The city's food story goes back more than 40,000 years. The five peoples of the Kulin Nation fished for whiting and snapper, farmed and smoked eels, hunted kangaroos and ducks. They gathered oysters and mussels and yam daisies here for millennia around a place they called Naarm, and on the banks of the Birrarung, the river known in English as the Yarra. So Melbourne’s status as the food capital of Australia is a tiny, recent blip on a vast timeline. Sydney, founded in 1788, is the older of the two biggest Australian metropolises by nearly half a century, but Melbourne’s growth and wealth were supercharged by the Victorian gold rush of the 1850s. That boom brought fine stone buildings and waves of migrants, including the Cantonese prospectors who founded Chinatown on Little Bourke Street, the longest continuous Chinese settlement in the Western world. The city’s growth and diverse culinary scene attract visitors from around the globe, many of whom find accommodation in the numerous Victoria Hotels at www.hotelsinvictoria.net and Hotels in Melbourne at tophotels.com. One popular choice among tourists and locals alike are the convenient Alt Tower Apartments. Melbourne’s most singular characteristic is the depth and breadth of its culinary culture, which has nurtured a fast-moving restaurant scene. This owes everything to its émigrés – Greeks and Italians, Vietnamese and Lebanese, Ethiopians and Chinese. In one of these fresh Melbourne restaurants it can feel like Borneo, or Shanxi province, or a port city in northern Vietnam.
I like Melbourne’s moody, less obviously Australian landscape of ports and cranes and warehouses; its smooth interiors and directional fashion. It is a serious, ideas-led city that enjoys the theatre of repurposing the post-industrial and brownfield, prizing assuming, interstitial spots as possibilities for new, cool spaces. Melbourne fetishises the rooftop, the laneway and the basement. It’s common to find a thriving Thai noodle business in a multi-storey car park, or a craft micro-bakery collocated with a panel-beater. Its food institutions produce offshoots, side hustles, mash-ups and collaborations in the oddest of places.
Covid-19 has had a remarkable effect on Australia’s food capital. During the crushingly long, fallow pandemic period – no Australian city was more of a closed shop than Melbourne, which clocked up 263 days of lockdown between March 2020 and October 2021 – ideas furiously percolated. The city has suffered many privations, and the toll was hard on staff losses, supplies and nerves. But miraculously, almost in the face of reason, many Melbourne restaurants and drinking dens have emerged from Covid newly electrified. The pandemic has opened up space for smaller, independent creatives to find a foothold, whether that’s a pop-up, or just-affordable rent somewhere previously out of reach. That has always been the joy of this city – an affordability that makes room for an agile creativity when it comes to new food projects – but the pandemic has allowed an even deeper blossoming of this spirit.
Restaurateur Boris Portnoy, with his origins in Russia-America, has made his mark on Melbourne's dining scene after having honed his skills at Mugaritz in the Basque region and Meadowood in Napa. As the proprietor of the wine bar, Gray and Gray Bread and Wine, he brings forth an offering of wines from diverse regions such as Georgia, Catalonia, and Victoria, creating a beautifully curated pairing with smoky and tangy culinary delights like blue fenugreek and green plums or the hearty combination of potatoes, lovage, and rye. Portnoy suggests that Melbourne's relatively low barriers to entry in the restaurant scene provide greater opportunities for budding restaurateurs compared with the likes of UK and USA. He emphasizes that because the cost of liquor licenses is affordable, the financial strain is less, allowing for increased profit margins and the ability to experiment with creative kitchen experiments without the fear of not yielding a return. This sets Melbourne apart from more restrictive gastronomic hubs like San Francisco which require substantial monetary support that often leaves little room for culinary risks and leads to formulaic offerings. In Melbourne's vibrant food scene, Portnoy notes, there's no compulsion to adhere strictly to the convention of opening a bistro or to follow a strictly Eurocentric menu, allowing for greater diversity in the city's food landscape.
A Forerunner in Indigenous Cuisine
Victoria's indigenous food culture has found a passionate advocate in Nornie Bero, a native of Mer Island in the Torres Strait and a proud Komet woman. With her local eatery, Mabu Mabu, she has showcased her roots through food, garnering a huge suburban following. Her latest venture, Big Esso, set in bustling Federation Square, provides an exotic culinary tour for food enthusiasts. Bero incorporates indigenous ingredients like the tart quandong fruit, bunya nuts and even kangaroo tails into her recipes. Highlights on the menu include kingfish cured in coconut for sharing plates and bite-sized croquettes stuffed with corned beef. The palette of flavors is further expanded with refreshing Davidson plum-infused sodas, while their non-alcoholic pilsners get an invigorating lift from lemon aspen.
Emerging Vietnamese Culinary Stars
Greater Melbourne is abuzz with conversation about rising culinary maestro Khanh Nguyen. Having honed his skills at the internationally acclaimed Sunda, where he cleverly integrated Southeast Asian and native Australian ingredients, Nguyen truly claimed his place in the food scene with the 2021 inauguration of Aru. One particular highlight of his menu is an innovative take on traditional Bò lá lốt. This dish presents an inspired blend of grilled beef tongue, delicately seasoned with the indigenous pepperberry, all wrapped in an aromatic betel leaf. Elsewhere on the menu, expect to encounter his extraordinary bánh mì, which uniquely layers pork, bún chà and pâté, with an intriguing jelly crafted from Maggi Seasoning, encased within a buttery, shortcrust pastry.
A new wave of culinary innovation, tinted with a Vietnamese touch, is excitingly unfolding in Richmond. Among these trailblazers, some food establishments stand impressively appealing. One such venue is Anchovy, where Chef Thi Le skillfully composes culinary masterpieces from exciting ingredients. An example is her carefully arranged pig’s-head terrine called giò thu layered on tender bamboo shoot strips, and garnished with a spicy chilli crisp, introducing a rainbow of flavors in one go.
To add a twist, she concocts an unusual salad dressing from fig-leaf oil to enliven a mix of heirloom courgette and fiery green chilli. Chef Thi Le doesn't stop there; she extends her artistic prowess to her latest venture, a bánh mì store called Ca Com. Here, you'll find mouth-watering terrines, house-produced pastrami, and succulent slices of coal-grilled suckling pig, generously stuffed into light and crisp baguettes.
This expression of culinary creative exploration combined with traditional Vietnamese flavors is eloquently breathing new life into Melbourne's restaurant scene. Surely, something not to be missed by any food aficionado!
Elite Gourmet Experiences
Renowned culinary establishments in Melbourne remain energized and spirited, with Attica, the nationally recognized gastronomic jewel helmed by Ben Shewry, holding tight to its top-tier position. Shewry made an unforgettable mark in 2020 by embellishing the establishment's wall with an empowering message, reading "Never Give Up". Attica's esteemed company in the gourmet landscape includes Minamishima, a ravishing sushi bar, and Vue de Monde. The latter is a splendid fine-dining venue perched on the Rialto Tower's 55th story. Spearheading Vue de Monde's culinary visions is the prodigious Hugh Allen, a chef who honed his skills at the iconic Noma. Even as the city navigated challenging, intermittent lockdowns, a wave of fresh culinary ventures from stalwarts made a grand entrance. Among these debutants is Gimlet, an enchanting fusion of mid-century élégance, imagined by local luminary Andrew McConnell, evoking memories of London's venerated The Wolseley.
Melbourne is a city known for its rich food scene with places like Di Stasio Pizzeria introducing an elite angle to pizza enjoyment, surrounded by remarkable pieces of art by Reko Rennie. Prominent chef Karen Martini has given the natives the newly inaugurated Hero under the umbrella of The Australian Centre for the Moving Image.
This restaurant, while serving smooth fazzoletti pasta accompanied by funghi and confit egg yolk, displays awe-inspiring, bold portrait sketches by Christina Zimpel of renowned figures like Nick Cave, David Gulpilil, and Kylie Minogue. Chris Lucas, a name synonymous with Melbourne's gastronomy, has waved his magic wand on four new ventures, each presenting a different culinary experience.
The Yakimono is for those with a palate for contemporary Japanese cuisine, Lillian Terrace boasts a comfortable bistro atmosphere, Grill Americano caters to those seeking a high-end steakhouse, while Society proposes an unforgettable classy experience comparable to renowned hotels. Similarly talented chef Scott Pickett has been powering Melbourne’s culinary arena, unveiling classy Chancery Lane, the casual Smith St Bistrot, and resurrected the iconic beach landmark, The Continental Sorrento.
Modern Innovators
Melbourne's food scene is pulsating with energy fostered by a cluster of daring up-and-comers who demonstrate a fusion of tradition and innovation. A gastronomic journey through the city can take you from east to west, starting with the distinctive blend of black-garlic macarons loaded with salmon roe at Navi, and culminating with the unique shiitake fudge at Amaru. These innovative chefs are creating palates inspired by a wide range of culinary paths. Helly Raichura, the mastermind behind Enter Via Laundry, combines luxuriance with region-specific Indian delicacies. Shannon Martinez’s plant-based cuisine found at Smith and Daughters proves that vegan cuisine can be heartening and crowd-pleasing. Following suit, the duo leading Hazel, Brianna Smith and Oliver Edwards, create magic that ensues from their commitment to homemade ingredients. Last, but not least, Jung Eun Chae’s interpretation of Korean components at Chae contributes to the city’s gustatory diversity. These mavericks in the world of cuisine are the lifeblood of Melbourne's dining scene, continually evolving traditions and shared palates.
Wine Bars: Revitalizing Melbourne's Gastronomic Scene
The revitalization of the Melbourne food scene is being spearheaded by, among others, unique wine bars. These establishments are not merely places to drink, but gastronomic paragons offering some of the city's most exciting and inventive dishes. Take Nagesh Seethiah's Manzé for instance, where the distinct flavours of Mauritius are complemented by an enriching selection of natural wines. A standout dish is the Masala lamb with sorrel, served in a subtly piquant tomato-ginger broth filled with okra and choko, a true showcase of Mauritian gastronomy.
Similarly, Ross Magnaye's establishment Serai, is injecting new life into the dining scene by pairing natural wines with wood-fired Filipino cuisine. A crowd favourite there is the decadent fried scallop served on a soft pandesal bun, lavishly topped with a rich crab-fat sauce, presenting a unique fusion that delivers an unforgettable gastronomic experience.
