What to eat in Melbourne: must-try dishes

Potato cakes are one of life's simplest delights. If you're a fan of the fish and chippie snack, just know that the one at Stokehouse are legendary for a reason. Plated upon rustic hessian pillows, the crispy batter caves in like tender tempura on its earthy root vegetable filling. It tastes so naturally complex, it really doesn’t need much enhancement, but the vinegary saltbush topping proves a delightfully tangy, lip-smacking complement. It’s a Cupid’s arrow bulls-eye straight to the heart.

A1 Bakery is a northside institution, famous for its authentic (and wonderfully affordable) wraps, Lebanese pizzas, pies and falafel platters. Opening its doors in 1992 as a humble family business, the hybrid Lebanese bakery, eatery and Middle Eastern grocer has since become a beloved local gem. Although the shanklish and za'atar pizzas are divine, our pick for an unforgettable eat is the garlicky chicken tawouk wrap. It comes toasted and full of the most delicious and juicy marinated chicken, potato chips, pickled cucumbers, pickled turnips, cabbage coleslaw and garlic paste. Secret tip: ask for extra halloumi and tomato – altogether, it's an epic flavour bomb. 

This Chinatown hidey-hole makes one of the CBD’s best fish dumplings. Shandong Mama’s signature Spanish mackerel dumplings come in nine serves and are delicious boiled, as the soft mousse-textured filling with ginger and coriander turns pillowy and super light after a flash in boiling water. 

Rocketing up to the highest floor of the Rialto Tower, your ears might pop and your stomach drop, but the destination is well worth the ride. If you can get through the multi-course set menu, belt still intact, that famously cloud-like chocolate souffle (arguably Vue’s longest-running dish) hits the spot. The fine diner's latest iteration oozes billy tea ice cream and is nothing short of magic.

Charismatic proprietor Hana Assafari has been successfully serving her North African cuisine at Moroccan Soup Bar for over a decade, with minimal flair and maximal enthusaism. And while times (and its location) may have changed a lot since 1998 – the eatery has moved from its old Fitzroy North digs to North Melbourne – the quality and feeling of love in every dish has not. The most famous thing to eat is Hana's chickpea bake: a sumptuously buttery and texturally rich stew of toasted flatbread crisps and chickpeas bonded with ghee, tahini and almonds. It's life-changing.  

Sitting pretty on Gertrude Street and named after owner Anthony Brem’s newborn son, Archie’s is from the team behind Bluebird Espresso. The fit-out is as cute as a button: whitewashed walls, yellow tulips in brown glass bottles, green and pink pastel ceramics and kitsch ’70s artworks. There's a lot of debate over the perfect hangover cure, but we reckon the huevos sucios or 'dirty eggs' here might take the cake. Fried eggs are served with tater tots, jalapeño cheddar, avocado and tomatillo salsa, black beans and chipotle mayo. 

Opened by ex-Rice Paper Sister chef Ross Magnaye with a couple of chef compadres, Serai’s fire-based cooking riffs on his Filipino heritage without suggesting anything like authenticity. Try the “McScallop”, a cheeky riposte to the golden arches starring a single fried scallop doused in deliriously rich crab fat sauce cut through with papaya pickle and sandwiched in a toasted pandesal bun.

Run by brother-sister team Kate and Cameron Reid, Lune Croissanterie has lines snaking out of the store nearly every day and the pastries usually fly out of the shop by noon. Created in a climate-controlled lab, Lune croissants are almost mathematically perfect: crisp and golden with visible layers of delicate pastry.

Good Measure is an all-day coffee shop that transforms into a lively cocktail bar in the evenings, and it’s home to arguably the city’s most famous signature coffee order right now: the Mont Blanc. After going viral on social media roughly a year ago, the drink appears conspicuously at almost every table inside – a beautiful glass tumbler of filter coffee and black-sugar syrup, wearing a thick lid of fresh cream flecked with nutmeg and orange zest. Is it worth the hype? 100 per cent. It was once reported that co-owner Max Allison goes through multiple 18-litre kegs of his filter coffee a week to keep up with the demand.  

This pub first opened in 1873, but its renowned burgers are far better now than they were then. While they may be the stars of the show, it's a little-known secret that the best poutine in Melbourne can also be found here. Yes, it's a big call to make, but this little ol' food writer stands by it. Real cheese curds, the kind of gravy that makes you think, "now this is f***ing gravy" and well-salted, perfectly fluffy chips combine to create a dish that I'm lucky to live a short stroll away from as a North Fitzroy loyal. 

'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. The 1.2-kilogram slow-roasted lamb shoulder encapsulates the convivial nature of dining at Cumulus Inc by being a dish that must be shared. It speaks volumes that since day dot, the dish has barely changed and remains on the menu.

Doused in a sticky soy and red vinegar sauce, and scattered with little nubs of fried garlic and Sichuan peppercorns, the crispy eggplant here is a textural treat. A caramelised coating gives way to a fluffy, silken interior, so each bite is crunchy and soft, sharp and sweet. It's a must-order every time you visit Lee Ho Fook.

Legend has it, when MoVida first put the cecina on the menu, its wagyu supplier could not keep up with demand. This dish of air-dried wagyu topped with a soft poached egg obscured by a cloud of whipped truffle foam is the stuff that date nights are made of. 

As a general rule, your local pub shouldn't be doing food this good. Come here for the creamy drift of whipped cod roe with Turkish toast soldiers out on Gertrude Street; settle in by the windows for a Mountain Goat steam ale for super easy drinking or a sour; spend an afternoon under the bougainvillea in the beer garden; or go an all-out fancy feast. 

Need to summon an angry mob in a hurry? Talk smack about Andrew’s. This Albert Park joint has been churning out two-hands- required burgers for 70 years. The onions are cooked. The bread bun is lightly toasted. The lettuce is a crunchy iceberg-cabbage mix, and the fried egg is often cooked through. It’s packing grilled beef mixed with cooked onion for moisture and sweetness, double cheese, bacon, and plenty of tomato sauce (go stick your ketchup). Andrew’s, we salute you.

This popular CBD wine bar has an interesting snack: a pig’s head doughnut. It presents itself as a deep-fried ball where the layer of batter within is almost the same thickness as the shredded pork it’s stuffed with. If you don’t think this sounds indulgent enough, the accompanying gribiche – like a cross between tartare and aioli except also with julienned egg whites and emulsified egg yolks – ups the richness dial from five to ten. At $9 a pop, it’s well worth getting one each. Our divulging waitstaff lets us know a suited gentleman shows up habitually at Kirk’s just for the doughnut and a pint of beer, that’s how iconic they are. 

Can you think of a name less appropriate for a Sichuan restaurant? The chilli is hot and the Sichuan pepper is tinglingly, numbingly fresh, not exactly what you’d call dainty. Order thin slices of lamb encrusted in cumin and laced with chilli. There are always dishes you'll want to try at Dainty Sichuan, but this is the one you will keep coming back for. Don't forget to order a bowl of rice.

This dish has carried over from Golden Fields, and Supernormal has been unable to remove it from its menu since flinging open the doors at its Flinders Street location. The New England lobster roll is a magical balance of soft, warm brioche and the cool, Kewpie mayo-slathered crustacean that makes eating in Melbourne feel like Maine.

One nibble of American Doughnut Kitchen's hot jam bliss bombs shows you why generations have been happy to queue for them. This beloved family business has been operating since the ’50s, and on many market mornings, there’s a line of doughnut devotees peering through the windows of the blue and white van. Staff are busy within, cutting dough, frisbeeing it into the fryer and dusting it with sugar – the recipe is unchanged after almost 70 years.

London-based media company Upper Cut Media House recently released its esteemed list of the World's 101 Best Steak Restaurants for 2024, and not five of our restaurants made the top 101. Steer Dining Room, a stunning steakhouse in South Yarra, was voted the 17th best steak restaurant in the world and commended for its selection of premium steaks, which include a range of local and international cuts. "Each piece of meat is chosen for its quality and flavour profile, ensuring that every steak served is of the highest standard," the judges noted. Opt for the 

Abla loved feeding people so much that meal-making for her family turned into hosting Sunday feasts for the community – and then came the restaurant. Abla’s opened in 1979 in the same location it’s in today and upon entry, you experience a pleasant time warp. Don't leave without ordering Abla’s signature pilaf, which is a majestic dome of rice flecked with minced spiced lamb and topped with cinnamon-pepped chicken and slivers of toasted almonds and pine nuts. For something a bit more adventurous, we also recommend the kibbee nayeh ($40): raw lamb blended with burghul, served with onion, mint and olive oil.

Over the years, this northside hotspot has perfected its focaccia recipe to contain both a strong, exterior crunch and light, interior airiness. It comes served in four fingers with a puddle of the soft, creamy and super lactic cheese stracciatella, plus a mound of pickled mushrooms with a dose of bright chive oil. It’s bread and dip, but not as you know it and a must order on every visit.

A grande dame of the Melbourne bar scene, this basement-level cocktail lounge has been keeping people loose and liquored for over 20 years. And it's the chicken sandwich that Gin Palace has been serving up all this time that has been saving lives after one too many martinis. Sandwiched between two heavily buttered pieces of white bread is a mayo-heavy chicken mix accompanied by bacon salt and a fistful of cornichons. Ask nicely for Tobasco and thank us later.

Whatever the size of your night, you really can’t go wrong with a late-night souva. Luckily, Stalactites is from 11am until midnight most days of the week, with its giro rotisserie set-up spinning day and night. The prep game here is down to an art : souvas usually arrive at the table or are ready for takeaway in five minutes or less. The lamb souva comes with copious amounts of crunchy lettuce and yoghurt sauce – just the hit of freshness you need with the smoky lamb. 

Having once won the World Pizza Championships, you’d expect 400 Gradi to know what they’re doing. And they do. With the pizza oven cranked up to 400 degrees, the bases are chewy and puffed up around the edges. It’s a beautiful canvas for the simple pleasures of a tomato base, fresh mozzarella and basil. Is it the numero uno pizza in Melbourne? Debate runs hot and thick around this town and both Italians and non-Italians are certainly quick to have their say. This list is a great place to start investigating. 

Tropicana is the stalwart of the Melbourne juicing scene, and not easy to miss. It has bags of oranges decorating the already colourful exterior and there's usually a boppy tune playing inside. The overwhelming crowd favourite is the South American Delight (otherwise known as the Best Juice on Earth). What's the recipe? It's top secret but you're welcome to try and guess the mystery ingredient. Sweet, tart, fruity and refreshing, it promises to give you an energy boost for up to five hours. We'll take it!

The food menu is brief yet atypical at this moody cocktail bar, interspersing the stock standard offerings of hand-cut chips and olives with more inventive small bites that draw on Australia’s bush foods and native ingredients. The inclusion of components like saltbush-fried crocodile and wild samphire aioli are mirrored by cocktails, such as the fizzy Sleeping Drummer that features Kakadu plum and Killara bush liqueur. Try it all if you dare, but trust us when we say you'll be pleasantly surprised by the crocodile bites. They're delicious! 

That Tipo 00 is one of the country’s best carb bars is not new news. That it continues to excite over half a decade on, though, is cause for celebration. It really does it all – for any combination of people (save for coeliacs, sorry), at any time, for any purpose, in any outfit. Of course, everything on the menu if fantastic here, but if you want to try one of the famous restaurant's most beloved classic dishes, you can't go wrong with the tagliolini al nero with squid and bottarga. It's an absolute show-stopper.

The tajarin ragu is one of Alta Trattoria's most famous dishes and after just one mouthful, it’s not hard to see why. Luscious gamey rabbit and uniformly slim strips of tajarin made with egg yolks are tossed together to create a dish that’s somehow both satiny rich and delicate at the same time. It’s a ten out of ten. 

Is this Peking duck the best in town? It’s definitely the most meticulously presented. A trolley is wheeled out bearing the spring onions, plum sauce and perfect crisp-skinned meat with the translucent pancakes still steaming, kept warm over a tiny flame. A few quick gestures see them dressed and rolled. It’s practically performance art, and you’re paying in part for that level of finesse. And of course, like everything else at Flower Drum, it tastes astonishingly good.

One foot through the door into the Trader House team’s almighty fine diner and you’re swept into an era of astonishingly impressive 1920s glamour. Of course, a Gimlet cocktail is the first thing you should start off with at Gimlet. And there is no better take on that juicy gin and lime invention in Melbourne than the classic one you can drink here. Refreshing and expertly balanced with moscato and a touch of Geraldton wax, it’s pure sophistication in a glass.

If we were to tell you we know where the best noodles in Melbourne are, you’d most likely be expecting a ramen or laksa place, not an offbeat joint specialising in the food of the southwestern Chinese city Chongqing. But if you're a fan of authentic Sichuan cuisine, you can't really go wrong with this popular Carlton joint. Opt for the signature noodles (they come with a free fried egg), or branch out with the beef tendon or pork mince noodles. Every bowl is lick-your-lips good and spicy enough to warm you up for the rest of the day.