chooks "ranging" (see the website as to their role) from our table. We look forward to our next visit.

Nov 26, 2010 

8 Recommended

Food  8      Ambience  8      Service  9      Value  7     

Great restaurant. New owners are lovely. Mexican is definitely authentic as the chef is Mexican. Hostess is very welcoming, even on a rainy day, the atmosphere was perfect. Will certainly be going back on the next Hunter trip. Highly recommended.

Nov 11, 2010 

8.5 Highly Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  9      Service  7      Value  9     

Food was fantastic even though some dishes were not available due to a busy weekend. Being locals have eaten at most restaurants in the Pokolbin area and this is by far one of the best. Great flavours enhanced by produce from their own garden. A very relaxed atmosphere, loved the open kitchen, the chef and staff really enjoy what they do. Had lunch will be back for dinner. If you are staying in the area you must eat here.

Oct 04, 2010