Metung Hotel

The end-of-the-road township of Metung is encircled by water on three sides. Formerly known as Rosherville, "Metung" comes from the language of the local Gunaikurnai people and means "bend in the lake".

Metung has been a resort town for about 100 years. Its popular boating grounds would lure folks from Melbourne, who would travel by train to Sale and then steamer to Metung to holiday. Today residents from the adjacent islands continue to arrive at the pub by boat, docking at the boardwalk.

The Metung Hotel has been a key watering hole in the region since 1870. By 1954, though, the original hotel was fairly dilapidated and caught fire one night and burned to the ground. The building that stands today was built in 1957. The interior has since been spruced up, but the charming mid-century exterior remains on the pub's street-side.

Patrons can swill a pint at the water's edge, or up on the deck with a higher viewpoint.

Inside, take your meal at the bar or in the dining room. The menu is handwritten on blackboards, including the day's specials, with all seafood sourced from the Lakes Entrance co-op or Melbourne fish markets. Flathead and gummy shark are caught locally offshore and come in a thick, crunchy beer batter with fries and salad. There are Panko-crumbed local scallops and bugs, too, and these are joined by prawns, oysters and mussels on the substantial seafood platter.