I like shopping at this store. Unlike Baby Bunting, you get personalised service and care from the staff. While the store does not stock everything like bigger baby stores do, the quality and range of products the do stock is excellent. Where a product is not stocked, they are quite happy to order it in specially for you. They have a playpen area for kids to play in while you shop. I enjoy coming to Bugalugs for a browse and usually leave with at least one purchase.

I really like Nonna's Kitchen. They are bringing a level of class back to dining in Mt Barker. They provide really nice food in a classy premises. The service cannot be faulted and you get service with a smile. I feel valued when I dine here. They are welcoming of children and understanding of little spills.

I have mixed feelings about this medical centre. I have found the doctors to be good, some of them excellent. However, I struggle to like the clinic in general. The reception staff greet you without a smile and you feel like you are one in a long line of people, not a valued client. The waiting room is large with nice play areas for children but I really don't like the large TV screen playing adverts for local businesses and information and rules for attending the clinic. It feels tacky having in-clinic advertising and I dislike being preached to constantly about the do's and don'ts for attending the clinic. I don't mind waiting to see a good doctor but it can be frustrating to wait 45 minutes and then be told that there is an emergency underway. I would have had the opportunity to reschedule if I'd known that when I checked in at the front desk.
Overall, I don't feel like a valued client but with such a shortage of doctors in the hills, I don't have a great deal of choice.

I took family here for a bistro meal and was pleasantly surprised at the quality and value of the food on offer. I ordered the salt and pepper squid with chips and salad and the squid was really tender and seasoned perfectly. The chips were great. Someone else ordered the chicken schnitzel with the fat boy topping - you definitely have to try that one! The hotel does smell strongly of cigarettes after years of smoking before indoor smoking was banned but after a while I was used to it. The service was efficient and the seats comfortable. I'd go there again.

The Mt Barker Fodder Store has been around for a long time but I refuse to shop there any more. They have a long history of selling many different farm and pet animals in very basic to unsatisfactory conditions. My parents bought a kitten there when I was a child. He had chronic diarrhoea, a heavy worm burden and was not vet checked or vaccinated. As a teenager, I used to go in and buy the pregnant guinea pigs to try to rescue them from the overcrowded conditions knowing that they would fall pregnant again straight away because they were housed with all ages of males and females. It was common to see newly born guinea pigs being trampled by frightened older guinea pigs. Today, you will find rabbits sweltering in the heat on summer days with no protection from myxomatosis which is spread by mosquitos. You will see birds in overcrowded conditions and kittens being born to their own undesexed cat and sold later on without vaccinations or vet checks. Puppies at least do get a vet check and vaccination. Friends have purchased cage birds from this establishment and have been sold the wrong gender because staff didn't know how to sex the birds correctly. Compared to other pet shops and agricultural suppliers, the Mt Barker Fodder Store is more expensive. In Winter time, the driveway gets muddy and potholes fill up with water.
Go elsewhere for your pets and supplies! I refuse to give my business to the Mt Barker Fodder Store. There are other businesses with far better ethics, better housing and conditions for the live animals that they sell and better prices.

I was told about Langseeds Rural by my sister who purchases farming supplies from this business. I wanted to purchase a few point of lay hens for my backyard and Langseeds had the best price on POL Isa Browns. They happily put three hens on hold for me over the phone. I was helped by some (handsome) and helpful young men who loaded my car with chook pellets and the box of hens. The hens had already started laying and were so tame and friendly. Compared with what the local fodder store was offering, Langseeds' hens were well cared for, tame and far better priced.
Of course Langseeds sells far more than hens, being an agricultural supplier of seeds (as their name suggests), stock feed, fencing supplies and much much more. I would happily go back for any future hens and recommend Langseeds.

Approximate cost: $16.50 per POL pullet

Lovely homely cafe in a cottage with several areas to sit and eat and drink. The staff are friendly and welcoming, the food and drinks are delicious (try the chai latte with honey and a real cinnamon stick). The cafe is full of art, craft and jewellery made by local artists, most of it available for sale. Recently the cafe showcased extra art during The Fringe, bringing a lot of colour and interest to the town. You can sit in the lounge room, the dining room or outside on the porch. The cafe makes full meals as well as the usual cakes, biscuits and drinks. Definitely a relaxing experience and well worth going.

Wow! What amazing pizzas! Crisp thin-crust, fresh toppings, cooked to perfection! These are the best pizzas I've ever eaten and that's not an exaggeration. I always find pizzas to be too salty and feel like I need to drink loads of water afterwards but not with Gordo's Pizza.

This cafe ticks all the boxes for me as a parent of a toddler! The cafe has a separate room with a large children's play area with lots of toys, books and play equipment. I don't like to feel shut away from the rest of the clientele because I have a child and this parents and children's area doesn't make you feel like that at all. It has the feel of being a special place where you don't have to worry if your child is making too much noise and my daughter was having so much fun playing that I was able to sit down and really enjoy my meal. And the food...! I had the most wonderful hot chocolate that wasn't overpoweringly sweet or chocolateley (if there's such a word!) The glass was swirled with melted chocolate inside and came with real chocolate shavings on top of the froth and a chocolate dipped teaspoon! I had to have another just to try the honeycomb hot chocolate option and it was equally wonderful and moreish! The big breakfast was cooked to perfection with Kanmantoo bacon - you really can taste the difference by the way - and a doorstop piece of toast. They have a kids breakfast menu so that you can order a smaller serve to suit littlies. I thoroughly recommend this cafe to everyone, especially parents!

Approximate cost: $16

While Subaru Sushi & Noodle Bar sell fresh sushi, they are much much more, selling a huge range of Japanese takeaway and Chinese style dishes. You can eat in although there are only a few tables and it's more of a takeaway place than a restaurant. The food is always delicious, prepared to perfection and the serves are HUGE! You certainly get a big feed for your money yet they definitely aren't sacrificing quality for quantity. This is the only takeaway place in Mt Barker that I want to go back to again and again.

Approximate cost: $12.00