Christmas Eve in La Vètta

A Christmas Eve lunch at La Vètta, Marnong Estate’s hatted restaurant. Five courses, shared at the table, with panoramic views filling the windows.

On Thursday 24 December, La Vètta serves one menu only: the Signature Chef’s Journey at $145 per person. It’s a long lunch with no dinner service, so settle in and let the afternoon run.

Christmas Eve Lunch at La Vètta

The Christmas Eve menu has been designed by La Vètta Head Chef Ash Cameron-Smith. Her Signature Chef’s Journey is a curated five-course menu built around the best seasonal produce and the creativity of the kitchen. For Christmas Eve, every guest dines from it. À la carte is not available. The menu is served as a shared dining experience in the Main Dining Room.

La Vètta holds one Chef’s Hat in The Age Good Food Guide, first awarded in 2025 and retained in 2026.

Event details

• Date: Thursday 24 December 2026
• Sittings: from 12:30pm, last bookings 3:30pm
• Menu: Signature Chef’s Journey, five courses, shared
• Price: $145 per person
• Where: La Vètta Main Dining Room, Marnong Estate, 2335 Mickleham Rd, Mickleham
• Dress: smart casual

What to expect

This Christmas Eve lunch is built for lingering. Courses are shared across the table, so it suits family, friends and anyone who’d rather talk than order. The kitchen leads; you don’t need to make a single decision beyond your drinks.

A Christmas Eve lunch at La Vètta is also one less thing to cook before the 25th. Book a sitting between 12:30pm and 3:30pm, and come back to the estate another day to catch Melbourne’s best sunset from the main lawn.

Why the Chef’s Journey

The Signature Chef’s Journey is how La Vètta’s kitchen likes to cook: a set progression of courses that follows what’s best in season, rather than a fixed list of dishes. For a Christmas Eve lunch, that means the menu is built around the season and served in a rhythm that gives the table time to talk between courses.

Sharing plates also changes the feel of the meal. Nobody is stuck with the wrong order, everyone tastes everything, and the table sets its own pace. It’s the closest a restaurant lunch gets to a long family meal, without the washing up.

A Christmas Eve lunch in the hills

La Vètta sits high on Marnong Estate, a 1,200-acre working farm and vineyard in Mickleham. The dining room looks out over panoramic views of the estate, which makes a long December lunch feel a long way from the city, even though it’s only 35 minutes from the CBD.

It’s an easy middle ground for families spread across Melbourne’s north and west, and for anyone flying in for Christmas, with Melbourne Airport 15 minutes away. Book the table, skip the kitchen, and start the holidays a day early.

Make an afternoon of it

Stay on after your Christmas Eve lunch. Last drinks in the lounge are at 4:30pm. Marnong Estate is 35 minutes from the Melbourne CBD and 15 minutes from Melbourne Airport.

Good to know

More at La Vètta

See the full La Vètta page, or what else is on in the Marnong Estate events calendar.