the source

best gallery in australia needs best restaurant. mona is possibly the best gallery in the world, amazing. the source is however nowhere near the same standard. i understand that on a sunday if the place is packed that randomly selected degustation could be of benefit for streamliningservicebut the restaurant wasn't full so why? the first dish was a pumpkin soup, the go-to dish for cafes when the chef is too busy or cannot be bothered doing anything too special, a truffle cream floating on the surface was ok, maybe as it's not truffle season yet it was frozen truffle or just some aroma.
coral trout to follow, a little rare but that's a matter of opinion so fine but the lemon meringue wafer topping a soggy tempura of fennel was poorly thought out and executed. it disrespects the fish.
the low point was the cheese service, just a tip, when the cheddar is dry on one side trim it before serving!
the cheese had taken on a plastic like surface that was far too dry. the goat cheese was excellent as was the wine.
on leaving the chef made a point of saying clearly within earshot to his sous chef that we thought the texture of the fish was too firm and too bad.
that's hospitality for you, try the café.

we visited mona recently & lunch at the source was the highlight of our visit to hobart. to say the total dining experience was a standout is an understatement. the slippery jack mushrooms as our main was just wonderful & neither of us is vegetarian. our cheese selection was washed down with a glass of freyincet botrytis riesling which was divine, & to top it off, we had the best table in the restaurant with the most beautiful views. staff were very knowledgeable & theservicewas perfect. just a wonderful experience!

after a morning at mona admiring the collection of exotic art followed by a brief winery tour of moorilla we stopped in for an amazing lunch at the source. a picturesque spot perched above the museum and sprawling grounds below. the food was very special and theserviceattentive. we sampled several of the tapas style delights on offer as well as a couple of very delicious cocktails. although inside is very well appointed, if it’s a nice day ask for a table outside on the balcony, each table is alive with greenery and is a very special way to dine

perfectserviceand attention to detail. we stuck only with smaller dishes (oysters, 1 appetizer and 4 shared entrees) which were all extremely tasty and cooked with restraint and finesse. finished off with an amazing apple parfait and delicious cheese served with their tasty-by-itself home made "wafer thin" lavosh.

it was a great place for lunch after a trip to mona. theservicewas great and quite prompt. there was a wide selection on the menu, seafood and meat. it was totally enjoyable especially one can enjoy the view too.

a restaurant with a view,serviceand quality local produce.

we had our lunch here when the shadows on mona was going on, at the communal table. the following day we had breakfast having stayed over at the mona pavilions.

lunch was a interesting affair being on the communal table. we had to watch out where we place our glasses and cutlery but that doesn't reduce the flavour of the entree and mains.

the weather was really good as well and sitting in the shade with live music, nothing could beat that on a sunday afternoon!

recommended before or after a day of wandering in the mona!

when my husband and i visited hobart, we thought we’d give the source a go to make our mona visit more complete. as their website instructed, i had to call the restaurant to book a few days beforehand. although the process was smooth, i’d expected a modern fine dining restaurant at mona to have online reservation function on their website.

when we arrived on the sunday, we were greeted immediately by one of the waiters.servicefrom the staff and restaurant manager were good, but you’d expect nothing less from a restaurant like this. they came to top up our water frequently which was good. when we mentioned that we were planning to do wine tasting after lunch so we were not ordering any drinks, the female manager very kindly informed us that make sure we mention that we dined at the source so that the tasting is complimentary. we didn’t feel pressured to order drinks at the restaurant which was nice, and certainly appreciated her telling us about the complimentary tasting as it wasn’t stated anywhere on mona’s website.

we were not very hungry so decided to just order 2 entrées and 1 main to share. the restaurant, like most fine dining restaurants in australia, offers complimentary bread, which is sourced from the famous pigeon whole bakery in hobart.

for our first entrée, we had the seared scallops, textures of cauliflower, tomato & chorizo. the scallops were delicious! they were cooked and seared really well and really left us wanting for more. the cauliflower and puree were also flavoursome, and mixed really well with tomato & chorizo. again, they tasted so good that i think i wouldn’t mind getting another serve. the dish was well presented too. this was a great start to a meal and i’d really recommend this dish if you come here for lunch.

for our second entrée, we had the rabbit terrine, moorilla wine poached cherries, toast, leafy salad, capers, mustard. i had never tried rabbit terrine before so didn’t know what to expect. it was actually really nice and palatable. it tasted even better with a layer of mustard on top. we really enjoyed sharing it with some salad and bread. the wine poached cherries and didn’t leave any great impression though. the leafy salad was crunchy and the beetroot and capers really added extra texture and flavours to it. overall, it was a light and refreshing dish. if you are feeling a bit adventurous and open to something different, this is a good one to try.

for our main course, we had the cannelloni filled with leafy greens and pine nuts in creamy cheese sauce. presentation was not that impressive and there just looked to be an excessive amount of creamy cheese sauce on the plate. there were three cannelloni in total. the cannelloni pastry tasted fresh and house-made, and there were plenty of green fillings inside. however, we both felt that the creamy cheese sauce was too creamy and rich. to be honest, after the two impressive entrées, this dish was a bit underwhelming. there were way too much cheesy sauce on it and that’s all you could taste. i knew it would be creamy, but i had expected the taste to be more sophisticated and didn’t expect the creaminess to be that rich. nevertheless, if you are a fan of some really creamy cheese sauce, you probably will love this dish.

overall, i’d still recommend dining here if you visit mona. it may not be for everyone, but it’s definitely a dining experience worth trying to complete your mona experience.

we came for a late lunch on a weekday so there wasn't too many people at the restaurant. we were seated outside which had a lovely view on a sunny day. we ordered the lamb and wallaby with a side of potatoes. the food took a while to come out so we were starving by the time it did so you can imagine that we were not happy when we had to ask where our potatoes were. the waitress had a slightly surprised look on her face making it obvious that she had forgotten. she did not admit it and returned to say that it would be another ten minutes. so ridiculous that the side would come out once the main becomes cold. we were not impressed that she did not apologize. what made theserviceeven worse was that we had to flag the waitress every time we wanted something such as our water topped up. there was only two other tables at the time so i cannot imagine what it's like when it is busy. not impressed for the price we pay to dine here.

may 2017 review of museum cafe (2/5) - i was so surprised by the attitude of the staff at the cafe as the source & wine bar staff are exceptional. we had a team lunch of 17 & we were drip fed lunch orders. 5 ordered curries which instead of coming out at one time, was spaced out over 50 mins, with the last one being served after everyone has finished their meal. it appears that they microwave their food to heat up. all the curries are individually plated then microwaved to heat. i noticed that there was unusually large amount of steam coming out the curry however the food itself was not that hot. this also added to drying up the curry as they microwaved the food too long. we all had very dry pork curry, unpleasant to get through. they must also have one microwave for the amount of time it took to get to the table.

the waitstaff completely ignored us when we tried to inquire about the last dish that hasn't arrived ( classic avoidance of eye contace & attitude of i am too cool for this job to serve you). my tea cup had coffee stains on the side & when i requested a new cup i was met with "what's wrong with it!".

the food in the serving fridge looks fantastic however i am not keen on paying $18 for microwaved food.

2 star is for the stunning view & landscape of the courtyard. it was heavenly to sit outside to soak in the sun.

feb & may 2017 review of source restaurant - the food &servicewas exceptional. the creativity of the food served, coupled with the professionalservice& luxurious setting make the dining experience one to remember. i would go back again no question. we had a fantastic dinner & lunch experience.

for lunch we took the kids & they were very accommodating by preparing a meal for them (one had creamy pasta who said it was delicious & fish & chips for the other one). source is trending for me!

dec 2015 review of golden hour @ mona wine bar - i highly recommend this experience! i arrived to a beautiful communal table setting at the wine bar, and was greet by a welcoming host with a complimentary bubblies. my girlfriends & i opted only for the food option ($79 pp for 3 course) as we wanted to drive home, drinks package is another $50.

the food was elegant with earthy feel to it, no pretension. the food was yummy, plentiful & i enjoyed the sharing concept. i thought initally being seated so closely with strangers that my night would be stilted but it was a lovely intimate setting & we enjoyed ourselves.

the highlight was going to see the amarna (art exhibition), i appreciated the explanation of the art (as i am no expert in this area). it was a wonderful experience to be out in the open & exploring art work. we returned to have dessert & relished being inside (bring a warm jacket as exhibition is outside). i took a photo of the menu so i won't describe the food, except to say it was very good.

food : comforting yet elegant
service: warm & elegant
atmosphere: chic & modern

i would definitely go back!

very disappointing. 5 course degustation was below average. not seasoned and very bland. the worst was the tuna carpaccio. tasted like we were eating nothing...no flavour.servicewas below average. was really looking forward to it but disappointed. i hope it picks up its game. hobart deserves a place like this.

a "mona" is now my definition when i've expected better, been under whelmed and let down...

degustation "non-menu" oh puhlease... that's just a lazy chef unwilling to commit... proved true by the 5/7 dishes i had simply drenched in olive oil... what was it on sale?...

unimaginative dishes and no flavour variance,

andservicewas both pretentious and poor at the same time
servers having difficulty examining the dishes... at $150 per head... come on guys

but the pinnacle was the mater dei... hilariously up himself...
no patron should ever hear the head waiter disparage the diners to other wait and kitchen staff....

there's very few restaurants id never give a second chance... bit the source at mona made me not even want to give the gallery another visit...

it's chef is one i would now consciously avoid or good... ad only coaxed back with a while new team, concept, and brand....

don't waste your time, forget the money... it was worth it to come up with my new laughable word for an underwhelm ... a mona... at the source haha

tassie has way too many other better, more creative, tastier places to eat then here

excellent environment but disappointing staff and terrible chief.. the restaurant has a lovely view , you would not expect you spend over than hundred dollars and got this kind ofservice. when hungry do not go there . you do not want to waited for 30 minute to got your terrible dish.

fabulous. my husband and i had the seven course degustation - it was sensational! beautiful setting, flawlessserviceand an amazing meal. well above our expectations and as regular fine diners, one of the best places we have ever dined at. ask for the chocolate praline and the john dory - to die for! theservicewas truly impeccable. thank you for a wonderful evening and for printing out the menu for us! x s+p melbourne

we had a lovely evening.servicewas great - knowledge of food and wine exemplary. had a 5-course degustation which was just right. the company entertained with the bean bag collection with rohan! well done!

forgot to mention the breakfast. it was just food. such a shame.


-----28 jun, 2013-----

wednesday night at the source only allows for a degustation. even though our previous degustation efforts elsewhere have fallen short of our expectations we thought we'd give this a go. 5 courses later we left feeling utterly disappointed, hungry and very ripped off. theservicewas great, but seeing there was only one other couple in the whole establishment, it wouldn't have been hard. roomservicein the pavilions is not much better being also catered by the source. it's a shame the wine bar doesn't stay open for dinner - the food is fabulous.