Catching up with rels at Wyong Leagues Club (June 22)

So, whilst gaming last Saturday I received a text message from my sister asking me if she was at the right place. (She was close to my house but not quite there.) I must admit, it was quite a surprise. When she said she'd visit me within a couple of months I didn't expect it would be a couple of days after she had said that. Anyway, I provided an address as to where I was gaming and around 4pm there she was. 
After a night at a local hotel, we paid a visit to a cousin from mum's side of the family on Sunday morning, which then turned into lunch at Wyong Leagues at Kanwal. I hadn't been to this club since my sister lived in Lake Haven about a decade ago and I can safely say that the place hasn't changed since then.
For food choices, you have a choice of the Bistro or Sentosa, which provides a variety of Asian meals. I gave in an opted for some Chicken Pad Thai, which I hadn't had in quite some time. I must say it was absolutely delicious.

The one thing I'm finding common now when dining out, is the cost of meals. If you're not a member, a meal and a Brookvale Whisky and Dry on tap could well cost you about $40. Trust me, there wasn't much change left over. Still, I wasn't there so much for the meal and drink, but to catch with relatives. It was a nice spot to do it.

As for watery vistas to visit, the club isn't that far away from the Tuggerah Lakes. However, my sister and I stopped off at a little spot, roughly a five minute drive away, just off the Pacific Highway at San Remo, where my sister used to take her son fishing. Wallarah Creek branches off Budgewoi Lake, which when full, covers an area of 1400 hectares (3500 acres). It's the middle of the three Tuggerah lakes, which all connect, at The Entrance, to the Tasman Sea. If you're feeling energetic, you could walk from San Remo around the northern shore of the lake all the way around to Budgewoi. Last Sunday was a good day to do it seeing it hit 20°. Not bad for winter. 

Links correct at time of posting.

Pictures taken by Geoff G Turner (c) 2025.

Hotel Gosford Revisited (April 15)

I had to bump this back to the front again on account of a recent meal that I had there. If you've been reading these posts, then you know I've been visiting the Hotel Gosford at least once a month to participate in the pub trivia. February has been our best month, with an equal second place that netted us a $30 drink voucher, which was duly consumed at the next event that we attended in March. Last Tuesday, well it was an acronym heavy night which affected our score, though I did win a $10 drink voucher in one of the in-between round games, correctly identifying Shaun Micallef in a picture question.
I arrived at to the venue around 5.30pm, having taken the #55 bus from my stop on Ocean Beach Road on the peninsula and getting off across the street from the pub, which is very convenient. Seeing I was in a rather good mood, I opted for the Chicken Parmigiana that night (a $4 upgrade from the schnitzel) and grabbed a drink from the bar. I had no sooner finished checking my e-mail when my meal arrived.

Unfortunately the picture from my mobile phone doesn't do it justice, so I'll be upgrading that first chance I get. (A wonderful error with the device that only allows me to take pictures as screenshots...) It was far better than the schnitzel I had at the same venue back in Nov 2 last year and I'd go as far as saying that it's the best schnitzel related dish I've had since I started doing this blog, bumping the meal that I had at the Kincumber Pub way back on May 12 2023 to second place. I may revisit that place and another at Erina Fair that I haven't been to in years, just to see if their parma's have improved. After all they do have the right of reply. Lol
One of my trivia team-mates decided to have a parma as well, opting not to include a salad with the meal. Personally, I'll take the option to get some veges into my system seeing I don't generally buy much for home due to the price and that I really don't eat them quick enough, so they usually go to waste. Dining out, well that's a different matter. On this occasion, the schnitzel was resting on the chips and covered with smoked ham and melted cheese which was absolutely scrumptious. $42 all up (including the drink) may seem a bit expensive, but it's a quality meal and I may well have another one next time I'm there.
Hopefully we'll do a bit better in our May trivia appearance. Cheers!

Links correct at time of posting.

Picture taken by Geoff G Turner (c) 2025.

Appointment day in Woy Woy (April 10)

It was overcast, warm and very much like every other day in Woy Woy – busy. As a pedestrian, you really have to have your wits about you getting from one place to the next, especially the carparks around Deepwater Plaza.

Anyway, it was a double appointment day in the little shopping district, starting with the doctor around 11am and the Optometrist at 2.30pm. In-between the two I had to make a quick trip down to Umina to pick up the mail from my PO Box, then find somewhere to eat.

It wasn't too hard. I could've taken the easy way out and grab Chinese takeaway at one of two places in DWP, or walked to one of the two global chain restaurants, but I decided to pay another visit to a café that I dined at a few years ago after moving back to the peninsula.

The BBF Café (Bringing Best Friends Together) is a family owned café in a prime location in The Pavilion, which dominates the carpark. It's a short stroll from the rear entrance of DWP, three bus stops, the train station and the optometrists where I had my appointment. One can dine inside or out, with plenty of choices on the menu.

It was a good idea. Schnitzel burger, no problem, with a can of a popular soft drink and a small bowl of chips $22 all up. It wasn't too busy, so I had my meal within ten minutes and I took my time eating it. Toasted bun, good sized schnitty, crispy, juicy and I really must've been hungry because I devoured the lot.

Personally, I have a preference to eating there rather than Lush 1659. I prefer to have a bit of space when dining with a view, where Lush is in a busy spot indoors and quite cramped. Weather also plays a factor in this. On a fair day BBF is a good option. If I need to grab a bite before heading anywhere in the future (during the day) then I'll go there, weather permitting.

Pictures taken by Geoff G Turner (c) 2025.

Links correct at time of posting.

A Night at the Footy (February 11)

There hasn't been that much in the way of opportunities for me to go out and have a bite to eat around here recently. I had felt that I could start comparing Chinese takeaways for their Singapore Noodles (seeing I had sampled several places recently for that particular dish) but last night I finally managed to do one that I should've done a long time ago, considering how many times I've been there.
Yesterday I once again found myself at the Central Coast Stadium right on the edge of the Brisbane Water. It's well over 250 visits to the stadium for three football codes since 2000 and I've never gotten tired of the view. Unlike the previous post, which was a rather wet day for the opening matches of the 2024-25 A-League season (womens then mens), here I was at what was going to be the last home match of the Mariners' Champions League Elite 2024-25 campaign against the ten time Malaysian Super League champions Johor Drul Ta'zim. It was a reasonable night weatherwise, a little balmy but otherwise fine.

One cheeseburger a la mode in Bay 27.
Carefully balanced on my knee for the shot.

On the menu tonight, well, the only thing I really could rate was the cheeseburger meal. Honestly, there's not much to a cheeseburger meal so you'd have to do something really bad to stuff it up. With a 600ml drink and a large bucket of chips, you're looking at $26 all up. To be honest, the burger wasn't that great. It was a simple, slightly thick meat pattie, combined with a small dollop of sauce, a slice of cheese and a couple of slivers of gherkin inside a plain white bun. Oddly enough, it was very similar in taste and content to the cheeseburger you could get across the road at the Central Coast Leagues Club. The drink's producer was covered by a sticky white label (no doubt for sponsorship purposes) with the chips being quite tasty with a hint of being beer battered. By themselves you're looking at $8 for the (slightly) bigger bucket. There are other options on the menu, like fish and chips, hot dogs, sausage rolls and pies. I've pretty much tried everything else and to be honest you're better off bringing your own food in (which a mate of mine does whenever he visits), maybe your own non-alcoholic drinks as well. Still, it's okay once in a while, which I'll have to adhere to. Last Friday (8 Feb) I ventured into the city to see Kate Miller-Heidke at the Recital Hall in Wynard and forked out $16 for a can of cider and a packet of potato crisps. No sandwiches on offer, at best a selection of cheese and crackers, though I bought cheaper ones at the kiosk at Central Station on the way back home. It really is hardly worth buying food or drink at the venue these days.
Anyway, I can take or leave the stadium burger and chips. I'd suggest eating at the club first before attending a match but seeing it gets quite busy over there before the game you'll have to get there at least an hour before the gates open, or take your chances elsewhere, depending what day the match is on and what time the game starts and finish. Friday and Saturday nights aren't too bad, with several dining places of various sorts open in the main street, including the Hotel Gosford, which I reviewed on 2 November 2024, where I've been going once a month for the Tuesday night trivia.
By the way, in what was a busy night for officials with a send off, yellow cards, players being stretchered off and plenty of referrals to the VAR, the visitors won 2-1. The Mariners' final match in this campaign will be overseas on Feb 18. My next game there could well be the women's fixture against the Wanderers on Feb 22, though there will be a couple of rugby league trials there this month as well.
Cheers!

Like I said, never get tired of the view. :)

Updated 12 April, 2025.

All links correct at time of posting.

Photographs taken by Geoff G Turner (c) 2025.

A rainy day lunch in Gosford (November 2)

Apologies for such a long gap in-between posts, but I've limited my dining options recently in order to save a few dollars. I've been getting quick bites to eat from fast food chains, which I won't do reviews of anyway, but I am still tempted to do a quick review at some point of two Chinese takeaways that I've eaten at recently in Woy Woy. My stock standard choice at these places is a Singapore Noodle. Honestly, if you can't get that right... I could compare them to a takeaway in Gosford where I've felt I've had the best SN, or even to a place in Sutherland where I go to when I'm down there for gaming excursions. I'll save all that for a future post.
However, I did get an opportunity recently to eat at a well-established venue in Gosford that has had an extensive refurbishment in recent years, taking advantage of the fact that a mate of mine (and his girlfriend) was calling in on his way through to Taree. Trackwork just happened to be scheduled for this weekend from Hornsby all the way up to Brisbane it seems, and the weather being rather wintry, the best option for my visitors was the Hotel Gosford just across the road, where it was considerably easy for them to get back to the station for their connecting coach. For me, I had other plans, which was an A-League double-header at the Central Coast Stadium with the local women's side kicking off their season at 2.15pm that afternoon. It was from there I took my scenic shot of the Brisbane Water. Naturally, it's a much nicer view when it's not raining and the sun is out but beggars can't be choosers eh?

3pm on a Saturday afternoon in November...

The Hotel Gosford, in the past, hasn't had the best reputation. It had been considered a pretty rough pub (not as bad as the now demolished Central Coast Hotel where a pair of towers are being built) and it just wasn't a place that I felt comfortable with visiting let alone dining there, having not setting foot in the place since 2012. However, it has had a two-part makeover in the last five years, starting first with the drinking and gambling area, then the restaurant.
Now it's a much different and quite pleasing to the eye. The dining and drinking areas are kept separate and one doesn't have to set foot in the latter to get to the restaurant. There is plenty of room, even offering a view of the kitchen, with a bar nearby as well. Even on a rainy Saturday with half the tables appearing to have been reserved, the three of us was still able to find a table, though I got a little toasted with the heater at my back.

So, true to form, I opted for a simple chicken schnitzel whilst my mate, whom I've known since high-school, chose a beef burger. Both of them came with a small order of fries, whilst the schnitzel had an optional salad as well. The cheeseburger was $16, the schnitty $25. There was plenty on the drinks menu as well, though I stuck with a Canadian Club and dry on tap. His GF wasn't feeling too well after the trip up from Bendigo (early flight to Sydney then bus to Gosford) and just had a glass of red wine.
We didn't have to wait long for our meals, probably around 10-15 minutes seeing it was a little busy, but it allowed us to have a chat and get side-tracked with the background touristy video footage of random places around the globe. Both meals were appreciated and definitely hit the spot. The schnitty wasn't the best that I have had – though juicy it was a little on the small side, but it was on par with ones I've had at the Central Coast Leagues Club and the Everglades. The price was about the same too, though one does get a slight discount being a member of the other two establishments. Staff was pleasant, service was pretty good as well and the finished plates were recovered in a timely matter.
Personally, I still wouldn't eat there by myself, but I'd be quite happy to take a date there (if I ever have one – lol) or meet up with friends. I should, for a comparison, go up the road to the Railway Hotel just to see what their fare is like. Gosford has been getting an upgrade (if it can be called that) and has got a variety of food options to offer.
But it's still Gosford. It's not the best of places to dine in. You can construct as many towers as you like to try and get a better class of resident, but it is what it is, still a dive with a lot of vacant shops, derelict buildings and empty lots and a transport hub with people wanting to get somewhere else. For the most part, I'm just there for the soccer during spring and summer.

P.S: At our last Anxiety support group meeting on Nov 5, myself and the other co-facilitator decided that we'll try and host a social event for the following Tuesday (Nov 12) and contact those who don't regularly turn up and see if we can entice them out with a pub trivia evening at the Hotel Gosford. Only four of us turned up, but we had a good night anyway. So perhaps gathering a group, have a bite to eat and a few drinks and see how good you go with the quiz wouldn't be a bad night out. Must've been at least forty people when we were there.    

Pictures taken by Geoff G Turner (c) 2024.

A rainy day lunch at Woy Woy (April 4)

The Woy Woy Hotel, with the Gnostic Mana Café next door on the corner.
Can't believe this is the only picture I've got of it, taken in 2018.

It wasn't the greatest of days to dine out but we did anyway. It was the monthly meeting of one of my mental health support groups, and with the weather the way it is (a forecast of three days of rain, which started on Thursday) our regular outdoor meeting on the Woy Woy waterfront was transferred indoors to the nearby Gnostic Mana Café on The Boulevard. This was the first time I had been to the café in over twenty years, the previous time being in my first stint on the peninsula (1999-2005), on an occasion when I was getting my laundry done at the nearby laundromat.

We arrived around 11.15am, with our tables waiting for us (only nine of the group were expected to turn up) and the early-comers having plenty of time to peruse the extensive menu that had breakfast and lunch options. Vegans were catered for and those requiring gluten-free options only had to ask. 

Most of the meals were in the $20 to $40 range and I was spoiled for choice in the burger department, but stuck to my regular choice of a chicken burger, in this case a grilled Portuguese version with bacon and lettuce (and a side order of fries) minus the tomato and avocado. No point in putting them in the burger if I'm just going to discard them eh? Other meal options taken by the group were steak sandwiches and good old fish and chips. Meals were prepared quickly despite the place being quite full and the staff were rather helpful when enquiries were made about the contents of the meals.

Must say that the burger was quite good. For $21 it was considerably better than the schnitzel burger I had at Café Lush over at Deepwater Plaza last month and I actually polished the whole lot off. Those that took the steak sandwich option found it tough going seeing the meal was just a wee bit too much for them. However nobody was complaining about the quality and we all left satisfied with our choices. I even had some desert, opting for a couple of choices from their gelato bar. Blood orange and Turkish delight were are stark contrast, with the former rather strong (and just like the soft drink I occasionally drink) and the latter rather mild. At $9 for a small cup with two healthy scoops (unlike the small serves bought at the Central Coast Leagues Club back in December) it was a lovely way to finish the meal.

Still plenty more places to visit in Woy Woy. :)

Pictures taken by Geoff G Turner (c) 2024.

Link correct at time of posting.

Elevenses at Woy Woy (March 15)

Seeing my other two blogs have had new posts recently, it's time for this one to get a little love. :)
The problem with Woy Woy (if it is a problem) is that it's most likely going to get quite a few posts here seeing there are so many places to eat. I could even do a post comparing Chinese restaurants/takeaways, or even Thai restaurants seeing there's a few of them in the CBD as well, apart from the one I prefer.

Deepwater Plaza from the walk-bridge spanning Railway Street in Woy Woy. Taken in 2018.

Anyway, last Friday I had an opportunity to have lunch with a friend who came up from Sydney's West to take care of some family business. So I took her to a nearby café based in Deepwater Plaza that I've been meaning to try - Lush 1659. The location had been taken over fairly recently after the closure of the previous establishment (which I believe was Café DMR but I'd have to check that) and had walked passed it many times and just hadn't been game enough to try it out.
So we did. It's conveniently located almost in the centre of the building facing Lowes. Naturally I opted for the chicken schnitzel burger which came with a small serve of fries. For $20 the meal pretty much covered the entire plate and I was quite satisfied with what I ate. I couldn't quite finish the meal, which seems to be a regular habit of mine.
If you're after a quick fix and not after anything too exotic, then this will suit you. We timed our arrival perfectly (about 11am) and got our meals within ten minutes of ordering with the tables half-full. Service was good, staff were polite and no doubt I'll head back there again at some point when I need a break from Chinese takeaways and fast food chain restaurants. Lol

Links correct at the time of posting.

Photo by Geoff G Turner (c) 2024.