What's open Christmas Day in Melbourne: the best restaurants and cafes

Found on the corner of Grosvenor Street and Chapel Street, Stella is a four-storey dining experience that delivers an Italian food philosophy with a modern Australian twist. The restaurant is offering a three-course share-style set menu lunch this Christmas Day, which you can book online. Think freshly shucked oysters with Champagne granita and seafood share plates, delicious mains like prime rib roast and confit duck leg, festive sides and a Christmas cherry pavlova for dessert. Mm-mmm! Go to the website to make a reservation.

While we Aussies might reckon Valentine's Day is the most romantic day of the year, it's Christmas that's all about the spirit of love in Japan. Paying homage to this culture, contemporary Japanese fine diner Warabi is hosting an exclusive "Love and Omakase' 13-course omakase dinner for Christmas in 2024 – the perfect way to celebrate the festive season with that special someone. The feast includes a sepcial Kurisumasu Keki cake to take home with you, and tickets are $420 per person (inclusive of the option of a wine, sake, or non-alcoholic drink pairing). Enjoy premium dishes such as South Australia lobster and Yamagata Wagyu. Swoon! For more details and to make a booking, head to the website.

Snugly situated in the basement of the new Le Méridien Melbourne, Dolly is an immersive restaurant and cocktail bar that transports its guests back in time to the glamour and mystique of 1930s cinema. Take the stress out of Christmas this year with Dolly's indulgent three-hour Christmas lunch, an extravagant seafood buffet with all-you-can-eat holiday roasts, a decadent dessert display, and free-flowing drinks throughout the celebration. Find out more or make a booking at the website.

Duke's three-course share style feast this year will allow you to sit back, relax and spend quality time with loved ones without worrying about any kitchen disasters. Start with oysters, Queensland prawns and local cold cuts before moving onto the stars of the show – bourbon and apricot-glazed turkey, slow-cooked turkey with cranberry sauce and pan juices and currant, fig, whiskey and chestnut stuffing. Don't forget to load up on the sides and dessert! Two-hour sittings will be available at 11am and 2pm, with more info available at the website.

Enjoy a Christmas like no other with Melbourne's beautiful Yarra River as the backdrop. Arbory Bar and Eatery will be open as usual from 11am until late this Christmas Day, with table reservations available for one to 20 guests and banquet bookings available for 10 to 40 guests all day. There'll be Christmas crackers and tunes from some of Melbourne’s best DJs, plus festive specials galore. What are you waiting for? Make a booking now.

This Christmas, Morris House will be staying open to dish up fresh oysters, prawn cocktail, beef wellington with parsnip puree and truffle jus, lobster with garlic butter and scampi caviar and a host of other scrumptious eats to choose from. For pre-drinks, see you on the trendy rooftop! It'll be open from 11:30am-5pm. To make a booking for the Chrissy lunch, head to the website.  

The multi-level restaurant and hidden cellar bar is offering a set Christmas lunch featuring family share platters full of your favourite dishes. There are two sittings available at 11am and 2pm, with the set menu going for $165 per person ($55 for kids). And no one will be excluded this festive season, with State of Grace's plant-based Christmas Day lunch menu on offer, too. Bookings are essential via the website. 

This rooftop bar and pub is dishing up an extravagant three-course set lunch menu on Christmas Day. Think honey and mustard glazed ham or turkey with all the trimmings. You can also feast on king prawn cocktails and a traditional Christmas pudding with brandy sauce, and vegan options are available for each course. The event is kid-friendly and bookings are essential via the website.

For a next-level Christmas feast head to Nobu's nightclub-esque food hub at Crown Melbourne. The special December 25 menu is a chance to sample the Japanese restaurant's show-stopping sushi and sashimi, plus Mayura signature Wagyu and New Zealand scampi with umami salsa. You’ll finish with a Christmas grapefruit brioche with caramelised chocolate, sakura soil and trifle ice cream. Friends can't eat meat or seafood? There's an alternative vegetarian menu that looks just as appealing. A glass of Veuve Cliquot Champagne is included in the package. Find out more details at the website.

Pure South focuses on all things Tasmanian, including King Island Beef, St Helens oysters, Bass Strait scallops, seafood and quality dairy products. The restaurant's Christmas Day lunch is a celebration of ‘the best of the season’, driven by quality produce from the best farmers, fishermen and artisan producers of Tasmania, King Island & Flinders Island. So if your family is a foodie family, you'll want to make a booking stat. Find out more and make a booking at the website.

Ham, turkey, desserts... Auburn Hotel's Christmas feast has it all. Just make sure you save some space for the end-of-meal cheese selection, featuring blue cheese, brie, smoked cheddar, quince paste, lavosh and muscatels.Be sure to reserve your spot online – there are three sittings available, with spots going for $165 for adults and $60 for kids. Secure a table at the website.

Go on a culinary journey to Thailand this Christmas and book a table at Bangpop in South Wharf. Attend one of the multiple  sittings and delight in whatever you like from the a la carte. This year, the restaurant is also offering a very special menu by pre-arrangement called their Wow Kapow menu. Cocktail masters will also be shaking up a selection of special festive-themed cocktails to keep the fun times flowing. Find our more online.

Partake in a three-course festive sharing lunch menu with a glass of bubbles on arrival at Middle Park Hotel. The venue will accept bookings online and there are two sitting available at 11am and 2.30pm. Save the hassle and stay out of the kitchen this Christmas and head to this boutique pub where everything is taken care of – including dietary preferences! There are plenty of gluten and dairy free options, plus a separate vegan menu. Reserve a spot now.

This cozy restaurant and wine bar is an ideal spot for special occasion meals, business lunches or long lazy catch ups over multiple bottles of wine from their extensive cellar. But did you know it's also open on Christmas Day? We recommend making a booking at the website.

Chinese cuisine, bonza location, and fluffy pork buns fashioned to look like little pigs are the cornerstones of Secret Kitchen’s appeal. This venue falls under the China Bar umbrella, and despite being on the tall end of Chinatown, can pull a crowd. It'll be open on Christmas Day this year, so make a booking for lunch before there are no tables left.

The Smith is a smart and elegant all-day eatery with an open kitchen, bar area, restaurant and double function rooms. The venue is offering a family-style feast full of festive favourites with all the trimmings, across two sittings at 11am and 2.30pm. Think honey and mustard-glazed ham, Christmas turkey with sage and onion stuffing and a mushroom and chestnut roast for the vegans in your family. Book online now so you don't miss out.