Rhonda Bracey: At Random

We left Dubbo and headed out on the Golden Highway, retracing some of our route from yesterday (as far as Dunedoo). We stopped in the little town of Merriwa for lunch at the bakery. My husband’s pie was ‘ordinary’ and my BBQ chicken wrap was horrible (cold, made with Chinese Hoisin sauce, and tiny chicken squares that looked preserved!). Then it was back on the road via Denman and Branxton, just south of Singleton.

At Branxton we turned south to Cessnock, where we’d decided to stay for two nights to make our trip to the Hunter Valley wine region worthwhile. We checked into the Best Western Wine Country Motor Inn ($110/night for a standard room), which is right in the heart of Cessnock. Very convenient! And surprisingly quiet.

Right next door to the Best Western was the Cessnock Rugby League Supporters Club, so we wandered over there to play some pool, and discovered that they had meals for $10 a head, including a glass of beer or house wine!

We couldn’t go past the pork roast… The red wine I had was from a cask of de Bortoli Cab sav, and was perfectly acceptable. And for $10 a head, it was a really good deal. The $3 per game pool table was a bit rich, though.