The Boathouse & Maribyrnong River Trail

7 The Blvd

Moonee Ponds 3039

ph (03) 9375 2456

Perched on the banks of the Maribyrnong River is The Boathouse; a haven for dog lovers and those who love the great outdoors.  

'The Boathouse is a collaboration between Gary Mehigan judge and co-host of Channel Ten’s hugely successful MasterChef series and partner Steve Bogdani with a vision to share life’s simple pleasures done really well.

The Boathouse is dog-friendly in the sense that it caters for dogs by providing an area to leash them, but they are not permitted in the actual alfresco area. We usually have the dogs right at our feet, so even though we sat on the seats right near the leashed area, I would've felt more comfortable if they were right with us as per our normal cafe experiences. Many people always approach our dogs wanting to meet them and as responsible pet owners, we want to facilitate that meeting so the dogs (or humans in some cases!) socialise appropriately. I found myself continually leaving the table, weaving under the balcony and to the leash area for this. When they weren't meeting and greeting new humans and dogs, the girls were happy rummaging through the sticks and leaves ;)

Gypsy's lead is attached to a long wire which she can move up and down on right in front of our table.

We met one lovely reader of our blog who approached the dogs and she was as excited to meet the dogs as they were to meet her ;) It is always lovely to meet people who appreciate our blog. We love sharing dog-friendly places with families with dogs and importantly, we feel a strong passion for spreading awareness about animal welfare issues also. 

Back to the Boathouse brunch.....

River Run Breakfast

Breakfast Pizza

Brunch at the Boathouse finishes at 11:30am on Sunday, so don't sleep in then venture out for a 'Lazy Sunday' brunch, expecting to be served eggs later in the day here! It is not unlike us to be venturing to brunch closer to 'lunch' on Sundays, so fortunately we made an earlier start on this particular day, and were able to be served eggs in the form of poached on the 'Breakfast Pizza' and scrambled on the 'River Run Breakfast' plate ;)

After brunch, we ventured along the Maribyrnong River Trail near the Boathouse. We walked a lovely circuit along both sides of the river, alongside many other dogs ;) Gypsy loved springing like a rabbit in and out of the river reeds along the bank and Poppet of course, was walking close by us on the pathway ;) 

If you don't like leaving your dogs leashed up, opt for a take away coffee @ The Boathouse and enjoy the river trail with your dog. Alternatively, we did see others leave The Boathouse with fresh muffins to eat on their bench seats overlooking the river ;) 

The Boathouse is pinned. We followed the Maribyrnong River up to Riverside Park where there is a walking bridge to cross to the other side. We then followed the River all the way up to Raleigh Rd.