Australia’s best bistros

Brisbane LA CACHE À VIN

From Brisbane restaurant stalwart Thierry Galichet, the basement bistro is as famed for its incredible wine list (50 Champagnes!) as it is for its classic bistro menu that includes some of the best lambs’ brains to be had in all the land. lacacheavin.com.au

MONTRACHET

Shannon Kellam’s Bowen Hills eatery is more restaurant than bistro (it’s tasting menu-only on the weekends) but it still prides itself with some truly great versions of bistro classics especially the quality of the protein with the steak frites. montrachet.com.au

Melbourne ENTRECÔTE

A swooningly lovely, big-boned brasserie that focuses as much on the front-of-house experience as it does on a tight list of traditional bistro dishes and a wine list that spends equal time in France and Australia. entrecote.com.au

FRANCE-SOIR

More than three decades since it first switched on its tri-colour neon, France-Soir continues to wow the crowd with its cheeky service, voluminous wine list and menu, complete with daily specials scrawled on mirrors. france-soir.com.au

SMITH ST BISTROT

Scott Pickett’s bistro is as theatrical as it is tasty, hitting the sweet spot between bustle and intimacy and gifting the dining public with one of the best crème brûlée you’ll ever encounter. smithstbistrot.com.au

Adelaide HEY JUPITER

With all the set-dressing in place – woven café chairs, white tiles, that specific shade of green – Hey Jupiter gets runs on the board before you even glance at the all-day menu, a list of greatest hits from croissant to croque-monsieur to crème brûlée. heyjupiter.com.au

Perth LE REBELLE

Paris meets New York meets Perth at this buzzy little bar and bistro where classic duck frites shares space on the menu with more locally focused dishes like cult-favourite blue manna crab on toasted brioche. lerebelle.com.au

Sydney BISTROT 916

This sizzling bistro with its pink tablecloths and crack team of professionals riffs on French classics (lambs’ brains with smoked eel mayonnaise) while also delivering the traditional stuff. Either way you’ll be pretty pleased you landed here. bistrot916.com

PORCINE

Less about the window dressing and more about the spirit of the bistro, Porcine does love its pork but does equally great things with duck, eel, snails and chocolate. It sits above an excellent bottle shop too, so no fear of running dry. porcine.com.au

RESTAURANT HUBERT

Is there a restaurant in Sydney that knows how to have as much fun as Hubert? Better still it doesn’t let a good time get in the way of its dedication to French classics and modern versions of such, like the must-order snails with XO butter. restauranthubert.com