Melbourne's Best Restaurants
Expect Shanghainese parcels of pork or chicken, sharkfin wontons, glistening har gow, and more. A Chinese institution, Westlake has weathered the test of Chinatown's high turnover rates for decades. There’s yum cha until 5pm, then tasty classics like scallops in XO sauce and stir-fried vegetables until well past midnight.
Resting right on the foreshore, the floor-to-ceiling windows provide vistas of Port Phillip Bay, the inside is a light-filled space with pale-timber flooring and ceiling contrasting against white-clothed dining tables and chairs. Dining here plays on its coastal aesthetic with a Modern Australian menu laden with fish and seafood as well as top-grade cuts and local produce. An absolute marvel of South-Eastern beef skewers melbourne Asian cuisine, Sunda puts a serious fine-dining lens onto the region. Led by chef Khanh Nguyen, a Vietnamese-Australian chef who has now achieved celebrity status, Sunda was his first restaurant in Melbourne and it's known as one of the best. Dedicated to showcasing the fine dining qualities of South East Asian cuisine Nguyen has crafted a menu of Vietnamese, Malaysian, and Indonesian flavours.
What if belly-warming food could be also wholesome and healthy, satisfying without tasting soporific? Leave it to Neko Neko, a cosy little eatery cooking homestyle vegan and pescatarian Japanese for which it has amassed a loyal following. On a Carlton corner, Ima Project Café is breathing new life into smashed avo. Japanese twists on archetypal breakfast dishes can also be found in Ima’s miso-infused tomato baked eggs and the porridge drizzled with Mitarashi syrup, a traditional Japanese sauce made from soy sauce and sugar. Plus, the classic Japanese breakfast set of fish and rice is on the menu. Supernormal is no longer just Tokyo-inspired; it now lends its flavours to some other big cities like Seoul, Hong Kong and Shanghai as well.
The food is fun and a real fusion of spices, herbs and traditional flavours. Flower Drum is everything that there is to love about old school style Cantonese restaurants. It's impressive and grand interior features bright red walls, long vases of flowers and a buzz of conversation from content diners. One of Melbourne's most popular restaurants, Flower Drum has been serving up award-winning plates for over 35 years. There are 12 million Uyghurs, mostly Muslim, living in Xinjiang in China – they speak their own language, more similar to Turkish than Mandarin, and they’re ethnically closer to people who live in Central Asian nations. Their food is unlike anything you’ll find at a stock-standard Chinese restaurant, but you can give it a try at Footscray stalwart Karlaylisi.
Palms Restaurant in Syndal recreates the Asian food market experience under one glass-topped roof. It’s no surprise that the hawker stalls of Asia inspired this bustlin... Elevate your evening at these cult-status eateries, degustations and luxe fine-dining spots.
The barramundi dumpling for example is a hefty example with rich white-flesh barra accompanied by spring onion, ginger and eggplant oil, though you’ll still find the favourites like potstickers filled with pork and wombok, or chicken and king prawn. Resting on the main drag in Mordialloc, this very well could be some of the best dumplings in Melbourne’s southern suburbs. Pairing super-fresh, locally sourced produce with traditional cooking techniques, this foodie favourite ensures that all its meat is Halal. It also serves up some killer dishes, including one of the best lamb shoulder roasts in the city. Team it up with some crispy artichokes with carrots and radishes and duck fat potatoes, and you’ve got yourself the best sharing feast you’ll scoff all month.
If you’re searching for an authentic Asian dining experience, you can’t go past Minamishima. A 25-year veteran, Chef Koichi Minamishima has been a master of his trade. With a focus on good supplier relationships and sourcing only the finest ingredients, you can’t go wrong here.
They’ve also got incredible vegetable dumplings with ginger vinegar covering all dietary preferences. Ruyi is a worthy mention when discussing the best dumplings in Melbourne. The sleek tiled diner on Liverpool street in the CBD took out the award for the best Chinese restaurant for 2017, and after tasting their dumplings there is no surprise as to why. Their widely popular pork and crab xiao long bao burst full of flavour with each bite and then there are their house-made pork wontons which come swimming in a signature Ruyi chilli sauce which alone is out of this world.
Melbourne has Australia’s only Nobu to date, fitted into the basement of the Crown with a loud, seductive atmosphere and a relentless kitchen regularly serving out high-quality sushi, ceviche-style seafood dishes, and 9+ Wagyu. The menu is more varied in its tastes than the usual premium Japanese eatery, scanning international flavours to satisfy an endless rotation of high-rolling regulars. It may be ubiquitous and showy, compared to the other spots in this list, but there’s no mistaking that Nobu is amongst the best Japanese restaurants in Melbourne.
Shape your own culinary adventure based on century-old recipes at Dragon Hot Pot on Russell Street in the heart of Melbourne’s CBD. This restaurant lets you select the ingredients for a unique hot ... Find Chinese fare to tempt any palate at Chine on Paramount on Little Bourke Street in the heart of Melbourne city. A traditional vibe of hanging red lanterns, white-clothed tables and polished woo... Established in 1981 come and experience some of the best Yum Cha in Melbourne.