After a long sweaty climb to the summit of Mt Warning, I needed a snack. The winding Murwillumbah Road that leads to the national park is rather lacking in convenience stores, and my climbing buddy and I were lured in to Mavis’s Kitchen by a roadside chalkboard proclaiming they served ‘food, drinks and snacks ALL DAY’. Sold!
Highlights: the incredible setting.
My fave: organic duck liver pâté.
Tips: even though it’s worth it, the bill can add up quickly with the 10 per cent surcharge on weekends.
Review:
As we made our way up the path to the converted Queenslander we started to suspect we were a little under-dressed and a lot too bedraggled to be seated at one of the elegantly set wooden tables. But co-owner, Peter (who shares the role with Charlie), greeted us himself and in no time we were sipping ice cold draught beer.
We only noshed on light refreshments while at Mavis’s, but the experience itself was worth a blog.
The grounds of the erstwhile dairy farm are stunningly verdant and provide an idyllic backdrop for a drink in the afternoon sunshine.
Our white-collared waitress was the epitome of graciousness, even when my partner and I got into a very public post-hike squabble about who was the designated driver.
I had some concerns that the busy atmosphere would mean a long wait for food, but our drinks came immediately and the food barely ten minutes later.
Two things I am good at are pâté and hot chips, and I’d like to give three thumbs up to Mavis’s Kitchen in this regard, because two just doesn’t cut it. These were the best chips I have ever tasted – golden beauties battered in something special, and they didn’t really need the accompaniment of the delicious aioli.
The pâté was rich, flavoursome, and everything it ought to be. Nestled atop a slice of toasted sourdough and dabbed with a touch of rosella jelly, this sensational mouthful almost made me forget my throbbing thigh muscles.
Next time I will come back in my glad rags to try the Slow-Cooked Beef Cheeks or partake of the Devonshire Tea, but in the meantime I am grateful to Mavis and her kitchen for soothing my soul after a mountain pilgrimage.
The info:
Mavis’s Kitchen & Cabins
64 Mount Warning Road, Uki
Tel: 02 6679 5664
Website: http://maviseskitchen.com.au/
Opening Hours
Breakfast: Weekends 9 – 11am / Lunch: Wednesdays – Sundays from 11.30am / Dinner: Saturdays from 6pm. CLOSED Monday and Tuesday. All times shown are in NSW time, which is 1 hour ahead of Qld time during daylight savings from Oct. to April (i.e. 12pm NSW time = 11am Qld time).
Photographs: By Emma Lee
Emma Lee is a Brisbane native but lives to travel. She is also a big fan of food, good books and browsing at markets.
Since graduating from Griffith University with a Communications Degree, Emma has put her writing skills to good use in jobs ranging from Media Rep for a rugby team to Marketing Manager for a Japanese ski resort.
Emma dreams of publishing a novel one day and wants to live in a luxury camper van that never stays in one place for longer than a week.
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