Food & Drink
These are our go-to venues, for every budget and occasion, for thosese in need of a red meat fix.
10The Wolf of Collins St The Mitre Tavern $$$ Sometimes you just want to pretend the stock market crash of 1989 never happened. Do so here with a selection of excellent steaks and prestige bottles of Barossa shiraz to help you max out your Amex. The dry-aged porterhouse is our pick of the bunch, the ends crisp with satisfying char and served with a sweet port wine jus. à 5 Bank Pl, Melbourne 3000. 03 9670 5644. www.mitretavern.com.au. 9The midnight vulture Butchers Diner $ Butchers earns its spot on the list because it has the only steak worth the trouble tht you can get at 3am. Mostly known for burgers, the CBD’S latest all-night drunk food spot also has a huge case for ageing meat, and a rotating steak on the 24-hour menu. On our visit it’s a rump sprayed with Maker’s Mark bourbon for 40 days straight. It’s not the most incredible steak in town, but it’s well aged, well cooked, cheap and tastes properly meaty. à 10 Bourke St, Melbourne 3000. 03 9639 7324. butchersdiner.com. 8The crowd pleaser San Telmo $$ San Telmo is huge, the char-grillers are hot, and the meat is good. The beauty of this place is not so much the outright quality of the food, but its flexibility and fun. This is the spot where your in-laws from out of town, your colleagues and your fussy kids will all be happy and full of meat when they leave. à 14 Meyers Pl, Melbourne 3000. 03 9650 5525. santelmo.com.au. 7The entrecôte French Saloon $$$ While many have tried to imitate the classic French bistro menu of late, none have done so as well as French Saloon. Start with a glass of bubbles and some oysters, then tuck into their small but intensely beefy steak frites, topped with rich Roquefort butter and fried breadcrumbs. Shoestring fries and a piquant salad round out the plate. à First Fl, 46 Hardware Ln, Melbourne 3000. 03 9600 2142. frenchsaloon.com. 6The neighbourhood hero The Recreation $$$ The wine, service and pasta at the Recreation are awesome, but the steak also happens to be one of the best in town for a casual weekday treat. Their 7+ score Sher Wagyu is served a well rested medium rare, the fats allowed to render and caramelise, and the rich meat gently grilled so as not to overpower with char. à 162-170 Queens Pde, Fitzroy North 3068. 03 9042 2707. www.the-recreation.com. 5The newcomer Angus & Bon $$$ The new steakhouse/gastropub in Prahran has some serious meat on the menu. Cooked over a woodfired grill by former Rockpool sous chef Declan Carroll, these steaks are ideally charred. The O’connors Gippsland 28-month old, grassfed rib eye is sliced from the bone, which is left on the plate, begging to be picked up and gnawed. This thing has also been dry aged for a minimum of 30 days, giving the fat that incredible bacon-like quality. à 168 Greville St, Prahran 3181. 03 9533 9593. www.angusandbon.com.au.
Butchers Diner do the only steak worth the trouble you can get at 3am