Leslie Massey
Melbourne, Australia's culinary capital, is a foodie's paradise. The city's vibrant culinary scene offers a plethora of delicious flavours from around the world. From cheap takeout shops selling deep-fried dim sims to tasting-menu temples championing native ingredients, Melbourne's diverse cuisine reflects its cultural diversity. The city's cafe culture, with its all-day coffee and fancy toast, has become iconic. For breakfast, try the ubiquitous smashed avocado on toast, or kimchi and avo toast topped with crispy enoki mushrooms at Muharam Cafe. For something sweet, opt for a cronnoli, a buttery croissant filled with sweet, creamy ricotta, at M&G Caiafa. Melbourne is also known for its coffee, with the flat white and the magic being local favourites. When it comes to iconic Australian dishes, don't miss the meat pie, often enjoyed with tomato sauce. If you're feeling adventurous, try some of the unique Australian ingredients, such as Moreton Bay bugs, kangaroo meat, or witchetty grubs. Melbourne's restaurants offer a range of cuisines, from the authentic Thai flavours of Ying Thai 2 to the fine-dining celebration of native produce at Ben Shewry's Attica. So, whether you're craving a banh mi from a Vietnamese bakery or a handmade pasta at a natural wine bar, Melbourne has something to tantalise every taste bud.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Coffee | Flat white, magic, latte |
| Breakfast | Avocado toast, smashed avocado on toast, croissants, kimchi and avo toast |
| Lunch | Banh mi, souvlaki, chicken schnitzel, parmi, parma, dumplings, Chiko rolls, chicken pahh-mee, burgers |
| Dinner | Pasta, Moreton Bay bug spaghettini, halal snack pack, Thai food, fish, whole fish, meat pie, sausage rolls, chicken |
| Dessert | Lamingtons, Pavlova, gelato, fairy floss |
| Restaurants | Ying Thai 2, Pidapipo, Lune, Sunshine Social, Terra, Ben Shewry's Attica, Ochre |
| Bakery | Neenish tarts, vanilla slice, doughnut buns, matcha buns, charcoal buns, meat pies |
| Street Food | Bubble tea |
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Melbourne's cafe culture
The development of Melbourne's cosmopolitan cafe society has been attributed to the influx of European migrants, particularly Italians, who populated the inner-city suburbs such as Carlton, Brunswick, Collingwood, Richmond, Fitzroy, and North Melbourne. Cafes like Pellegrini's in the city, Mario's in Brunswick, and Mirka's Cafe in St Kilda were established during this time, and older-style tea rooms were replaced with coffee lounges.
In the 1970s, coffee-related cafe culture gained further prominence, and by the 1980s, a more youth-focused cafe scene emerged with cafes like the Black Cat Cafe and Rhumbarella's on Brunswick Street. The vintage retro-style cafe then spread across Melbourne and the rest of Australia. Cafes became places for young people to gather, with a focus on decor, music, and food, as well as coffee.
Melbourne's coffee culture is so strong that international coffee chains like Starbucks and Gloria Jeans have struggled to gain a foothold. The city's cafes are known for their innovative and accomplished baristas, who have turned coffee-making into an art form. Cafes like ST. ALi, Axil Coffee Roasters, and Seven Seeds are leading the way with their unique coffee offerings and experimental brewing methods.
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Meat pies and sausage rolls
For a classic meat pie, head to Country Cob, which nails the classics with standout family-recipe pies. Alternatively, try Meatsmith, a butcher's shop that also makes some of the best pies in town, including a pie with chicken, sorrel, smoked bacon, and leek. Bread Club is another excellent option, offering a lasagne pie brimming with ground beef and pork and topped with a layer of cheesy béchamel. They also serve a vego mushroom stroganoff pie with two types of mushrooms and an excellent sausage roll.
If you're feeling adventurous, try Raya, a viral Thai bakery that serves unique pies with fillings inspired by Thai staples, such as chicken green curry and pork larb. For something truly indulgent, the Builders Arms pub serves a fish pie filled with snapper, smoked ocean trout, prawn, and dill.
No matter where you go in Melbourne, you're sure to find a delicious meat pie or sausage roll to satisfy your cravings.
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Seafood
Melbourne is a coastal city, so it's no surprise that seafood features heavily on its menus. From fine dining to messy crab shacks, there's a seafood experience for everyone in Melbourne.
For a relaxed fine-dining experience, there's a restaurant on St Kilda Beach with floor-to-ceiling windows and private dining spaces. The restaurant serves a wide range of creative and contemporary dishes made with locally sourced seafood.
Pinchy's in Melbourne's CBD is another great option, offering a playful surf and turf menu that features dishes like the wagyu beef burger with smoked tuna bacon, and the pork tomahawk cotoletta with bagna cauda and rock oysters. The restaurant is adorned with pink and neon decor, and has a sun-soaked terrace for outdoor dining.
If you're looking for a more hands-on shellfish experience, there are plenty of crab shacks and neighbourhood eateries where bibs and wet wipes are provided upon entry. Claypots Seafood Bar on Barkly Street in St Kilda is a great option for an exciting sensory dining adventure.
For those wanting to indulge in some of the freshest seafood Melbourne has to offer, Fishing Season on Russell Street is the city's first catch-and-cook restaurant. Sea Salt Kitchen on Lygon Street is another popular choice, serving a diverse menu of fresh seafood and authentic sushi.
Melbourne also has its fair share of lavish omakase haunts, where you can treat yourself to an opulent dining experience using the most exceptional fresh seafood available.
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Coffee
Melbourne is known for its coffee culture, with the city sometimes referred to as the "coffee capital of the world". The city's coffee culture is said to have originated in the 1870s, when the rise of Parisian coffee shops and the lobbying of the Temperance Movement, a group of Christian women who protested against drunken behaviour, led to a rise in coffee drinking in Australia. In the 1880s, Australians were the largest per capita consumers of tea in the world, but by the early 20th century, the country's distinct coffee culture had emerged, with independent cafes springing up across the country.
After World War II, Italian immigrants brought the first espresso machines to Australia, and the first real" espresso bars in Melbourne, Pellegrini's Espresso Bar and Legend Cafe, opened in 1954 and 1956, respectively. The flat white, regarded as Australia's greatest culinary export, also emerged in Melbourne in the 1980s. Today, Melbourne is a city of coffee lovers, with around 30 tons of coffee beans—the equivalent of 3 million cups of coffee—arriving at the Port of Melbourne every day.
The city's coffee scene is characterised by its independent cafes, which have been able to compete with international coffee chains such as Starbucks, which has a very small market share in Australia. Melbourne's cafes are known for their innovation, with baristas sourcing single-origin beans and creating signature house blends. The city's coffee culture extends beyond the beverage itself, with cafes offering a range of foods, from avocado toast to meat pies, and a unique ambiance and design that sets them apart from cafes in other countries.
For a true Melbourne coffee experience, visitors should order a "magic", a uniquely Melbournian creation that is less milky than a flat white and typically consists of a double ristretto with three-quarters of the milk of a flat white. Other popular coffee drinks in Melbourne include the flat white, which is generally made with two shots of espresso and microfoamed milk, and the Australian iced coffee, which uses a cold brew instead of hot espresso and may incorporate local flavours, ice creams, and syrups.
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Street food
Melbourne is a foodie's paradise, with new restaurants, cafes and bars opening every week. The city's food scene has been influenced by generations of immigrants, from Greeks, Italians and Lebanese after World War II, to South-East Asians from the 1970s onwards.
Melbourne's street food scene is not dominated by street carts, but rather by local spots serving up classic street eats with a unique twist. From Thai skewers to Chinese pancakes, Colombian hot dogs and Korean toasties, there's something to satisfy every taste palate. Here are some specific street food options to try:
- Bánh mì : One of Vietnam's most popular street foods, these crispy baguettes filled with melt-in-your-mouth pork belly are a perfect option for a quick lunch. Heartbaker Bun Mee in Melbourne is a popular choice for bánh mì.
- Thai Skewers : Try Abruzzo Lab for Italian arrosticini (traditionally made with mutton or lamb and cooked over an open flame) or head to Tawooq for a Beirut-inspired chicken tawooq (marinated chicken, slaw, fries, toum and pickles rolled in a flatbread).
- Colombian Street Food : Head to Thornbury for one of Melbourne's best Colombian dishes – a beef frank topped with mozzarella, pineapple sauce, shoestring fries, Colombian 'pink sauce' and quail eggs.
- Pizza : Melbourne is known for its exceptional pizza, with 400 Gradi listed as one of the best places in the world for its signature pizzas cooked at 400 degrees Celsius for 90 minutes, resulting in a crunchy crust.
- Gelato : For a sweet treat, visit Piccolina or Messina for some of the best gelato in Melbourne, with traditional flavours like pistachio and chocolate, as well as monthly specials.
- Mexican : Hotel Jesus is a popular Mexican taqueria and 'Taco Wey' joint, bringing a taste of Mexico to Melbourne.
- Filipino : Serai offers a unique dining experience with fire-licked, playful dishes that introduce diners to a new world of flavour.
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Frequently asked questions
Some unique Australian foods you can try in Melbourne include kangaroo steak, meat pies, and Chiko rolls (Australia's take on egg rolls). If you're feeling adventurous, you can also try Moreton Bay Bugs, which are small white larvae found in the Outback and often grilled or barbecued.
Melbourne has a diverse food scene, but some popular restaurants include Ying Thai 2 for authentic Thai flavours, and Ben Shewry's Attica and Ochre for fine dining with native produce. For a sweet treat, Pidapipo serves up some of the city's creamiest gelato.
Melbourne is known for its cafe culture and coffee, so you'll want to try a flat white or a magic, a Melbourne creation with less milk than a flat white. For food, try avo toast, a banh mi, or a halal snack pack.
Some Australian desserts you can try in Melbourne include lamingtons, which are sponge cakes layered in chocolate sauce and dipped in shaved coconut, and Pavlova, a meringue-based cake with a crispy shell and a fluffy centre, topped with cream and fresh fruit.
Melbourne has no shortage of snack options, including bubble tea, doughnut buns, and fairy floss (Australia's version of cotton candy). For a more savoury option, try dumplings or a sausage roll from a local bakery.
