EATING OUT in Melbourne
The Victorian capital offers a COLOURFUL and vibrant TAPESTRY of diverse EXPERIENCES that will appeal to families craving a WORLD-CLASS culinary adventure.
PARENTS LOOKING TO IGNITE their children’s appetite will find a lot to inspire in the multicultural capital of Victoria. Make Melbourne your next food-focused getaway at these sought-after spots attuned to pleasing the palates of diners young and old.
HERO AT ACMI
ACMI is Melbourne’s museum dedicated to film, TV, videogames and art. After exploring the exhibitions, attending a talk or workshop, head to Hero, chef Karen Martini’s new on-site restaurant, which champions the produce of local farmers and purveyors. Line up for a house-made choc top or Maker & Monger cheese platter from Martini’s carefully curated cinema cart before heading in to see a cult classic or anime film. heroacmi.com.au
LONA MISA
This restaurant inside the funky new Ovolo South Yarra hotel is the perfect way to get vegetables into your kids without them even knowing. The kitchen here is helmed by chefs Ian Curley and Shannon Martinez, whose vegetarian and vegan food at Smith & Daughters has made root-to-stem dining seriously cool. The heavily vegan menu here is influenced by Martinez’s Latin roots and includes incredibly flavoursome dishes like whole peri peri cauliflower, tortilla (Spanish omelette) with aioli and moqueca, a Brazilian seafood stew with prawns fashioned from konjac (and painted pink for full effect) and tofu that looks just like fish fillets. ovolohotels.com
400 GRADI
What’s a visit to Melbourne without a visit to 400 Gradi? Melbourne’s pizza game has been strong for decades but founder and pizzaiolo Johnny di Francesco has taken it to the next level at 400 Gradi, which brings a slice of Naples to Brunswick in the form of his pizza, judged to be the World’s Best Pizza in 2014. Go for the marinara, or the award-winning margherita verace. Budding pizzaiolos can also sign up for a class to learn to make pizza Napoletana. 400gradi.com.au
CHINA RED
This informal Chinese restaurant has a playful vibe that children will love. Beautiful red lanterns, dark-wood tables and ornate latticework set the scene in the casual restaurant where the large Chinese character symbol for ‘double happiness’ is everywhere. Double your family’s happiness by ordering a banquet comprising dishes such as deep-fried squid in salt and pepper, special fried rice, stir-fried Chinese broccoli and stir-fried pork in plum sauce. china-red.com.au
BRUNETTI CARLTON
Melbourne’s big-city culinary smarts are on show for all to see at Brunetti, a glitzy 1500-square-metre eye-popping emporium where children will love browsing the dazzling display cabinets full of pizza, cakes, pastries, macarons and gelati. Brunetti’s cafe is part of the renaissance of the city’s Little Italy, and while much of the business revolves around its ‘grab and go’ menu, there are also multigenerational families celebrating over polpette, parmigiana, pizza and pastries. brunetti.com.au
GRAZELAND
Situated next to Scienceworks and five kilometres from the CBD, Grazeland is billed as a ‘Playground for Foodies’, where a riot of colourful custom-built food stalls have created a thrilling place for lovers of good food to wander. Arrive by bike via the Hobsons Bay Coastal Trail and pinball around the precinct where you can pluck food from 50 vendors including Doughville (doughnuts), the Hooked Fish and Chipper, BBL Tea and Lucky Little Dumplings. grazeland.melbourne
HIGHER GROUND
Higher Ground is a hip cafe that extends over six levels in a heritage-listed powerhouse on Little Bourke Street. The post-industrial space, all tall arched windows and exposed brick walls, is full of discerning Melburnians who you will find scattered around bars and tables, and draped over lounges and easy chairs. Children will find ricotta hotcakes or seasonal avocado with a Vegemite emulsion enticing propositions. darlinggroup.com.au
TOP PADDOCK
Glimpses of life around Richmond’s bustling Church Street are unavoidable when ensconced in Top Paddock. That’s perhaps part of the appeal as those threading past the space – all warm woods, floor-to-ceiling windows and wall panelling – become part of the performance art. Located near to the Botanic Gardens, families dining at Top Paddock will also enjoy the creativity on the plate on show in simple dishes such as buttermilk waffles and chilli scrambled eggs. darlinggroup.com.au
TIM HO WAN
When Tim Ho Wan staked out a place in Melbourne’s CBD mid-2020, locals couldn’t be happier. While the original Michelinstarred institution was a humble hole in the wall in Hong Kong, the Melbourne version of the franchise is big, bright and boisterous. Here, you can order dim sum for breakfast, lunch and dinner in the no-frills space. We recommend sweet-and-savoury pork buns, prawn and pork dumplings, and spinach and shrimp dumplings to get the party started. timhowanaustralia.com