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$$ | Fitzroy |
Charcoal Lane is a social enterprise restaurant providing vulnerable young people with an opportunity to transform their lives by gaining a traineeship in the restaurant business. The inventive menu includes many Australian bushland ingredients, and the dishes have an Aboriginal influence. Named after a song by acclaimed Aboriginal singer/songwriter Archie Roach, it is housed in the former health service community center, dubbed Charcoal Lane by the many Aboriginal people, who for decades would drop in and swap stories and wisdom. They might include starters of roasted emu fillet or a wild food tasting plate of native produce. Mains include wallaby wrapped in Parma ham and pumpkin and wattleseed gnocchi. Desserts also have a "bush tucker" influence.
136 Gertrude St., Melbourne, Victoria, 3065, Australia
Known For
- <PRO>feel-good dining</PRO>
- <PRO>native meats</PRO>
- <PRO>chic decor</PRO>
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Sun. and Mon., Credit cards accepted
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$$ | City Center |
Shared plates of Southeast Asian dishes form the basis of Chin Chin's popular menu. Modeled on hawker-style dining, come for early or late for lunch or dinner to avoid the rush. Otherwise, kill your wait time over a cocktail at the Go Go Bar downstairs---DJs set the tone late into the night Wednesday to Sunday.
125 Flinders La., Melbourne, Victoria, 3000, Australia
Known For
- Kingfish sashimi
- Feed Me menu
- Sophisticated curries
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Reservations not accepted
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$$ | Carlton |
A major player in Melbourne's pizza wars, D.O.C. has perfected the art of using fresh, simple ingredients to create something special. The real treat lies in the pizza of the day. One with Ubriaco Amarone cheese, Romana artichokes, smoked toasted almonds, radicchio, and shaved Parmesan might be on offer, or perhaps another with Petrilli passata, garlic, artisan stracciatella, Cantabrico anchovies, and basil (around A$25). Whatever is in season or comes in, they will use. A chocolate pizza is at the ready for those with a sweet tooth. They also have a delicatessen around the corner (330 Lygon Street), which could be a good option for a packed lunch, and there's other locations in Southbank and the picturesque seaside town of Mornington.
295 Drummond St., Melbourne, Victoria, 3053, Australia
Known For
- Pizza specials
- Mozzarella degustation
- Passionate service
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$$ | St. Kilda |
With its blazing fires, artfully smoky walls, and striking, art deco–ish wrought-iron ceiling lights, this three-decade-old restaurant has a lived-in, neighborly look. The food is good, its Australian wine is taken very seriously, and the kitchen is open until late each night.
54 Acland St., Melbourne, Victoria, 3182, Australia
Known For
- <PRO>live music</PRO>
- <PRO>shared plates</PRO>
- <PRO>local favorite</PRO>
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Credit cards accepted
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$$$ | City Center |
Chef Teage Ezard's adventurous—and often exhilarating—take on fusion pushes the boundaries between Eastern and Western flavors. As with all upscale restaurants these days, there's an eight-course tasting menu (A$185 per person, vegetarian and vegan options available) featuring mouthwatering steamed scallop dumplings with aged hon mirin dressing. On weekdays an à la carte option is offered, but on weekends the choice is between either the tasting menu or the fixed-price three-course menu.
187 Flinders La., Melbourne, Victoria, 3000, Australia
Known For
- <PRO>inspired seafood</PRO>
- <PRO>Ezard 45 weekday lunch set menu (A$45)</PRO>
- <PRO>indulgent dessert</PRO>
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Sun. No lunch Sat., Credit cards accepted, Reservations essential
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Recommended Fodor’s Video
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$$ | St. Kilda |
With a philosophy of celebrating local produce, Fitzrovia is known for fresh flavors with a European twist. The building, one of Melbourne's historical mansions overlooking Albert Park, is suitably grand while the food is hearty and sophisticated. Upmarket all-day dining and friendly service give the café a welcoming attitude, and a brunch cocktail is always worth consideration.
2/155 Fitzroy St., Melbourne, Victoria, 3812, Australia
Known For
- Vegetarian-friendly dishes
- Door-stop sandwich (bacon, mozzarella, and pear relish)
- Laid-back lunches
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: No dinner
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$$$ | City Center |
Touted as the city's best Japanese restaurant, Hanabishi sits in slightly seedy King Street, an area known for its bars, club venues, and occasionally unsavory clientele. With wooden floors, blue walls, and traditional ceramic serving trays, Hanabishi is the playground of Osakan chef Akio Soga, whose seasonal menu includes such gems as abalone sashimi and aburi salmon. There are long lists of hot and chilled sake and wines, ranging from reasonable to pricey.
187 King St., Melbourne, Victoria, 3000, Australia
Known For
- <PRO>bento boxes</PRO>
- <PRO>vegetarian menu</PRO>
- <PRO>Wagyu beef</PRO>
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Sun. No lunch Sat., Credit cards accepted, Reservations essential
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$$ | Brunswick East |
Owned by well-known TV chef George Calombaris, Hellenic Republic pays homage to Calombaris's Greek heritage, creating a lively taverna type setting with a focus on communal food. We suggest the Masa Menu (A$55), which consists of numerous courses including meat from the omnipresent spit, whose mouthwatering scent envelopes the room upon entering. Naturally the friendly staff will try to entice you into having a sip of ouzo, and since everyone else seems to be doing it, we suggest you do, too. There are also Hellenic Republic locations in Williamstown, Brighton, and Kew.
434 Lygon St., Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Known For
- <PRO>slow-roasted meat</PRO>
- <PRO>incredible spanakopita</PRO>
- <PRO>friendly service</PRO>
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: No lunch Mon.–Thurs.
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$ | City Center |
Designed to showcase the building's warehouse origins, Krimper's design is rough-hewn but warm. Hidden away among former motorcycle repair shops and a burgeoning dining laneway, Krimper serves innovative food, excellent coffee, and hot chocolate from local company, Mork. Breakfast includes Australian classic Avo on Toast, you'll find barramundi fillets and an Aus-Asian fusion in its ribs, burgers and green bowls on the lunch menu.
20 Guildford La., Melbourne, Victoria, 3000, Australia
Known For
- Great coffee
- Hip vibe
- Classic breakfast with a twist
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$$ | Fitzroy |
A local favorite, this stellar Italian bistro emphasizes flavor over starchy linen and stuffy attitude. Delicious wood-fired pizzas, that some insist are the best in the city, put this suburban gem on the map (thankfully, it's only a short walk from the city). On the specials board, lamb rump is scented with garlic and parsley and slow-roasted to impossible tenderness, and the service is as upbeat as the wine list.The Ladro family also includes Ladro TAP, an environmentally sustainable Italian eatery in Greville Street, Prahran. Vegan and gluten-free options are available.
224 Gertrude St., Melbourne, Victoria, 3065, Australia
Known For
- Sustainability initiatives
- Puttanesca pizza
- Cannoli specials
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: No lunch, Reservations essential
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$$ | South Yarra |
Vegan and vegetarian fare is the focus of this restaurant, set in the new Ovolo South Yarra hotel. With a strong Latin American vibe, choose the vegan versions of chicken tamales, the Brazilian seafood stew moqueca or the queso con chorizo, and vegetable dishes from its charcoal oven. The hotel restaurant is an all-day affair, morphing into a wine bar later in the evening, with cocktails with Latin zing. For more plant-based goodness by pioneer chef Shannon Martinez, try her vegan belwether restaurant and deli Smith & Daughters, in Collingwood.
234 Toorak Rd., Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Known For
- Vegan dining
- Some vegetarian options
- Some alcohol-free options
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$ | St. Kilda |
Past the yoga rooms and juice bars, Acland Street's timeless drawcard is its old-school cake shops, and Monarch has been doling out its creamy glories since 1934. Fresh cakes and slices are displayed behind glass windows that lure the crowds, before being packed carefully in boxes to go, for an instant picnic treat. Most recipes give an indication of the founders' Eastern European origins: make the difficult choice from its array of Polish baked cheesecakes, chocolate kooglhoupf, strudels and the ubiquitous custard vanilla slice.
103 Acland St., Melbourne, Victoria, 3182, Australia
Known For
- Monarch's famous plum cake
- Cupcakes of all hues
- Glorious window displays
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$ | City Center |
As the name suggests, this popular Spanish tapas restaurant is next door to something—in this case the grown-up parent restaurant called MoVida. This is the casual little sister for those wanting a quick refuelling of sherry and seafood. Dishes range from tapas (from A$4.80 to A$8.50), like crispy friend croquette with zucchini and manchego, to racion (bigger plates ranging from A$19 to A$34). Finish off with churros con chocolate (Spanish fried dough served with a hot, thick chocolate drink). Beloved by Melburnians, book ahead. For a bigger meal, book a table at MoVida next door. Both eateries are owned by Spanish chef Frank Camorra, an innovator in the Melbourne dining scene.
164 Flinders St., Melbourne, Victoria, 3000, Australia
Known For
- Large specials menu
- Lively scene
- Great for pre- and posttheater
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Mon. and Tues. No lunch Wed. and Thurs.
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$ | City Center |
With one of Melbourne's first espresso machines installed here in 1954, it was the beginning the city's love affair with both Italian coffee and Pellegrini's. Take a stool at the bar or the table in the kitchen and choose from such classics as lasagna or cannelloni—servings are fast and vast—then let the staff talk you into a slab of strudel to finish.
66 Bourke St., Melbourne, Victoria, 3000, Australia
Known For
- Iconic diner
- Huge serves
- Neighborhood vibe
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Sun.
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$$ | Richmond |
Opened by iconic Australian cook Stephanie Alexander, this bright and buzzy café–cum–produce store is a local mainstay. The bistro fare brims with wonderful flavors, from house-made dips and charcuterie boards to seasonal salads, seafood, and burgers. Desserts are mouthwateringly simple and impossible to resist. It's so popular you might have to wait briefly if you haven't booked a table. After you've eaten, pick up some marvelous cheese and country-style bread from the adjoining cheese room and grocery.
48–50 Bridge Rd., Melbourne, Victoria, 3121, Australia
Known For
- <PRO>grilled cheese toast</PRO>
- <PRO>all-day breakfast</PRO>
- <PRO>charcuterie boards to share</PRO>
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: No dinner, Credit cards accepted
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$$ | City Center |
This bar-restaurant occupies a heritage-listed four-story building that has housed an undergarment manufacturer, a 1900s sweatshop, a brothel, and even a Buddhist temple (but not at the same time). Tasty Asian dishes, in small, medium, and large portions, are designed to be shared. Everything is served in an atmospheric brick-walled first-floor dining area decorated with swaths of fabric and sewing machines; the wine selection is stored in battered metal luggage lockers.
113 Lonsdale St., Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Known For
- Generous banquets
- A$45 three-course set lunch
- Braised beef short rib, plum-hoisin sauce
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Sun. No lunch Sat.
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$$$ | |
Chef Andrew McConnell’s dominance of the Melbourne food scene cannot be ignored: besides this playful Pan-Asian restaurant, his stable includes glossy late-night European restaurant Gimlet on nearby Russell Street, the formal Cutler & Co in Fitzroy, and Cumulus Inc., beloved by the breakfast crowd. Fight off the competition for a seat at Supernormal’s bar and eat your way through Tokyo, Shanghai, Seoul, and Hong Kong: share plates of bao, dumplings, and the raw kingfish; McConnell’s New England lobster rolls have a cult following.
180 Flinders La., Melbourne, Victoria, 3000, Australia
Known For
- Lobster rolls
- Wagyu strip loin
- Adventurous wine and cocktails list
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$$$ | City Center |
Occupying an innovative steel-and-glass space above Federation Square, Taxi boasts both extraordinary food and spectacular views over Melbourne. East meets West on a Modern Australian menu that combines Japanese flavors—tempura prawn tails with yuzu and nori salt—with such European-inspired fare as slow-roasted lamb shoulder with root vegetables. There is also an impressive list of new- and old-world wines and a short cheese menu to stretch out the afternoon. To taste some of Australia's best craft beers, have an aperitif at the Transport Bar on the ground floor. Its four-course tasting menu costs A$65, six courses costs A$85, wine matching available.
Flinders St. at St. Kilda Rd., Melbourne, Victoria, 3000, Australia
Known For
- Six-course tasting
- Unbeatable views
- Barramundi and crab yellow curry
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Reservations essential
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$ | City Center |
Melburnians love to head out for breakfast, and Little Mule is one of many popular laneway cafés satisfying the hunger. Excellent coffee is teamed with simple meals made in the tiny, open kitchen. Look for the fresh cookies and make your own dream breakfast with the flexible mix-and-match menu.
19 Somerset Pl., Melbourne, Victoria, 3000, Australia
Known For
- <PRO>quirky decor</PRO>
- <PRO>fresh bagels</PRO>
- <PRO>homemade staples</PRO>
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Sun.
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$ | South Yarra |
There's a Gallic devil-may-care attitude to brunch in these former stables, with Bloody Marys and Mumm champagne listed beside the granola and eggs on sourdough. Or you could try matching its cocktails—espresso martinis or a Pimms with the French toast and croque fromage. Highlights include the lemonade scones with Chantilly cream and the Wagyu beef cheeseburger. Follow with a walk around the gardens of Como House, built in 1847. Picnic lovers note that The Stables also prepares picnics for lawn lounging.
Williams Rd. at Lechlade Ave., Melbourne, Victoria, 3141, Australia
Known For
- Lunches to go for picnics
- Lemonade scones
- Cocktails
