Quincy Malesovas

December 2024: Jiminy cricket! Is it really the end of the year already? What a whirlwind! Last month went by as fast as a flash – or maybe we should say a splash, since our calendar featured some fun pool bars. We hung out at Afloat (where we got to meet Mr. Gordon Ramsay himself), and we also checked out a glamorous hotel's rooftop pool bar – now open to the public for the first time ever this summer. Other exciting events included the launch of the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival 2025 program and an incredible lunch at the CBD's red-hot new French restaurant Maison Bâtard. Young spots like Reed House and Lucia also blew us away. But for now, we take a break for silly season. Until next year, dear readers! Here's your ultimate guide to Melbourne's most exciting recent restaurant and bar openings, updated monthly for your reading (and tasting) pleasure. With this list on hand, you'll be the first to know where to find the hottest brunch spot, vino bar or fine diner – all sussed out by our fastidious team of writers and critics. Note: we generally include venues that are only twelve months (give or take) young in this list.  Ready to make a booking somewhere spesh? Read on. Still hungry? These are the 50 best restaurants in Melbourne right now. Fancy a tipple? Check out the 50 best bars in Melbourne. Lauren Dinse is Time Out Melbourne’s Food and Drink Writer. For more about how we curate, see our editorial guidelines.

Whether you like yours thin and crisp or deep-dish, hot from the oven or straight from the fridge with a glass of OJ, there’s no denying the universal appeal of pizza. Outside of Italy, we reckon Melbourne pumps out some of the best pies in the world, and we've eaten our way around the city to find the very best. In no particular order, here are our favourite pizza restaurants in Melbourne. Looking for more? Check out Melbourne's best Italian restaurants. Can't decide what you feel like? These are the 50 best restaurants in Melbourne. 

Can you believe Christmas is almost here? If you haven't already done so, now is the time to start planning your festive get-togethers. If you or someone you love wants to take a well-deserved break this year and leave the cooking and cleaning to someone else, we’ve got some fab suggestions for where you can book a holiday feast to remember. Whether you’re spending the day with friends or your extended family, here are some fun spots to gather this Christmas Day, no matter your taste or budget. Looking for more ideas? Here are the restaurants and eateries staying open on Christmas Day. Feeling a bit Grinch-y this year? Here's what you can do on December 25 if you don't celebrate Christmas.

December 2024: Summer in Melbourne is the time to shimmy out of those trackpants, off the couch and into a shiny new world. There's been a ton of exciting new restaurant openings to celebrate, while plenty of old favourites are still merrily thrumming along – all ready to welcome you with open arms. So put on something cute, grab a date and check out the best eating and drinking the city has to offer.  The continually evolving and expanding dining scene in Melbourne is both a blessing and a curse: how do you choose between so many incredible restaurants? Well, that's where we come in. Stop endlessly scrolling, and commit to making your way through Time Out’s list of the best restaurants in the state right now. Our always-hungry local experts, including Time Out Melbourne's Food and Drink Writer, Lauren Dinse, have curated 2024's most delicious and divine, innovative and imaginative, comforting and familiar, memorable and magical dining experiences right here at your fingertips. From culinary institutions like Attica, Stokehouse and Flower Drum, to emerging standouts and instant icons such as Serai, Gimlet and Amaru, we've got it all covered here. And as for the brand new restaurant and bar openings catching our eye? Check out this guide instead. Get out, and get eating! You've got a lot to get through!  RECOMMENDED READ:  Don't want to break the bank? Check out Melbourne's best cheap eats.

Whether it’s a mid-morning pick-me-up, an after-dinner treat or a late-night spot that’s not all about alcohol, dessert bars are the answer. And lucky for us, Melbourne has plenty. From shaved ice to Thai-style toast and pandan pudding, here are some of the best desserts in Melbourne and where to find them. All about pancakes? Here's our round-up of the best fluffy stacks around Melbourne right now.

Since the 1960s, Lygon Street has been known and loved as Melbourne's Little Italy precinct. Locals and tourists alike flock to the leafy strip – abuzz on weekends with the roaring of fancy cars and roaming of uni students, teens and families – for proper espresso, pasta and cake, and a true taste of Italian-style al fresco action.  Sure, you might get a bit of hassle from the sales-y footpath waiters trying to lure you in, but true Melburnians know that's a part of the street's charm. And though much has changed in the last decade, there's no doubt that if you want to sit out on a terrace with a pizza bigger than your head or sip Spritzes on a rooftop, Lygon Street is still the place to be.  In 2024, there's a much larger and more diverse culinary offering in this area than ever before. Particularly on the southern end of the Carlton stretch, you'll discover incredible eateries for Egyptian, Japanese, Indian, Thai, plus a variety of other cuisines. No longer just the domain of spaghetti and salumi, Lygon Street is now also worth heading to for a bangin' biryani or world-class Asian fusion. And that's not all. Take a stroll up towards Brunswick East and you'll discover trendy wine bars, pubs with live music, American barbecue, Polish dumplings, Sicilian food and one of the best taco joints in town. Hungry yet? Let's go for a wander! We've listed Lygon Street's best restaurants in Google Maps-checked order so you'll know where to find them. Looking for the cream of the crop?

Melbourne has a thriving Vietnamese community that has only continued to grow since the 1970s. And the city’s wealth of Vietnamese restaurants has grown right alongside it. From the outer suburbs to the CBD, you’ll find a treasure trove of regional Vietnamese eats from Hanoi-style beef pho to caramelised seafood claypots and chewy banh cuon (a delightful steamed and stuffed rice roll). There’s plenty to explore, so dive into our picks for Melbourne’s top Vietnamese eateries. If it’s specifically bánh mì that you’re craving, here are our picks for the best rolls around. If it's a sweet deal you're after, check out the best cheap eats in Melbourne.

Whether it's rain, hail or shine, when you've got a hankering for laksa, nasi lemak, roti, curry or some other soul-warming Malaysian dish, you've got to make a beeline for one of these eateries. And if you've got a sweet tooth, keep reading – we've popped some proper Malaysian dessert havens in this list, too. Still hungry? Check our list of the best Chinese restaurants in Melbourne, plus our guide to the top African restaurants.

Street food is an integral part of many countries’ culinary landscapes, providing fast, fuss-free and typically low-cost sustenance without the need for involved setups. While Australia's strict food safety rules have put a bit of a damper on our street food scene, plenty of local spots have taken matters into their own hands, whipping up classic street eats in their own unique way – even if it’s from behind a restaurant counter instead of a street cart. Merriam-Webster defines street food as “prepared food typically sold to customers on a street or sidewalk and that is often designed to be carried and eaten while walking”. We’ll roll with that, but for this list, we’re going beyond the pavement to include grab-and-go bites and dishes that capture the spirit of street food, even if it’s not literal. From the CBD to the suburbs, here are a few of our favourites. After a day of exploring street eats, enjoy a drink at one of Melbourne's best rooftop bars.

From the United States to Korea and Taiwan, fried chicken spans nearly every country and culture. Not everyone can meet their fierce standards, but these joints have come pretty damn close to perfecting the ancient art of battering and deep-frying poultry. Want more tasty bites? Check out Melbourne's best Korean barbecue joints. Looking for gut-friendly alternatives? These are the best gluten-free eateries in Melbourne.

A traditional bánh mì has bread with crunch, but not so much that it scrapes the roof of your mouth. It’s fluffy and light, but not so flaky it completely disintegrates into your lap. It’s the perfect vessel for liberal amounts of pâté, a Vietnamese condiment called egg mayo butter, fresh cucumber, pickled carrot (and daikon if you’re lucky), generous sprigs of coriander and chilli, plus the protein of your choice. On the sauce front, some shops will opt for a dash of Maggi seasoning and soy, others go the hoisin route or even a combination of more than one. Word of warning: you may encounter a holier-than-thou type on your bánh mì travels who insists your choice of sanga is "not the authentic way". But the truth is that 'bánh mì' literally translates to the short baguette itself. You can enjoy this freshly baked delight stuffed with any filling you like – crispy pork belly, nem nuong (grilled pork sausage), chicken, mixed ham, tofu, beef or just plain salad! We love the braised pork and duck confit options at Banh Mi Stand, but we're equally partial to the no-nonsense cold cuts at Phuoc Thanh. There are plenty of regional variances all across Vietnam, and some Vietnamese even like to enjoy theirs filled with ice cream. So how did we come up with this list? Well, we ate a lot of bánh mì. We kept a rolling document that helped us to compare each one. We considered the balance of condiments, the quality of the bread and the freshness of the meat and salad. And we washed it all

We have no doubt you've drunk plenty of the stuff, but how much do you really know about bubble tea? Tapioca is a variable and versatile ingredient thanks to its high starch content, which gives it a delightfully chewy texture when cooked. It’s used in many forms across many countries, in dishes such as Brazilian pão de queijo and Malaysian kuih, but one of its greatest applications is to make the soft, springy pearls found in your bubble tea. Invented in Taiwan in the 1980s, bubble tea has rapidly evolved from a trend to one of the globe’s most popular non-alcoholic beverages. Several decades since its inception, the bubble tea boom continues with more and more shops popping up in Melbourne each year, from international chains to locally owned iterations. The beauty of bubble tea is that each experience is different – at most stores, every step of the process can be customised from choosing your tea base and toppings to selecting sugar and ice levels. From chewy grass jelly to thick, cheese-flavoured foam and chunks of taro, options go far beyond your basic boba pearls, though they’re always a safe option.  No matter how you take your tea, you can’t go wrong with these top spots. Prefer a brew? These are Melbourne's top spots for a coffee in the CBD. And if you need something to eat on the run, try out the best cheap eats in Melbourne. 

November 2024 update: Summer is back, baby! On Saturday afternoons this November and December only, Etta is once again serving up its glorious seafood towers – alongside by-the-glass pourings of rare and premium Champagne. At $75 a head, the feast features a multi-tiered platter stacked high with the freshest local catch. Think woodfire-kissed crustaceans, aromatic sambals and lemon-squeezed raw bites. Champers costs extra, of course. This offer has dreamy luxe lunch date written all over it, so if you want a seat at the table – make a reservation now.  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. October 2024 update: The below review was originally written in December 2023. Please note that beloved chef Rosheen Kaul (whom this review references) departed the restaurant in April 2024, with new head chef Lorcan Kan now steering the ship. Etta has been hot on everyone’s lips since it entered the Brunswick East dining scene –particularly since head chef Rosheen Kaul joined the kitchen in 2020. In the culinary world, countless awards and glowing reviews often breed scepticism but a recent Tuesday evening dinner proved the praise is just as warranted as ever. We were seated in a cosy corner nook decked out with decorative pillows, ideal for soaking up the scene (to the left, the bar and open kitchen; the right, Lygon street passersby; and to the front, a solo

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. It’s 6 kilometres from the nearest beach. Yet Chinatown boasts not one, not two but three dedicated oyster bars within a two block radius. Pearl Diver was first to enter the scene in 2021, specialising in oysters and cocktails of all varieties. The similarly named Pearl Chablis and Oyster Bar was next, offering an impressive raw bar and French wine. Then finally came Muli Express, the smaller and more casual outpost of Rathdowne Street live seafood restaurant, Muli. Overkill it is not. Muli Express offers a unique offering to its predecessors with a brisk but friendly, standing-only service style that sets it apart from the crowd. We visit late on a Tuesday afternoon yet we’re put on standby as the place is completely full. And at roughly 18 square feet, it’s easy to see why. The pint-sized venue does not have a liquor license – there’s just a small fridge full of soft drinks and Heaps Normal – so we duck around the corner for a beer. By the time we circle back, we’re able to snag a spot “at the bar”, peering over dozens of live oysters with owner Van Tran as our guide. Her eagerness to offer assistance is much appreciated. There are roughly twenty oysters on offer at any given time with nicknames like “Rock Hard”, “Angel’s Happy Tears” and “Tarzan”. While they’re labelled by provenance and sorted by price, it’s

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. We all know the meaning of hidden gem, an arguably overused phrase in the Melbourne culinary zeitgeist. But what’s the term for a venue that’s exposed but not widely known, existing right beneath your nose without due recognition? Perhaps we can dub it Wasshoi. For eight years, the sumibiyaki (chargrilled meat) bar has existed right in the centre of Prahran Market, led by Ikeui Arakane (otherwise known as Kinsan) and his son. For years, it flew under our radar, the draw of bratwurst and gozleme a greater sell. Perhaps it's because market goers are time-poor and overstimulated. The beauty of Wasshoi is not glaringly apparent at first glance, but it deserves some time set aside to truly appreciate it. That’s what we do when we settle into a spot at the bench on a bustling Saturday afternoon. After ordering at the counter and receiving the yuzu-shaped table number, it’s a gamble whether you’ll be able to snag a seat but the casual nature of the eatery makes turnover pretty quick.  We're lucky to snag a spot right in front of the kitchen, if you can call it that. It’s primarily a charcoal grill that gets used to torch thinly sliced beef kalbi, twice-cooked beef brisket, hefty chunks of pork belly and slow-cooked chicken fillet. Yes, you can take your order away if there’s a queue to sit but watching the chefs expert

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. Something about Melbourne’s dining scene is that, whether self-inflicted or forced upon by customers, most tend to eventually become pigeonholed by cuisine or concept. But Vex has withstood that pressure. Vex is elusive. Is it a wine bar? Sort of. Is it a farm-to-table restaurant? It’s close. But the talented crew have also been hosting game meat lunches on Saturdays and barbecue pop-ups on the footpath. And the menu straddles the line between Aussie comfort foods and Scandi-Med minimalism, with a touch of Austrian influence from chef Florian Ribul. In other words, the venue can’t be boxed. The jury is out on whether that works in its favour but from our perspective, it’s (mostly) a plus. To play devil’s advocate – the menu, at first glance, is a little confusing. We love dietary inclusivity and an emphasis on produce but when roughly 40% of the globe doesn’t eat pork and likely just as many don’t love seafood, pork chop and flathead as the only two main proteins feels a tad limiting. The rest of the offering is mostly vegetable-based. That said, the idea that menus should follow the tired format of chicken, fish, beef and sides is outdated and it's refreshing that Vex is flipping the formula on its head.  The chargrilled leeks, cooked in chicken fat and sprinkled with sunflower and caraway seed crumb, packs a s

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. If you’re unfamiliar with Chino Latino or 'chifa' cuisine, Casa Chino may seem like just another fusion restaurant. But it’s rooted in history, drawing inspiration from the large Chinese diaspora who live in Peru and around Latin America. It’s a daring concept for Melbourne, which hasn't historically shown a strong reception to or understanding of Latin cuisine. But it’s also a smart one, using far more familiar Chinese dishes as a Trojan horse of sorts. Most dishes will look pretty familiar to anyone with a grasp of Cantonese food – siu mai and dumplings, bao, fried rice – but there are Latin American influences sprinkled throughout. And for the most part, the two pair wonderfully. The best way to order, it seems, is from across the entire breadth of the menu. We start with something from the Barra Crudo (or Raw Bar) section, an obvious choice as ceviche is Peru’s biggest culinary claim to fame. Our tuna rendition is not lightly cured like we expect but instead loaded up with avocado cream and chilli oil and roasted Incan corn, a nod to the classic Peruvian ceviche garnish. Traditional it's not, but it's loaded with flavour and texture that leaves a lasting impression. The sambal chicken and leek siu mai are equally maximalist, dressed in a garlic soy sauce inspired by pollo a la brasa (Peruvian-style roast chi

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. As (typically) hours-long affairs, omakases tend to be an evening activity but Uminono is only open by day. That’s not the only way this chirashi bar deviates from convention. The restaurant exclusively serves raw seafood plus accouterments – no other protein in sight. And the chef doesn't even have a Japanese background; he’s French with classical training. But despite the odds, Uminono is a star. When we visit on a Saturday the 12-seat chef’s table is fully booked, naturally. After settling in, we seek the guidance of the sake sommelier who provides tailored and well-informed suggestions based on how many total glasses we’re after and our preferred flavour profiles. As soon as the Abe Green genshu hits the table, floral and fruity with hints of melon and peach, the dishes start to roll out. A beautiful dashi, rich and savoury thanks to an aged snapper bone jus, to sip between courses. Then the box of fish we’ll be eating is presented – salmon aged for ten days; kingfish aged for seven; alfonsino, a deep sea snapper only available a few weeks a year. It’s given its due respect with a light torch and a hint of wasabi to complement its sweetness. The prawn is a very pleasant surprise with the delightful nuttiness of sesame miso. And the Ora King salmon, rich and soft, is counterbalanced with rice topped with cris

Piccolo Panini Bar is a place whose reputation precedes it, its strong social media presence and blocks-long queues garnering a lot of hype. Despite entering the scene at the later end of the sandwich wave, Piccolo developed a chokehold on loyalists from the inner east and those willing to travel for a good panini. Needless to say, the bar was set high when we visited on a Friday at 8am. The venue was nearly empty save for a few takeaway coffee customers, allowing us to fully soak up the ambience (custom-branded soccer jerseys on display, cannoli at the counter, music pumping) before the lunch rush. The board behind the deli case of marinated vegetables, salumi and cheese, listed six filling options, only one of which was vegetarian and most of which fell around $16. Each sandwich could also be customised with additional accoutrements for an extra cost of $1.5 to $6 more. But a shop’s signatures are the best judgment of their quality so we went with the cotoletta and the salami, plus coffee. The latter came first, milk well-frothed and coffee strong but not bitter. The food was served around ten to fifteen minutes later. We denied the offer of a carry bag and regretted it once realising the sandwiches weighed what felt like a kilo each, but quickly found a sunny nearby park to dine at. There are only a few outdoor tables at Piccolo in clear line of sight of the staff and passersby, which is not ideal for those who prefer to dine with some semblance of privacy. Both sandwiches

Yarraville is a charming suburb that feels far more quaint and idyllic than its five stops from the city by train might suggest. Perhaps that's why it was named one of the coolest neighbourhoods in the world in 2020! And its dining offering is a reflection of the community – wholesome, familiar, and relaxed yet refined. While there are a few chains, owner-operated venues like Ms Botanica, the brainchild of friends Stacie Sinclair and Scott Rice, are what make the local hospitality scene so special. The menu was developed by prolific chef James Cornwall, and now Chris Krugal is looking after the offering, which was designed to suit the gin-led cocktail program. Though there are a few larger dishes on the menu, including a $45 wagyu special on Wednesdays and Thursdays, his offering is heavy on the snacks. They're very approachable at around $6 a pop. We start with the olive, pickled mussel and tuna gilda, a safe and delicious choice that is fairly similar to the one formerly offered at Gimlet. Ms Botanica’s is far more generous for the same price, but the quality of ingredients is a notch lower than the McConnell rendition.  The rest of our snacks are a series of smash hits and near misses.  Free-range pork slider? Hit. The mini brioche bun and creamy slaw combo might bring to mind function canapes, but the tender, crisp, not-too-fatty slab of pork belly and dash of blood plum proves that looks can be deceiving. It's fantastic. Steak tartare? Not quite there yet. The marinade o

Balwyn may not have the same culinary cache as some of its surrounding suburbs, but there are a few hidden jewels tucked around its leafy streets and relative newcomer Enoteca Boccaccio is one of the brightest. It opened last year above Boccaccio Cellars, a 60-year-old bottle shop and Italian grocer run by the multigenerational D'Anna family. Ascending the stairs, constructed from pale pink marble that perhaps intentionally resembles mortadella, feels like you’re being let in on a secret – push open the door to reveal a sleek, buzzy venue you’d never know existed from ground level.  We’re greeted cordially and seated towards the back with a full view of the space. With concrete walls, marble benches and tile floors, it's cool but not austere. Thanks to the talents of Mim Design in bringing the D'Anna family's vision to life, the space has already won an interior design award within its first six months of opening. The fact that it's full on a Thursday night helps enliven the vibe. It also reinforces just how small the space actually is, but with coats collected and bag stools provided, the team are conscious of eliminating any potential discomforts.  There’s a wine fridge on entry that’s reflected in the extensive (and not inexpensive) selection. By the glass, there are premium pours served via Coravin and available in tiered serving sizes hovering around $30, plus a standard offering starting around $15. Staff are well-informed to guide you through, with in-depth tasting not

With a portfolio made up mostly of pub-style venues, hospitality collective Kickon Group garnered due attention when they opened pan-Latin restaurant Pincho Disco last year. It’s not just a new concept for them but also for Melbourne, a city with very few Latin restaurants – particularly of this calibre. We have to credit Pincho for that. It's breaking boundaries, setting examples, doing what big hospo groups once did for “Asian fusion” and pushing all that innovation out into the Australian mainstream. Thankfully, Pincho is on track to age better than most of those groups did, even if the Dia de los Muertos-inspired art and cocktails with names like Chilli Cha Cha may feel a bit on the nose. The venue is recently-built and sprawling with beach ball-sized white orbs hanging from the ceiling, a split-level dining room and bar, and an open kitchen where you can watch the head chef Diego Cardenasin in action. He's from Colombia but the menu draws from around Latin America, spanning Mexico all the way down to the tip of Argentina. Naturally, we want to experience the vastness of the region so we sample items from across the menu. To start – one large octopus tentacle, tender and smoky. It's served on a spill of orange oil, plus a dollop of “Mexican mole mayo”. While it lacks the punch of a pure mole negro, it’s a clever trojan horse for what could be considered a confronting condiment for those new to it. The mussel tostada, while very tasty on its own, is generous with the cream

Khanh Nguyen’s departure from Sunda last July left many, myself included, wondering what would become of the once-lauded contemporary Southeast Asian-Australian restaurant. But former sous Nabil Ansari’s appointment as the new head chef (after a brief stint at Firebird) has ensured the venue remains in good hands. Sunda is not the same restaurant that opened on Punch Lane in 2018, but its next wave is a promising one. With formal service and a slight industrial edge, the venue embodies a high-low approach to upscale dining that emerged in the late 2010s and has permeated the industry ever since. Think doors held open and menus placed on laps by staff whose welcoming air and sense of character feel more important than their uniform. The food is similarly refined yet relaxed. Attention to detail is evident, though no dish feels too stuffy or serious. The pie tee has initial notes of creamed corn that give way to the sharp zing of salted black bean hiding beneath the surface, all encased in a delicate pastry shell. The tuna tartare donut, which tastes of deep-fried potato, is well-balanced with a generous dressing of sturgeon caviar, but perhaps could be elevated to even greater heights with a hint of acid or cream. In any case, it’s a delight. On that note, it's the smaller dishes that look more appealing on paper, and so we round out the meal with those. Crispy tempeh is an outstanding choice at only $12 with a sweet, smoky glaze and the bright crunch of lightly pickled cucumb

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. Hamed Allahyari was a chef and restaurateur in Tehran, Iran until 2012 when religious conflict forced him to flee to Australia. His love for hospitality never left him. Upon arriving in Australia, he began working with Asylum Seeker Resource Centre Catering and Free to Feed, two social enterprises designed to support new migrants through food and dining. Then, seven years later, he opened Café Sunshine & Salamatea, a social enterprise restaurant designed to employ, train and mentor asylum seekers and refugees facing similar paths to him. It’s been a beloved local gathering place ever since – not just for its friendly, community focus but for its approachable Persian fare, which is hard to come by in Melbourne. Iranian food is not well represented here and when it does appear, skewered meats are often the focus. This is no doubt a core component of the cuisine but overshadows the fact that it's vegetarian-friendly and characterised by its use of floral, sweet and sour flavours, adding complexity and balance to each dish. (For context, Samin Nosrat, author of Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat, is also Persian.)  Salamatea, however, brings this back into focus. It’s like a best-of list of dishes and ingredients from the region, presented in a familiar Melbourne café format. The Campos coffee with Schulz milk (or your choice of