8 Best Restaurants in Melbourne, Victoria

One of the best tables in town, this upscale bistro treads a very fine line between mannered elegance and decadence. A sleek marble bar and modishly ravaged walls contribute to the sense that you've stepped into a scene from La Dolce Vita. Happily, the restaurant is as serious about its food as its sense of style. Crisply roasted duck is now a local legend, and the pasta is always al dente. For an informal drink before your meal, an adjoining bar has local wines and a light menu of the same high standards for those who failed to get a booking. For long lunches in sunny courtyards, book a table at its sublime Carlton restaurant, there's also an outpost in the city center.

Grab a window table at this very popular, very stylish bay-side restaurant (housed in the former 1920s bathing pavilion), and enjoy wide-open views of St. Kilda Beach and its passing parade of in-line skaters, skateboarders, dog walkers, and ice-cream lickers. Start with the day's oysters, move to the fish and meats cooked superbly over charcoal, and slow it down over wine and cheese at this long-standing St. Kilda icon. Owners Kevin and Gail Donovan are such natural hosts you may feel like bunking down on the plush cushions near the cozy fireplace afterward.

Superb Cantonese cuisine is the hallmark of one of Australia's truly great Chinese restaurants, which is still receiving awards after opening in 1975. The restrained elegance of the design, deftness of the service, and intelligence of the wine list puts most other restaurants to shame. Those in the know don't order from the menu at all but simply ask the waiter to bring the specials, which often change between lunch and dinner with the arrival of produce fresh from suppliers.

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.

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.

Chef Andrew McConnell’s dominance of the Melbourne food scene is undisputed: besides this playful Pan-Asian restaurant, his stable includes glossy late-night European restaurant Gimlet and superb 1920s-style cocktail bar Apollo Inn. Fight off the competition for a seat at Supernormal’s buzzing bar and eat your way through Tokyo, Shanghai, Seoul, and Hong Kong: share plates of bao, dumplings, and the raw kingfish. The McConnell’s New England lobster rolls have a cult following.

Another addition to the city's gastropubs, this fully renovated historic building is a pleasant walk from bustling Southbank. The menu concentrates on high-quality aged cuts of steak from rural Victoria and Tasmania (A$32–A$140), but the wood-fired pizza is also popular. There's an impressive local craft beer list, knowledgeable staff, and a comfortable beer garden that round out the awesome experience.