Authentic Italian casual dining in the wine garden at Saddler's Creek Wines, Pokolbin

Looking for a Hunter Valley winery with food? Mangia at Saddler's is the Italian kitchen at Saddler's Creek Wines, a Hunter Valley winery where food sits at the heart of the visit. Authentic Italian dishes served alfresco in the Pokolbin wine garden. Lunch Saturday and Sunday, early dinner Friday. The point was never just the wine. It was the table.

Book Wine and Chill

Casual lunch in the Hunter Valley, the Italian way

Looking for a casual lunch in the Hunter Valley without the white tablecloths? Mangia at Saddler's is authentic Italian casual dining. Handmade pasta, slow-cooked ragu and fresh seafood, the kind of cooking that takes hours to make, with weekly specials that make the most of seasonal ingredients. It is what locals keep coming back for, week after week. Nothing here gets rushed, except maybe a second serve of focaccia.

This is eating the Laureti family way. Long lunches, shared plates, kids on the lawn and conversation that outlasts the food. The wine garden fills with locals and weekenders alike, glasses of Saddler's Creek wine on every table.

A winery with outdoor dining, live music and room for everyone

Mangia serves in the alfresco wine garden at Saddler's Creek, with the vines in view and live music drifting through Friday evenings and Saturday afternoons. Pull up a chair in the winter sun, gather around the fire pit or settle in under the heaters with a blanket. And if the weather turns, move into the Barrel Room for a wine tasting, warm and dry while the rain does its thing. Child friendly and dog friendly, with vegetarian and gluten free options across the menu.

Every dish on the menu carries a suggested pairing from the Saddler's Creek list, printed right beside it. Take the suggestion with a glass or a bottle for the table, or ask the cellar door team what they would pour with it.

The Winter Menu

This is winter cooking the Italian way. Hearty, slow-cooked comfort food, rich ragus that have simmered all morning, golden fried seafood and sauces made for mopping up with focaccia. The menu below is a sample of the season, with specials changing weekly to make the most of the best ingredients coming through the kitchen door. Wine pairings are suggestions of what each dish pairs best with from the Saddler's list.

The Signature: Gnocchi with Signature Pork and Beef Ragu, 25

Chef Chiero's signature dish. Gnocchi rolled by hand, served with slow-cooked pork and beef ragu and 18 months Parmigiano Reggiano cream
Pair with 2023 Bluegrass Shiraz

Chef's Nonna Meatballs, 24 GF

Slow-cooked rich napoletana sauce, toasted rosemary focaccia
Pair with 2023 Bluegrass Cabernet Shiraz

Casarecce and Beef Cheek Ragu, 27

Fresh pasta with slow cooked beef cheek ragu, Tuscan Pecorino cheese
Pair with 2023 Bluegrass Cabernet Sauvignon

Baby Octopus "Alla Buzara", 24 GF

Slow-cooked baby octopus in a rich tomato sauce, chilli oil and grilled polenta
Pair with 2025 Single Suitcase Fiano

Fritto Misto di Pesce, 24 GF

King prawn, squid and whitebait with garlic aioli and lemon
Pair with 2022 Alessandro Reserve Semillon

Panzanella and Burrata Salad, 22 VG

Heirloom tomato, cucumber, red onion, aged grape must and croutons
Pair with 2025 Saddler's Rosé

Kids, sides and dessert

Kids Meal, 20. Chicken fingers, chips, soft drink and ice cream.
Seasoned Chips, 12 with chicken salt and ketchup. Rosemary Focaccia, 12, four pieces with EVOO and aged balsamic.
Tiramisu in a Jar, 16. Chef's signature homemade savoiardi, mascarpone, espresso.

Friday nights in the Hunter Valley: early dinner, sunsets and live music

Friday Sunsets is where the Hunter Valley weekend begins. The Mangia kitchen serves from 5.00pm to 7.30pm, live music plays from 5.00pm to 8.00pm and the wine garden does the rest. Come straight from work, bring the family or make it the first stop of your weekend away.

Book Friday Sunsets

Wine and Food Pairing Luncheon, Thursday to Sunday at 12pm

Mangia at Saddler's operates from the Airstream kitchen in the wine garden, but for the foodies, our classically trained chef offers something more. The wine and food pairing luncheon is a seated degustation held in the Barrel Room, Thursday to Sunday at 12pm. Chef Chiero's dishes matched course by course with Saddler's Creek wines, guided by the cellar door team.

The pairing changes with each seasonal wine focus. Right now it is the Bluegrass Wine and Food Pairing, three brackets of new and aged Bluegrass reds beside three hearty winter courses. From July it features the Alessandro Reserve new release wines. Bookings are essential.

Explore the Bluegrass Pairing

What's on at Saddler's Creek this weekend

Every weekend at Saddler's Creek runs to the same happy rhythm. Friday Sunsets with live music and Mangia from 5pm. Saturday lunch in the wine garden with live music from 12.30pm. Sunday lunch from 11.30am. Wine and food pairing luncheons Thursday to Sunday at 12pm, and wine tastings daily at the cellar door.

Plan your visit to Mangia at Saddler's, Pokolbin

Saddler's Creek Wines is at 15 Marrowbone Road, Pokolbin, in the heart of Hunter Valley wine country, about two hours from Sydney and forty minutes from Newcastle Airport. Taxis and Ubers are available locally.

Walk-ins are welcome. Wine and Chill runs any day the cellar door is open, reserve a free spot to be sure of a table. The Mangia kitchen serves Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and on other days you can order a cheese and charcuterie board with your tasting experience. Bookings are essential for the wine and food pairing luncheons. Mangia is alfresco and weather dependent. In winter, bring warm layers, we have blankets, heaters and a fire pit going, and if the weather closes in, wine tastings move into the Barrel Room. Kids and dogs are welcome. Sorry, no BYO alcohol.

For private functions, milestone birthdays or an intimate gathering in the Bluegrass Room, our team can curate a wine and food experience for you and up to 10 guests.

Enquire Now

Meet Chef Chiero, the Venetian chef behind Mangia

Mangia at Saddler's is led by Venetian born, classically trained Chef Mattia "Chiero" Secchiero. From the Airstream kitchen beside the wine garden, Chef Chiero crafts authentic Italian dishes with seasonal, locally sourced Hunter Valley produce. Handmade pasta, rustic antipasto and seafood the way his nonna would approve of, each plate made to sit beside a Saddler's Creek wine.

It is the Laureti family's Italian heritage on a plate. Food crafted with heart and soul, made for sharing.

Mangia at Saddler's FAQs

Where can I have a casual lunch in the Hunter Valley?

Mangia at Saddler's serves casual Italian lunch in the wine garden at Saddler's Creek Wines, Pokolbin, every Saturday and Sunday from 11.30am to 2.30pm. Expect fresh pasta, seafood and shared plates, each dish with a suggested Saddler's Creek wine pairing, and live music on Saturdays from 12.30pm.

Which Hunter Valley cellar doors do lunch?

Saddler's Creek Wines in Pokolbin serves lunch at the cellar door Saturday and Sunday through Mangia at Saddler's, its Italian kitchen in the wine garden. You can taste wines, stay for lunch and enjoy live music in one visit, with wine and food pairing luncheons Thursday to Sunday at 12pm.

Where can I eat in the Hunter Valley with kids or dogs?

Mangia at Saddler's in Pokolbin welcomes both. There is a kids meal of chicken fingers, chips, a soft drink and ice cream, lawns and picnic grounds for them to roam, and well-behaved dogs are welcome in the alfresco wine garden while you finish your glass.

What's on in the Hunter Valley on a Friday night?

Friday Sunsets at Saddler's Creek Wines, Pokolbin. The Mangia kitchen serves authentic Italian from 5.00pm to 7.30pm and live music plays from 5.00pm to 8.00pm in the wine garden. It is a relaxed early dinner that eases you into the Hunter Valley weekend.

Do I need to book or can I walk in?

Walk-ins are welcome at Mangia at Saddler's. To guarantee a table, reserve a free Wine and Chill spot, it runs any day the cellar door is open and you simply pay for what you eat and drink. Bookings are essential for the wine and food pairing luncheons in the Barrel Room.

Is Saddler's Creek dog friendly?

Yes. Saddler's Creek Wines is dog friendly and child friendly. The wine garden and picnic grounds are alfresco, so well-behaved dogs on leads are welcome to join you for lunch or a Friday evening.

Where can I do a degustation lunch in the Hunter Valley?

Saddler's Creek Wines in Pokolbin holds a wine and food pairing luncheon in the Barrel Room, Thursday to Sunday at 12pm. It is a seated degustation where Chef Chiero's dishes are matched course by course with Saddler's wines, currently the Bluegrass pairing, featuring the Alessandro Reserve new release from July.

Does Mangia at Saddler's have gluten free options?

Yes. Several of Chef Chiero's signature dishes are gluten free, including the Nonna Meatballs, Baby Octopus Alla Buzara and Fritto Misto di Pesce, and the menu marks every gluten free dish. Vegetarian options are available too, so mixed tables are easy.

How do I get to the Hunter Valley from Sydney?

Saddler's Creek Wines is about a two hour drive north of Sydney, at 15 Marrowbone Road, Pokolbin, and forty minutes from Newcastle Airport. Taxis and Ubers operate locally if you would rather not drive between cellar doors.

Last updated Friday 5th June 2026