Chef Rick and maitre de Vonne Heinrich have weathered the culinary storms over three decades, an incredible feat in a trade where restaurants and cafes come and go as quickly as fine weather in Melbourne.

Vonne and Rick said dining has changed significantly since they bought the weatherboard cafe in the western Victorian town of Halls Gap in the Grampians National Park in October 1979.

``When we first opened the restaurant we were seen as fine dining and this was what customers, both local and visitors, wanted in the 1980s and early 1990s,'' Vonne said.

Vonne said the dining experience has changed so much since they first opened they have overhauled the menu several times to suit new styles of customers, especially domestic and international tourists.

Guests once ate three courses and drank bottles of wine. Thirty years on those same people are eating one course with a glass of wine.

``But with the increase in backpacking and travelling on a budget we've really had to change the price and content of the menu, as well as the feel of the dining room, to cater to that market,'' she said.

``Things like beer on tap and offering pub-style meals have been just some of the big changes at The Kookaburra over the years.''

Rick said he was never going to compromise on flavour so menu changes always toe the famous Kookaburra line of robust flavours and bushwalker-size serves.

``We'll never give that up as that is what we are known for, especially with the locals,'' he said.

``It's really important to us to provide value-for-money but even with our pub-style meals, our traditional fine dining values are still at the core. We want our customers to walk out knowing they've had a fantastic feed without maxing out the credit card.''

The Heinrichs bought the Kookaburra Cafe in October 1979 and quickly made a name providing the district with fabulous food. Menu staples such as the now-famous baked duckling, venison steak and spinach pie put the restaurant on the map with many years of Age Good Food Guide entries.

Vonne and Rick said they couldn't put a figure on how many plates they've served and how many customers have come through the doors over the past 30 years.

``I don't think we'd want to, it might be a bit of a shock,'' Rick confessed.