Badger & Hare Cafe

On Stratford's main street, where the Princes Highway becomes Tyers Street, this cafe takes its cue from Melbourne's laneway culture and applies it to a Gippsland village. Coffee is the anchor: Dukes, the Richmond specialty roaster the owners first found on Flinders Lane, pulled with the care that earned the room a reputation as one of the region's better brews. The kitchen runs a seasonal menu built for a leisurely brunch or a long lunch, from toasties to house-made slices, and a small retail corner stocks local produce alongside the cafe's own sauces and preserves. It took out the Central Gippsland Business Tourism award for best cafe in 2019. Open most days, closed Wednesdays.