Which winery in Margaret River has the best restaurants?
Which winery in Margaret River has the best restaurants? A look at the most-cited cellar-door kitchens, from Vasse Felix and Cullen to the new Wayfinder farm restaurant.
The tasting rooms get the attention, but some of Margaret River's best meals happen inside them. A handful of cellar doors run full kitchens, where the wine list is grown a few hundred metres from the plate. The latest arrival raises the bar again: Wayfinder Winery, opening in August 2026 with a 60-seat farm-to-table restaurant and a chef most of the state already knows.
Which winery in Margaret River has the best restaurants?
There is no single winner, since the best cellar-door restaurant depends on whether you want fine dining, produce-led cooking or a scenic long lunch. The names cited most often are Vasse Felix, the region's founding estate, Cullen Wines for biodynamic produce-led menus, and Leeuwin Estate. The big 2026 arrival is Wayfinder's new farm restaurant.
Vasse Felix is the usual starting point. It was the first vineyard planted in the region back in 1967, and its restaurant has long sat beside the original cellar door. The estate's standing is not just history either: in the 2026 Halliday Wine Companion awards it was ranked the number one winery in the country, and its winemaker Virginia Willcock was named Winemaker of the Year. You can read more about the estate itself before deciding whether it tops your own list.
Cullen and Leeuwin round out the classic answers. Cullen Wines is family-run and farms biodynamically, and its kitchen leans hard on the estate garden, so the menu shifts with what is picked that week. Leeuwin Estate is another of the founding-era names, long associated with a destination restaurant. The table sorts the shortlist by what each one does best.
| Winery | Known for | On the plate |
|---|---|---|
| Vasse Felix | The region's founding estate, 1967 | A long-running restaurant beside the original cellar door |
| Cullen Wines | Biodynamic, family-run | Produce-led menus tied to the estate garden |
| Leeuwin Estate | A landmark founding-era estate | A destination restaurant with a long reputation |
| Wayfinder | New for August 2026 | 60-seat farm-to-table, chef Brendan Pratt |
What makes Wayfinder Winery's restaurant a 2026 highlight?
Wayfinder is the region's most talked-about opening for 2026: an off-grid, gravity-fed subterranean winery near Cowaramup with a 60-seat farm-to-table restaurant led by respected chef Brendan Pratt. An on-site market garden and regenerative farming feed the kitchen directly, and it opens in August 2026.
The pull of Wayfinder is how tightly the food and the land are tied together. The restaurant is built around a working market garden, so the produce travels metres, not kilometres, and the winery below runs on gravity rather than pumps. For a region already known for cellar-door dining, a new venue at this level is a genuine event rather than another tasting room. Food-forward days that pair boutique cellar doors with a proper sit-down meal are where this style shines, and a seven-hour day matching boutique-winery tastings with an Italian-inspired olive-farm lunch captures the same idea of eating close to the source.
Beyond the headline names, the region keeps adding kitchens: new cellar doors and wine bars have opened around Witchcliffe and Cowaramup, and the food scene now runs well past the founding estates. If you want the full spread of cellar-door dining, the guide to Margaret River wineries with restaurants goes venue by venue, and the rundown of the best cellar doors for a long lunch sorts them by the meal rather than the pour.
Can a wine tour get me to these winery restaurants?
Often, yes. Many organised full-day tours include a two-course winery lunch as standard, so a restaurant stop is built into the day without a separate booking. Food-focused tours go further, pairing cellar-door tastings with a sit-down meal, a glass of wine, and produce tastings like chocolate and olive oil.
Reaching the best kitchens without a tour means booking a table, then working out how to get there and back sober across a spread-out region. A guided day removes both problems at once.
Keep in mind that many cellar-door restaurants book out on weekends and through the summer peak, so a tour that reserves the lunch stop for you takes one more thing off the plan. If you would rather build your own route, the shortlist of cellar doors worth a day is a useful place to start.
Common questions
Does Vasse Felix have a restaurant?
Yes. Vasse Felix, the region's founding estate planted in 1967, has a long-running restaurant beside its original cellar door. The estate was also ranked the number one winery in Australia in the 2026 Halliday Wine Companion awards.
What is the new Margaret River winery restaurant for 2026?
Wayfinder Winery, near Cowaramup, opens in August 2026 with a 60-seat farm-to-table restaurant led by chef Brendan Pratt. It is an off-grid, gravity-fed winery with an on-site market garden feeding the kitchen.
Can I visit winery restaurants without driving?
Yes. Many full-day tours include a two-course winery lunch, and food-focused tours pair tastings with a sit-down meal. That way you reach the cellar-door kitchens without booking a table yourself or driving between them.