Blue Dolphin Cafe
84 Newcombe St
Portarlington
Ph (03) 5259 1600
Come here and you’ll see diamonds. Make your way past a missable entrance to a place of style and comfort. My long black (Jasper Fair Trade coffee) comes in a cup correctly filled, with good crema and depth of flavour, and served by the owner with delicacy and grace. Normally, if I’m at a place for lunch I deign to purchase sweets. But who could resist the range of home-made cakes, slices, pastries and biscuits that this place purveys?
Here there is awareness of the customer and her needs. Scarcely have I grabbed a glass than a bottle of water is set upon the table.
Two generously-filled glasses of red are brought to the window table of two ladies. The sea outside, through a screen of leaves.
I like the feel of Portarlington. There is only a single line of shops. Over the road is parkland, and beyond that, the pier and the sea. Because of this concentration there is a sense of containment and true village life. There is a sense of order and compactness.
The Turkish owner tells me he’s been going five years and he has clearly established a fine standard. Two wood-framed blackboards on the wall list the specials and the soup of the day. Today it’s pumpkin. Banquettes along one wall. Pide dreads and focaccias. Chicken, mushroom and leek pie with salad. Tasmanian Smoked Salmon Salad.
Bright paintings on the wall. Two shelves of books. Wines — Portalington Ridge, Bellarine Estate and Aspen Estate rest on a sideboard.
This place is well worth the trip out from Geelong. Or Melbourne. There are fine walks along the coast and fit people could make it to St. Leonards — and return.