For the first time in more than two decades, a new chapter is unfolding at Crittenden, one that invites guests not only to taste the wines but to stay awhile and gather around the table. Crittenden Restaurant is now open, a natural continuation of a place shaped by family, farm, and quiet determination.
The story begins in a gentler era on the Mornington Peninsula, around 1980, when the region balanced its farming roots with the promise of something new. In 1982, Garry Crittenden planted his first vines, not with grand ambition, but with simple belief. Soon after, Garry's wife Margaret opened the Peninsula’s first commercial cellar door with little more than a trestle table and a cash tin. It was humble and bold all at once, inviting visitors to taste wines just metres from where the fruit was grown.
The Crittenden children, Zoe and Rollo, grew up on this land, surrounded by vines, lake, and the everyday life of a family. Today, that same family leads the business together. Rollo, now an accomplished winemaker, Zoe shapes the creative direction, and Rollo’s wife, Linda, manages the award-winning Lakeside Villas overlooking the property's lake.
And now, that living legacy is expressed around the table.
The newly opened Crittenden Restaurant begins, as everything here does, with the Mornington Peninsula itself. The wine is grown on the land. The food draws from nearby farms and producers. Under the guidance of Head Chef Brunno Melo, the menu offers small plates to share, dishes to savour slowly, and thoughtful wood-fired meats, with seasonality setting the pace.
The dining experience embraces the Peninsula’s love of long lunches, those unhurried afternoons where the light lingers over the vines and meals stretch joyfully into the next course. Inside, the dining room is calm, contemporary, and warmly grounded, framed by lake views and the willow trees. Beyond the doors, a covered Deck welcomes alfresco dining year-round, while the landscaped Terrace below offers a more relaxed, casual offering, perfect for lingering with a glass of wine, a plate of something delicious, and nowhere to be but here.
Refined without being precious, confident without being loud, the Restaurant and Terrace reflect the land that surrounds them and the family who has tended it for more than forty years.
This is Crittenden's next chapter; welcoming, warm, and unmistakably human. A place shaped not by trends, but by time. By family. And by the simple truth that the best stories are always shared at the table.
To explore menus, availability and everything you need to plan your visit, discover Crittenden Restaurant
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Looking for more Mornington Peninsula flavours? Discover the best restaurants on the Mornington Peninsula, the way a local does Mornington Peninsula Restaurants
Looking for more ways to explore? Find all the information you need here: