I love that you can sit outside, enjoy a meal in their courtyard and I get to enjoy something tasty from the cafe whilst the kids get their hot chips at the pub. Hubby always likes his snitzels and chips.

We have been frequenting this restaurant on a monthly basis for a few months now, with our elderly mother who resides in a local aged care centre and our 8 year old son who has coeliac's disease, he has extremely violent reactions to food with wheat.

My son did not feel like eating a big meal for lunch, because of his food condition we always bring a sandwich just in case he feels like eating something.

Instead of greeting us warmly, we were immediately barked at by the waitress who said 'you can't bring your own food in here, we need to charge you an extra fee if your son eats that sandwich here'. She said she would need to talk to the manager, which we overheard saying in a loud voice 'we can't allow this as then everyone will do it and we'll set a precedent!!!!'.

We explained the situation and said that he wasn't really hungry this small gluten free sandwich was is just in case he felt like something.

My husband, my mother in law and I were going to sit down and have main course for lunch, with wine and possibly desert and coffee. This is what we normally would order.

The specials of the day were barked at us and then we were told on this 'one occasion' they would allow us our son to have his sandwich and they wouldn't charge us, just on this one occasion. She then barked at our son for using the door to the restaurant to the courtyard and said he shouldn't be using that. Well? Why was it open?

On previous occasions we have spent between $200-$250 on our meals as a family in this restaurant. and we have been making it a monthly event.

Well guess what? Being lectured and barked at, isn't really the treatment you go out seeking on a weekend when all you want is a nice meal in pleasant surroundings.

For the sake of not letting a young child with an extreme food allergy just have his home-made sandwich IF he felt hungry, you have now the lost our monthly patronage. Which if I calculate correctly could be worth $3000 per year. I guess you don't care about those types of figures. As a small business owner myself, I'm very aware of the cost of making customers unhappy.

Our experience at Healesville Harvest on Saturday was not great and we'll be voting with our feet and will not be returning.

Big thumbs down to you Healesville Harvest, maybe have a good hard think about what you actually provide at your establishment? It's not about just providing good food and wine in a lovely room, it's how your customers 'feel' after their time with you and how they were treated, what sort of experience did they have.

Our experience with you was woeful, your staff do not know how to provide a welcoming environment and do not know how to communicate with anyone, especially children. Instead we felt like we were in some sort of a bootcamp, having orders and information barked at us, being told what we can and cannot do.

We walked out of the restaurant after finishing our wine and went to the Cherry Tree Cafe a few doors down, where we had a lovely lunch served by friendly staff.

We love going to this hotel for a casual lunch, they have a fantastic outdoor table area where the kids can run around and play. Food is great, a little on the pricey side but not too bad considering the area.

My husband and I visited this weekend for a late lunch. We were able to get a table outside and really enjoyed the fall colours and outdoor setting - beautiful. It was a great spot for us as we had brought our baby along and there were many other families sitting outside as well enjoying the day. When I looked at the menu I commented that the prices seemed a bit high, but as we hadn't been here before presumed that it must be an up scale place and the prices would be reflected in the quality. We were very disappointed. My husband had the sausage and mash - while the food was good (certainly not exceptional), the portion size was very small - 2 sausages and a small amount of mash - he left hungry and disappointed. I ordered the potato and artichoke gratin - what a let-down - a small portion of under-cooked, under-seasoned potatoes with no artichokes in sight sitting in a pile of oil. The waitress who picked up our dirty plates and glasses didn't ask if we had enjoyed the meal, or if we needed anything else...This place could be so much better - they have the benefit of a great location and venue - but their food and service lets them down. We won't be returning, and I wish I had read the other reviews of this place before we went - oh well - lesson learned.

Approximate cost: $24

We had a friends 40th here & unfortunately arrived late due to being 2hrs away having had a day activity. As we understood it from our friends who ate the meals there the food was beautiful and well presented, a little on the small side, yet expected on a fine dining menu.

What wasn't expected was the horrendous, rude, arrogant service by the waitress allocated to the room. She refused to take our coffee or dessert order even though it was being served right in front of us. She starting that their "license was finished for the night" - for dessert & coffee, since when did one need a license to serve this???

We thought we'd go to the bar and ask them without the need for table service, they took our order and then the waitress then came over and told us that she'd already told us their license had ended and canceled our order!!

Based on this experience I will NEVER go back there again & what a pity considering everything else was so good. Yet obviously they had made enough money for the night and didnt care to display basic manners or understanding any further - it didnt suit the waiting staff.

Approximate cost: $30

A popular place on a Sunday arvo so we (3) could only find a table in one of the rooms off the bar. This was ok and reasonably quiet. We ordered at the bar - steak and chips seemd like a good choice. Asked for some veges but this wasn't possible because no extras or changes could be added to the bar meals. Fair enough I guess so we ordered 2 salads to get our greens. Wine? a Yes - a basic Shiraz was $8 a glass! Normally we wouldn't but it was a birthday lunch for a friend so we splurged ... thought about buying a bottle but the prices were amazingly high so we didn't bother. The meals came quite quickly. The steak was ok if a little on the tough side and the chips - not a lot and very large. Hand cut according to the menu ... I guess if you cut them large you don't have to do as many and it takes less time? There was also some rocket leaves with the steak and chips. The salad came not long after ... though it was missing things like tomato, cucumber - the usual things you expect in a salad. It was just a bunch of salad greens like you can get at the supermarket with a oily, salty dressing on it. It was rather disappointing really - don't understand why places like this have to be so stingy. Next time in Healesville we'll be dining elsewhere!

Approximate cost: $30.00