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Good Food Guide 2005 – Awarded Chefs Hat |
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As you lift the gate’s latch to enter this cute 1912 cottage, it feels almost as if you should knock before entering. Don’t bother; wine buff Toni Urquhart is always thrilled to receive visitors, showering then with hospitality. She has kept the dining room simple but smart, with white walls, polished floors, white cloths, tea lights, muted lamps and, if you’re lucky Diana Krall on the CD and a fire crackling beneath the mirrors. |
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Australian Gourmet Traveller 2004 |
Restaurant Guide 2004It’s a great comfort visiting a small country town knowing you’re going to have a good food experience. Chef/owner Ray Urquhart and his wife Toni’s front of house have been producing consistently good food and service at No. 2 Oak Street for almost nine year now. They source local ingredients where possible, such as Bindaree beef and local venison and serve then with a minimum of fuss, but full-on flavour. The slow-cooked duck with braised red cabbage and crisp prosciutto is a particular favorite. During summer, you can sit outside on the veranda and in winter a cosy fire is welcoming in the simple dining room. The wine list is small but varied, with some interesting surprises. Expect to be charmed by Toni’s efficient, friendly service and local knowledge; she will point you in the right direction for where to shop or where to have the best picnic. |
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Voyeur Virgin Blue Magazine 04 |
December 2004A visit here and you’ll understand why this is regular entry in the Sydney Morning herald Good Food Guide. Fish of the day was fresh snapper with tomato and herb stock, creamy mash, Asian greens and roast garlic aioli. Delicious!
Bookings essential.
“For me one of the hidden treasures of Bellingen is a restaurant named by it’s street address; No. 2 Oak Street. Try the Coramba venison and organic chicken and, if you can fit it in, roasted quince with honey mascarpone. Unbelievable!”
Bryce Courtney - Author |
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From tableland to tide – a taste of Coffs Coast
The World Heritage rainforests of Dorrigo National Park plummet down steeply to the coastal plain. Creeks tumble over sheer rockfaces, joining the Bellinger River as it flows on to slip quietly between willowed backs thorough the hinterland of Bellingen. Here, in a tree- shaded byway off the main road, is a restaurant that just keeps on collecting national awards – the National Gourmet Traveller Restaurant Guide in 2003/04, the Sydney Morning Heralds Good Food Guide for 2000 to 2004, and the Restaurant and Catering Fine Dining Awards from 1999 to 2004. This is No 2 Oak Street, where Ray and Toni Urquhart offer a winning combination of creative mod-Oz cuisine and peerless professional service. |
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Bellingen restaurant, No 2 Oak Street had been named the winner of the Formal Modern Australian Restaurant Category at this year’s Restaurant and Catering NSW Northern NSW Region Awards for Excellence held in Coffs Harbour last week.
No 2 Oak Street will now represent the Northern NSW Region as finalists in the Restaurant and Catering regional Awards for Excellence next August.
The Bellingen Shire Courier –Sun
Wednesday April 14, 2004
By Greg McLagan |
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Good Food Guide 2004
Bellingen is a pretty town and the enticing glow of the 1910 cottage, just off the main street, only hints at the delights inside. On cooler nights, you can sit of the bistro chairs by the open fire in the cosy, cream coloured, softly lit dining room. Warm weather entices you outside along the verandah as ebullient host Toni Urquhart flits from table to table spreading good cheer and offering the insider tips on Husband Ray’s honest country fare with Asian twists. |
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Coffs Coast
Restaurants, rafting & romance in Russel Crowe country.
… But the surprise ticket is the fact that he region is also emerging as one of Australia’s cultural hotspots. “A lot of people used to think this area was pretty dead culturally a few years ago,” Steve Bush, director of the John Gordon Gallery, says “But it’s really coming into its own – we showcase local artists and at every opening we get over 300 people. There are a lot of people moving here every year from Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane, awareness is really growing.” Simone Nye from Lake Russel Gallery agrees. “Even in just a few years, this area has changed,” she says. “The art here is fantastic, there’s a lot to great local artists. People used to say Coffs was ‘Byron for beginner’, but it’s more than that now.”
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The Coffs Coast Advocate 2004 |
Bellingen Restaurant is an award winner
Bellingen’s best known fine dining restaurant No. 2 Oak Street has continued to build on its history of success by again winning in the Restaurant and Catering NSW Northern NSW Region Awards for Excellence.
No 2 Oak Street won the Formal Modern Australian Restaurant category, notching up its fourth Restaurant and Catering award in five years. |
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Good Food Guide 2003
This enticing 1910 heritage cottage in the quaint hippy village of Bellingen is warm and welcoming. You can sit on the verandah in warmer weather, and enjoy the open fire in the small, creamy, softly lit dining room with its bisto tables and chairs. Bubbly host Toni Urquhart offers attentive, friendly service, and has a keen understanding of the wine list, which features many rarely seen names. |
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Australian Gourmet Traveller 2003 |
Restaurant Guide 2003
Just one room and a veranda in a cottage tucked down a side street in a small north coast town. But a cosy fire in winter and a couple of people with years of experience, make this a most pleasant place to be. Chef Ray Urquhart’s menu is unpretentious yet sparked with imaginative accents that let you see why this venue has become so popular in the past seven or so years. There’s a serious wine list (with many cholces available by the glass) and a menu that keeps things simple, being divided into “small plate”, “large plate” and “sweet things” lists. There’s some of the slickest floor management that you will ever see, despite limited staff. Even when packed to bursting, No 2 is more professional than many city places, yet the friendly welcome is pure country style. |
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