Have a taste of village life

MOUNT Dandenong Village will be alive with the sound of live bands, a street market, rides for children, free face painting, games and competitions on Sunday 30 November.
It’s the fourth Mount Dandenong Village Festival and Jilly Sime from the village association and Wild Oak Restaurant at Olinda said that it’s going to be bigger and better than ever.
“Along with favourites such as the Alpha Dogs and the petting zoo, this year will also see executive chef Ben Higgs from The Wild Oak Cooking School give free cooking demonstrations all day,” she said.
“The festival has the support of all the local businesses and has attracted a generous sponsor in the Upwey Bendigo Bank.”
The Mount Dandenong Village Festival is run each year to raise funds for the playground on the Howard Norman Reserve with work for the playground due to start early in 2009.
A fun family day out with something for everyone, from fairy floss to fine dining, the festival opens at 9am and finishes about 5pm.
Local restaurants and pubs stay open until late.
One of the festival’s main organisers and initiators of the Village Festival is executive chef Ben Higgs of the Wild Oak Restaurant.
Ben said that the Wild Oak Restaurant prides itself on its fine dining experience without the exclusive tag!
Open for both lunch and dinner on the day of the festival. Wild Oak’s menus include something for everyone and are marked for dietary requirements such as vegan, vegetarian, gluten free and dairy free.
“Everything on the menu we make ourselves, from the bread to pavlova,” Mr Higgs said. “We use only the finest sustainable, localised and seasonal produce to create our gourmet dishes.”
Celebrity chef Gabriel Gate recently opened the Wild Oak Cooking School, where Ben shares some of his ‘tricks of the trade’ and recipes.
The festival will also see the launch of the Wild about Food tour.
Jilly said it was the first tour of its kind in the Dandenong Ranges and involves a two-day experience, staying at some of the finest boutique accommodation, dinner at the Wild Oak Restaurant, a cooking class at the Wild Oak including lunch and wine tasting, a personal winery tour, beer and cheese tasting.
“It’s a fabulous opportunity to showcase our beautiful region,” she said. “We hope people coming to the festival for the day will return and stay a little longer on the Wild about Food tour.”
On the corner of Ridge Road and Mt Dandenong Tourist Road Olinda, Wild Oak is open for lunch and dinner Wednesday to Sunday and for breakfast on Sunday. Phone 9751 2033 to book.