The Rollonin Cafe is a beautiful slab hut Cafe operated in historic Bowning NSW. Located just West of Yass on the Hume Highway, we offer great food, freshly made to order, awesome Illy coffee and good old fashioned service.

Set in a 'Slab Hut' designed and built to replicate local buildings from the 1800's, the Rollonin Cafe offers an authentic country experience for everybody. Visitors travel back in time with the interior walls lined with newspapers dated back from the early 1900's and a beautiful cottage garden surrounding the cafe.

There is truly something for everyone to enjoy. Ever popular with families, you will often find kids outside meeting some of the farm animals including Clancy the Clydesdale, Eddy the Donkey and Woolly the Sheep, just to name a few that are close enough to pat. All while Mum and Dad enjoy a coffee and bite to eat while taking a break from the car or simply catching up with friends. We have plenty of undercover eating area’s outside in the fresh country air.

A beautiful rustic outdoor function area, with wood a wood fired pizza oven for all those special occasions for example Weddings, Birthday Parties and Family Reunions, bookings are essential.

We also sell homemade Jams, Candles, Scarfs, Crafts and Jewellery that make the perfect gifts.

Only 10 minutes from Yass and seconds from the Hume Highway, it is an ideal place to have that something special with all your loved ones or lunch on a road trip or simply catch up with friends. So come and enjoy a True Blue Country Cafe experience, here at the Farm Cafe.

Our Story

This replica of an old slab hut from the pioneering days of Australia was our dream project for a long time, developing the plans for the building, envisaging the business. Tony Ryan, as owner builder, constructed the building, with the constant help of John Elliot, along the way solving all manner of engineering and construction obstacles. They were often helped by two other men, Wayne Whiles and Bill McEwan, each one always ready to lend a hand and do what it took to get the café up and running.

The whole project took three years to complete. It took 12 months to get approval through council. During this time we they were busy sourcing and gathering material to get the right effect. The men spent many weeks and hours pulling down sheds and an old house just to gain the tin for the rustic look of the roof. There are approximately four-and-a-half thousand bricks in the front and back verandahs alone. These bricks were gathered from local paddocks where old buildings had once stood. Some had to be dug up, by hand and even by tractor. After they were gathered there was the mammoth task of cleaning them, by hand, one by one, to remove dirt and mortar. The timber slabs all came from a Tumut saw mill, which sounds easy. But once again it took many trips to the mill and hours and hours sorting through piles of slabs, which Tony refers to as being like piles of pickup sticks or matchsticks. The slabs he needed all had to be long enough, wide enough and in reasonable condition.

Construction commenced in January 2007 with the levelling of the site. The café was halfway to completion when Tony was diagnosed with stage IV Melanoma. This set the building and opening of the café back a few weeks. However, having this project gave Tony something else to think about and took his mind off his illness. He was so determined to finish and open the café.

The Rollonin Cafe officially opened for business on Monday 8th December 2008. All Tony's hard work & dedication went into building this cafe whilst battling Melanoma what a true inspiration to this wonderful man, sadly Tony lost his battle on the 9th July 2012, to this hideous disease, The wishing well in the back garden was built by Tony’s Son Richard and Tony's brother Paul in honour of Tony. Please have regular skin checks it could just save your life!

They had been given a tremendous amount of help and support in building the café for all to enjoy and will be forever grateful to all those who donated their time, labor and building material.  

Before you leave make sure you check out the hand basin in the bathroom. It’s another Tony Ryan original and as you can see in the history section of this website what inspired us to create the Rollonin Cafe.