Inside, the new Chris’s Restaurant matches its surroundings, with sandstone floors and polished native redgum and blackwood timber. The main dining room radiates around a polished brushbox log over eight metres high, like the centre-pole of a marquee, giving the room a light and airy feel. The floor-to ceiling windows bring the Otways close in.
At sunset the lights of Apollo Bay come on, and at night the lighting around “Chris’s” illuminates the ferns and the manna gums (where koalas often feed). The different floor levels give almost every table a good view. There is a wood fire to greet diners in winter, and the specially glazed windows retain the warmth in cold weather. In summer, when it can be hot, even up on the hill, the restaurant is air-conditioned.
