Restaurant Lola — Restaurant in Victoria

5 Stars – An Absolute Gem in Ballarat!

Stopping in Ballarat for an event turned into an unforgettable culinary adventure, thanks to Lola! A friend's enthusiastic recommendation led me here, and wow, am I glad I listened.

First, the location is perfect—right across from the train station. The ambience? Warm, inviting, and oh-so-charming. The service? Absolutely fabulous. But the food? Oh boy, the food gets an A+++ from me!

Entree: Char-grilled surf and turf skewers. Think tiger prawns, yellow fin tuna, black Angus scotch fillet, and more, drizzled with burnt pomegranate jus and pineapple marmalade. It was like a party in my mouth!

Main: Hopkins River Black scotch fillet. Tender, flavourful, and paired with herb mustard pressed potatoes and dressed leaves. Divine!

Dessert: Vanilla bean panna cotta with mixed berry compote. Silky smooth, light, and the perfect ending to a spectacular meal.

The meals were beautifully presented, perfectly cooked, and seasoned like a chef’s kiss. The prices didn’t break the bank, and to top it off, my meal came with a glass of house wine included. What a delightful surprise!

Huge shout out to the amazing gentleman who served me and an even bigger compliment to the chef. You guys are rock stars! Lola deserves to be on every Ballarat visitor’s itinerary.

PS: Watch out, Lola—I’ll definitely be...

We went for coffee to check it out, lovely place, great atmosphere. Will definitly be back, their accommodation looks fabulous too.

Well we did go back, for dinner,

Firstly I will say the food was good but not get it in your mouth and say, "oh my god" good, but above average. A couple of spoilers Firstly the menu was two or three courses for a set price, either entree and main or main and desert. There was no catering for just one course We usually have a main only.

Secondly, the steak on offer came with an added charge of $15.00, hmm we thought this will be something special, wrong, the request was for a medium cook, well the chef got it half right, half medium, the other half was warm raw meat, the medium half you might expect would be melt in your mouth, sorry wrong again, not tough like boot leather but certainly not what you would expect.

The7 hour cooked Lamb was beautiful and tender, you know the sort of thing Nanna would cook, it could of had more flavour with some herbs and a hint of spice.

The souffle was light and fluffy as it should be, but a bit bland.

All in all, we have satisfied our curiosity, nice place but won't be back, quite...

Not sure if management has changed but staff were aimless and inattentive. Set menu with drinks included is confusing. Wanted to order more drinks after the first included drink but staff never returned to take our order. No upsell or suggestions from waiters. Water bottle emptied and unnoticed by staff. When eventually refilled the water tasted horrible and undrinkable. Paper serviettes. THE most uncomfortable plastic chairs, even with seat cushions! The Bentwood chairs or banquettes may be more comfortable but ditch the plastic chairs. Insufficient butter for 4 slices of bread - just 1 dollop! Scallops overcooked but rest of food we ordered was very good. Questionable sauce drizzled over duck fat potatoes was unnecessary. Menu hasn't changed in over 12 months which is very boring. Not sure if the owners or management at Lola's have a clear vision of the identity they want to portray because the food reads fancy but the service and atmosphere is not. Need more experienced staff to deliver a really excellent dining experience. Overall a good night out but can't rave...