The usually deserted main road morphs into a bustling market to rival the Queen Vic, with 80 stalls selling fresh local produce, entertainment and thousands of day-trippers from all over Victoria.

But when 1pm hits the street returns to its former eerie quiet - save for the Talbot Provedore and Eatery, opened in late 2016 by tree-changers chef Christopher Howe and photographer Jayne Newgreen.

"It's just crazy in here on market day," Ms Newgreen says. "People come after the market and watch Talbot return to the sleepy townscape that it is - the transformation is just incredible."

The provedore has attracted industry recognition, winning the 2017 Golden Plate award for best licensed cafe in both the state and the region, and is booked out most Saturday nights by locals and tourists.

This sort of revitalisation is, locals say, what the town needs.

In late 2013, a new VLine station was built, making Talbot the smallest town in Victoria with a train station and bringing with it high hopes for growth.

But its population has struggled to push past the 300 mark, dropping from 296 to 258 between 2006 and 2011, and making only a minor gain of 15 people by 2016, according to census data.

It comes down to something city dwellers take for granted - sewerage.

"We haven't got Talbot sewered and we need to because we just can't get the development," says Victorian Goldfields Tourism chair Chris Meddows-Taylor.

A Talbot local since 2002 and former Central Goldfields Shire councillor, Mr Meddows-Taylor says a sewerage system and the provision of natural gas would give the town a chance to grow.

"We've got vacant blocks sitting in the middle of the street because they're not big enough for septic tanks," Mr Meddows Taylor says.

Central Goldfields Shire - of which Talbot is a part - assesses planning applications not specifically on the size of the land, but on the suitability of the land to handle a septic tank.

Shire chief administrator Noel Harvey says a large number of vacant sites in Talbot are not suitable, and if they are, the extra cost to the prospective owner is a deterrent.

He says the shire has previously lobbied the state government for funding to get Talbot sewered.

"We will continue those plans going forward," Mr Harvey said. "Development of Talbot is constrained without sewerage."

Acting minister for regional development Ben Carroll says the government is committed to making sure towns have services they need.

"We will work with the Talbot community to identify what changes may be required in the future to ensure the infrastructure meets the population's needs," Mr Carroll says.

Mr Meddows-Taylor says more train services from Ballarat to Talbot - particularly on weekend mornings - would also help growth.

"The return of the rail service has been brilliant, but it's not at that full capacity to really support tourism," he says.

There are 24 VLine services to and from Talbot a week, with 10 of those added in January 2017. Patronage to and from Talbot rose from 904 in 2016 to 1242 in 2017, and Mr Meddows-Taylor says more services would further increase patronage.

She and Mr Howe moved to the town in 2010, after Mr Howe decided to study to become a chef. Paying a mortgage on their Glen Eira home while Mr Howe was doing an apprenticeship wasn't a viable option, so they set their eyes on the foodie region north west of Melbourne.

"We decided to get out, get into the country where we could buy a property and Christopher could go back and do his apprenticeship in Daylesford," Ms Newgreen says. "We saw a lot of potential in Talbot."

After a number of years working as a chef, Mr Howe started a catering company, and then the opportunity to take over the provedore came up.

Mr Howe says running a business in an out-of-the-way town of less than 300 people was a risk.

But what was once a simple community cafe has become a state-renowned restaurant and food store.

Along with their regular trade, they run seasonal degustation dinners in partnership with local wineries.

"If you were just opening a cafe, it doesn't add up, but if you put all of these facets together, suddenly the business model starts making sense," he says.

The success of the provedore has inspired other people in the area to open businesses - a new antique furniture store has opened next door and a doctor is looking to open a practice in the town.

"Once you plant that tree, the roots start to grow. We have locals who jokingly complain they can't get a park in the main street on a Saturday," Mr Howe says.

Mr Meddows-Taylor would like to see Talbot grow to a population of about 1000, and he says businesses such as the provedore not only help to bring tourists, but permanent residents.

"There's a real link between tourism product and quality life for communities."

He says the town has the potential to become a historical and foodie tourist destination - but for that to happen, it needs a sewerage system.

"Because we're in a growth corridor, because we've got a rail service - Talbot should be a priority," Mr Meddows-Taylor says. "What we have got here is the ideal model for small towns."

- Domain