My love of road trip pies and general baked savoury goods should be reasonably well established by now.
I love that feeling of stepping out of the car after several hours of hurtling down the highway for brief few moments on terra firma and a pit stop snack.
A little while back, a friend sensed my need for a coastal saltwater baptism and suggested a morning surf, down towards Torquay. This makes me sound like I know what I’m doing, but in truth, it was the first time I’ve stood up on a surfboard in about fifteen years – Gidget I am not (though there’s still time, I tell myself).
It’s what I love, though, about Melbourne. Sure, it’s not Sydney-esque in terms of proximity to pristine beach breaks, but the upside is that nature is on your doorstep in every direction.
Anyway, I digress.
Freshwater Creek General Store has snacktastic surprises up its sleeve. Picture: Melissa Leong
After a morning in the brine, skin seasoned with sea salt and soul refreshed, we stop at the Freshwater servo for what I am promised is the best sausage roll in these parts.
The claim isn’t wrong. What looks like a regular country-stop servo turns out to be… a regular country-stop servo. But with one difference: those pastries in the pie warmer are made in-house with a heap of care and skill.
Flaky, buttery pastry encases a perfectly bouncy, well-seasoned sausage centre: just add your own squeezie sauce packet and it’s roadside snack heaven. There are also legit-looking samosas and pies on offer, but that’ll have to remain a story for another time.
Sitting on the tailgate of my mate’s ute, legs dangling and hunger quelled, these moments of simple joy really can’t be beat when it comes to life’s most memorable food experiences.
Freshwater Creek General Store is located at 670 Anglesea Rd, Freshwater Creek, Vic.
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