1. Photograph: Graham Denholm
    Photograph: Graham Denholm
  2. Photograph: Graham Denholm
    Photograph: Graham Denholm
  3. Photograph: Graham Denholm
    Photograph: Graham Denholm
  4. Photograph: Graham Denholm
    Photograph: Graham Denholm
  5. Photograph: Graham Denholm
    Photograph: Graham Denholm
  6. Photograph: Graham Denholm
    Photograph: Graham Denholm
  7. Photograph: Graham Denholm
    Photograph: Graham Denholm
  8. Photograph: Graham Denholm
    Photograph: Graham Denholm
  9. Photograph: Graham Denholm
    Photograph: Graham Denholm
  10. Photograph: Graham Denholm
    Photograph: Graham Denholm
  11. Photograph: Graham Denholm
    Photograph: Graham Denholm

Review

Cumulus Inc

5 out of 5 stars
Andrew McConnell’s hugely influential flagship venue remains the benchmark by which Melbourne’s casual diners are judged
  • Restaurants
  • price 2 of 4
  • Melbourne
  • Recommended
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Time Out says

Update October 2024: This review was originally written in 2018, so please be aware that some elements may have changed since.

Time Out Melbourne never writes starred reviews from hosted experiences – Time Out covers restaurant and bar bills for reviews so that readers can trust our critique.

'Eating house' doesn't quite cut it. 'All-day diner' falls worryingly short. In fact, when trying to sum up the place Cumulus Inc plays in Melbourne’s hungry heart, 'favourite clubhouse' comes as close as any description. And maybe that’s the thing about our winner of the 2018 Time Out Food and Drink Legend Award. Cumulus Inc is so many different things to so many different people. For city office workers, it’s the perfect show-off gaff for meetings with out-of-towners (bonus points for feigned nonchalance in the face of its boast-worthy fabulousness). For solo lunchers, it’s a place where singleton status is never a problem (all the better to study the grooming habits of fellow diners).

Come evening, it’s the kind of place you want to think about sensible footwear to endure the inevitable queue. And you can’t really lay claim to being a true Melburnian if you haven’t been in for late-night Negronis and the fuzzy memory to go with them the next day. Legend status is warranted for Andrew McConnell being the first chef in Melbourne to think of serving a tin of Ortiz anchovies. It comes with the tuna tartare with goats’ curd and crushed peas that has spawned a thousand imitators. It trails in the wake of the show-stopper slow-roasted lamb shoulder, the recipe for which A-Mac has shared in print but which somehow never tastes as good not in situ. And as for the rum baba where the whole bottle is handed over to glug onto the sponge cake at will? You guessed it. Legend.

Cumulus Inc just notched up its tenth birthday, eliciting two responses. One: has it really been that long? Two: how did we ever get along without it? Raise a glass to its continuing good health amid a timeless fitout that feels as good as it did back in ’08, the white-washed walls, marble counters and bentwood chairs saying 'Paris' and the attendant quirk, including shoe lasts doing time as coat hooks, responding: 'Melbourne'.

Still hungry? These are the 50 best restaurants in Melbourne right now.

Details

Address
45 Flinders Ln
Melbourne
3000
Transport:
Nearby stations: Flinders St
Opening hours:
Daily from 12pm
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