Visiting from the US I was sort of surprised as the lack of service at restaurants in Australia. The first few days I held on to the opinion that good service, even decent service, wasn't a thing there.
Then we stumbled into this place. We actually wanted to try the Thai place next door, but when the hostess ignored us for a while, then told us there was no room, with an empty restaurant, we decided to try The Lumberjack Trading Co. next door.
The place was busy but the owner/manager moved some stuff around and sat us. The waitress came over promptly, was nice, took our order and got us drinks quick. Our son had fun running around the courtyard with other kids while we relaxed.
The food was fine, the drinks were cold. I watched as the owner made the rounds, checking in on people, refilling drinks himself, and did so happily. It was nice to see a guy that invested in his business and clients.
We will head back to AU next year, and when we spend time in Manley we will stop by here again for sure. read more