Melbourne’s reputation as one of the world’s most exciting food cities is no surprise to anyone whose found themselves wandering its leafy streets, cobbled laneways, and diverse suburbs.
You don’t need to go far to find incredible food in Melbourne; the city is alive with culinary energy, whether it’s in the crowds gathered excitedly around one of the celebrated eateries hiding around every corner, the staggering breadth of authentic cuisines on offer, or the aromas of deliciousness that greet you with every step.
From market traders hawking a single beloved dish to fine dining institutions showcasing native Australian ingredients and world class wine lists, Melbourne’s food scene has something for everyone.
With so many exciting opportunities for deliciousness, it’s difficult to know where to start. To make it (a little) easier, we asked our Culinary Wonderland chefs, cooks and team to recommend their favourite essential Melbourne food spots.
OUR CHEFS’ TOP PICKS
Recommended by George Calombaris
From the 55th storey of Melbourne’s towering Rialto building, Vue De Monde looks out at the city below. Fitting for a restaurant that’s been at the very sharpest edge of the city’s culinary knife for almost two decades. Executive Chef Hugh Allen, who spent three years on the pans at multiple ‘World’s Best Restaurant’ Award-winning restaurant Noma, puts the ‘modern’ in modern Australian cuisine, treating the finest ingredients (caviar, marron, wagyu…) with both respect and playfulness. With plenty of theatre, and an unbeatable wine list littered with some of the world’s finest drops, this is what George Calombaris calls “the ultimate high-end dining experience.” While this Melbourne institution is currently closed for renovations, don’t fret - Vue de Monde will be back serving the finest food Melbourne has to offer by September 2023.
Recommended by Andrew McConnell
No discussion about fine dining in Melbourne is complete without a lengthy tribute to this Chinatown institution, delivering old-school Cantonese food and hospitality with timeless charm. At home on Market Lane since the 1980s, Flower Drum offers superlative takes on familiar Chinese dishes like soup dumplings, Peking duck and stir-fries, all executed with the kind of unparalleled intricacy and care you’d expect from a restaurant that’s been at the top of its game for 40 years. While classics are well represented, there’s no shortage of inventiveness either; noodles made of wild barramundi tossed with tangerine, and the Scotch egg that wraps a flavourful ‘century egg’ in minced quail meat are popular stand-outs (and Instagram favourites). Banquets are a great option for first-timers, and the wine list, like the menu, is lengthy and full of highlights, so bring plenty of friends.
Recommended by Ben Bayly
Seasonal, locally-sourced ingredients, flavours inspired by countless international cuisines, and a skillful deployment of native Australian ingredients; Amaru nails the complicated ‘modern Australian’ brief. Think mussels filled with wild pine mushroom XO topped with shaved abalone, or lightly cured coral trout with fermented coastal herbs and smoked cherry tomatoes. “[Amaru] epitomises Australian hospitality in the suburbs of Melbourne,” chef Ben Bayly of Auckland’s famed Ahi restaurant says about the pared-back Armadale dining room. Overseen by ex-Vue De Monde chef Clinton McIver, the offering at Amaru manages to be thrilling, elevated and inventive while remaining comforting and familiar.
Ras Dashen Ethiopian Restaurant
Recommended by Shannon Bennett
Few suburbs in the country offer as diverse a collection of culinary options than Footscray. Long a hub for Vietnamese and other South-East Asian cuisines, the inner western suburb has diversified in recent years, and is now home to countless family-run restaurants offering the flavours of Africa, South America, Eastern Europe and beyond. Ethiopian institution Ras Dashen is one of chef Shannon Bennett’s favourites, with its “spicy stews, braised vegetable dishes, pickles and imported Ethiopian beers.” If that’s not your flavour, Bennett believes you don’t have to venture far for a good feed; “I could name 20 places in Footscray I highly recommend or want to try!”
Recommended by Shannon Bennett
Melbourne is a town that loves its noodles. Alongside dumplings, steaming bowls of starchy, sauce-coated noodles have become the unofficial dish of the CBD, with countless eateries in Chinatown and beyond amassing crowds hungry for cheap-but-cheerful bowls. Biang Biang, at the top-end of bustling Elizabeth Street, is chef Shannon Bennett’s favourite of the bunch. One of a small chain, Biang Biang offers not only hand-pulled noodles – including the chilli-topped namesake Biang Biang noodles – but a few surprises as well. “I come here for the Rougamo,” Bennett says. “It’s an Asian version of a burger; a grilled flaky pastry bun sandwiching pulled lamb and cumin. So good.”
HONOURABLE MENTIONS
From the Culinary Wonderland team
Carlton is the beating heart of Melbourne’s thriving Italian community, the streets practically humming with the sound of garlic sizzling in olive oil. And while there’s plenty of places to grab a bite of pasta or pizza, few beckon as loudly as Capitano. It’s as familiar, joyous and comforting an experience as Italian food can be, but the mantra here is freshness. Seasonal, locally-sourced ingredients are treated with kindness and care, artfully combined into all your favourites; bone-in veal parma, vodka sauce and clam sauce mopped up with focaccia once the house-made pasta’s been eaten, and pizza that will make you cry happy, garlicky tears.
Nobody has done more to secure Melbourne’s position as one of the world’s great food cities than Culinary Wonderland contributing chef Andrew McConnell. With countless restaurants throughout the city and inner suburbs to his name, including Cutler and Co., Cumulus Inc. and Gimlet, everything McConnell touches seems to turn to gold. Nowhere is the celebrated chef’s talents for devising clever, on-trend, delicious menus more on show – or more fun - than at Supernormal. The slick diner’s menu features a liberal deployment of Asian flavours - the snacks alone feature cameos from South Korean kimchi, Chinese Szechuan pepper and Japanese nori – and yet Supernormal’s most famous plate is its New England-inspired lobster roll. It all goes to prove that flavour, like Andrew McConnell’s impact, knows no boundaries.
Brunch. To Melbournians, it’s a religion. A weekend isn’t complete without a mid-morning plate of eggs and avocado on crunchy sourdough, or a bowl of something nourishing. Brunch options abound around every corner, but few are as widely celebrated as Three Bags Full in Abbotsford on the edge of Melbourne’s inner north. Tuck into a Belgian-style waffle, indulge in a full Turkish breakfast or get the weekend off to a fiery start with the Three Bags Full’s infamous chilli eggs. Our pick? The ‘super bowl’; a rare combination of healthy and utterly delicious, especially when you add halloumi.
Melbourne’s laneways are beloved by locals and a must-see for tourists, covered in incredible street art and crammed full of world-class bars, cafes and restaurants. And while there are plenty to choose from, few of these laneway restaurants epitomise the cool, dim, ‘look what I just found’ slickness more than Gingerboy. Culinary Wonderland contributing chef Teage Ezard’s stylish South-East Asian hawker-style menu is punchy and packed with flavourful suprises, from the whole crisp-fried red snapper with its roasted red chilli dressing to the finger-licking, mouth-punching salt and pepper chicken ribs. But few dishes encapsulate Gingerboy’s indominable style better than its famous son-in-law eggs; a whole egg, fried until crispy, coated with sweet/spicy chilli jam and best eaten in one explosive mouthful.
When the team at Pidapipo need more honey to craft their daily batch of made-from-scratch gelato, they just need to pop up and visit the hive set up on their roof - a testament to how far this celebrated purveyor of frozen treats will go to create the best tasting gelato they can. But the bees aren’t the only thing buzzing about this beloved Italian Lygon Street ice creamery; so do the eager sweet-tooths making a beeline to Pidapipo every day (and night). Inspired both in flavour and fit-out by the terrazzo-lined gelatarias of coastal Italy, you might find your cone filled with traditional flavours like fior di latte, pistachio or chocolate (of course), or something with a more local touch… vanilla and roof-sourced honeycomb anyone?
MoVida
There was a time, believe it or not, when Melbourne’s laneways weren’t the iconic, restaurant-filled landmarks they are today. Then came MoVida, and everything changed. Frank Camorra’s iconic Spanish tapas bar has expanded its empire to include a clutch of other eateries, but the original remains one of the quintessential Melbourne experiences. Pay homage to the OG by downing anchovy-draped snacks with a glass of aged Spanish sherry, sipping sangria with a plate of creamy caramel flan, or sharing a bottle of red from Rioja as you work your way through one of the generous set menus, then step out into stunningly colourful Hosier Lane and marvel at the cultural impact MoVida has had.
INSIDER TIPS FOR DINING IN MELBOURNE
The Melbourne dining scene has something to suit all appetites and tastes, whether you’re looking for a quick, affordable bowl of something warm, or a sprawling, wine-matched feasting experience with friends (as well as anything in between).
Making the most of the city’s incredible dining options can be intimidating, but by following a few simple guidelines you can turn even the quickest Melbourne trip into a culinary tour de force.
These are our top insider tips for dining out in Melbourne:
- Plan ahead. With so many options, choosing a restaurant on the spot can be overwhelming. Do some research beforehand and make a list of restaurants that you're interested in trying (obviously we recommend starting with the restaurants we’ve listed above!).
- Try different cuisines. Melbourne is a multicultural city, and its dining scene reflects that. Don't be afraid to try something new and explore the city's diverse range of cuisines.
- If possible, book ahead. As a city known for its excellent food, dining out is high on the list of priorities for both locals and tourists, and tables fill up fast- especially at dinner and weekend brunch sessions.
- Be aware that Melbournians aren’t afraid to queue for food. If you’re set on dining in one of the city’s many walk-in only restaurants that doesn’t take reservations, be prepared to wait a while.
- Don't be afraid to ask for recommendations. If you're having trouble deciding what to order or are looking for a recommendation, don't hesitate to ask your server or sommelier. They can often provide valuable insights and suggestions based on your preferences. Or…
- Don’t know what to order? Let the staff decide! Many of Melbourne’s favourite restaurants offer a set menu, banquet or ‘Feed Me’ option, where the kitchen fills your table with course after course of their favourite dishes without you having to make a single decision.
- Venture out of the CBD! Some of Melbourne’s best food is tucked away in the suburbs, often only a few minutes’ tram ride away. Hubs like Lygon Street, Smith Street and Gertrude Street are all easily accessible, each have their own distinct feel and are home to a stunning mix of bars, restaurants and cafes.
- Leave some time before or after your meal to explore. No matter how much research you’ve done, there’s something new and undiscovered around every corner, perfect for that pre-dinner tipple or post-meal stomach settler.
- Be prepared for the weather. Melbourne's weather can be unpredictable and changeable, so be sure to check the forecast before heading out. If you're dining at a restaurant with outdoor seating, consider bringing a jacket or umbrella just in case.
- Check for dietary restrictions. If you have any dietary restrictions or preferences, be sure to take a look the menu beforehand or let your server know when you arrive. Most restaurants in Melbourne cater to different dietary needs, but it’s always a good idea to make sure before you visit.
- Enjoy the experience! Dining out in Melbourne is not just about the food; it's also about the ambiance, the company, and the overall experience. Take your time, savour each bite, and enjoy your time in one of the world’s great food cities.