Plating up Melbourne’s latest bites

Melbourne is a moving feast for foodies and every year new eateries open their doors to the city’s hungry citizens. Keeping up with Melburnians’ appetite for new gastronomic experiences is not easy, but here is a selection of the latest plates being gobbled up by the city’s foodies.

Newest openings…

Amaru. Opened its doors in January, serving contemporary Australian cuisine from owner and chef, Clinton McIvor (former Vue de Monde sous chef and Clayton Bowls degustation creator). Offers tasting menu and intimate setting with just 33 seats. 1121 High Street, Armadale. Tel. +61 3 9822 0144.

Embla. The team behind Town Mouse has opened a new wine bar, called Embla, focused on modern Australian cuisine, with wines from Victoria and further afield. 122 Russell Street, Melbourne. Tel. +613 9654 5923.

Bird’s Basement. Brand new jazz notes will fill the air in Melbourne from March 2016 with the opening of Bird’s Basement jazz club. The bar is so named through its affiliation with the famous Birdland jazz club in New York City and will bring leading names from Australia and around the world to the city. The club offers both dinner and supper sittings with fine Italian dining by chef Luigi Buono. 11 Singers Lane, Melbourne.

Tetsujin.  Housed at Emporium with views of Melbourne’s lanes and skyline, Tetsujin is a slice of Tokyo in town, offering Japanese BBQs and a sushi train. 4^th Floor, Emporium, Entry via Caledonia Lane, Melbourne. Tel. +61 3 663 9993.

Tenpin. South East Asian flavours with a view of Port Phillip Bay, randomly named after a giant bowling pin salvaged from the now defunct Mentone Bowls. By former Mr Lawrence and Chin Chin chef, Ashley Lawrence. 67 Beach Street, Port Melbourne. Tel. +61 3 9041 3211.

Sth Central. New inner city dining destination in South Yarra, thrives on offering simple things done well, with a modern take on the traditional ‘meat and three veg.’ It is the hospitality vision of partners Tommy McIntosh and Ben Avramides. 4 Yarra Street, South Yarra. Tel. +61 3 8679 6755.

Meanwhile, Melbourne’s famous city centre laneways have been witnessing an Italian renaissance, with several new establishments opening their doors during the past six months.

A25. New all day Italian eatery with traditional offerings, sharing plates and morning espresso car. Led by owner Remo Niccolini and chef Raymond Capaldi. 399 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne. Tel +61 3 9826 2233.

Emilia. Italian trattoria, tucked away down a tiny alleyway in a space that was originally a mechanics workshop and then Gills Diner. Reinvented Italian by Con Cristopoulos, Chris Kerr and chefs Francesco Rota and Luca Flammia. 360 Little Collins Street, Melbourne. Tel. +61 3 9670 7214

Tipo-00. Named after the flour used to make pasta and has the favour of the food critics. It’s a contemporary, pasta style bar by Andreas Papadakis, Luke Skidmore and Alberto Fava. 361 Little Bourke Street, Melbourne. Tel. +61 3 9942 3946.

Woody P. Contemporary Italian and Mediterranean influenced cuisine from chef Timothy Martin and owners Pierre Semaan and Robert Rae. 121 Flinders Lane, Melbourne. Tel. +61 3 9654 5000.

Melbourne inner north is home to a thriving eating and drinking scene. Smith, Brunswick and Gertrude Streets sound the heartbeat of Fitzroy and Collingwood’s culinary buzz, while neighbouring precincts such as Brunswick and Northcote are increasingly joining in.

Marion. Wine bar for serious grape lovers with bites on the side. Newest offering from Melbourne chef and restauranteur, Andrew McConnell. 53 Gertrude Street, Fitzroy. Tel. +61 3 9419 6262.

127 Brunswick Street. Multi-storey food and drink offering. Includes Ichi Ni Nana, a Japanese izakaya headed by ex Nobu chef Razmy Gaffer; a South East Asian restaurant and cocktail bar called Village People (by former Longrain chef Arte Assavakavinvong); and the Upside Rooftop Bar serving up tunes and outdoor drinks on the roof top. 127 Brunswick Street, Fitzroy.

Glamorama. Food, drinks and electronic music every day of the week are on offer at this new space in Fitzroy. DJs and late nights, and bites with a twist such as vegan chicken wings, lamington fried ice cream and botox pies with sauce syringes.393 Brunswick Street, Fitzroy. Tel. +61 3 9419 6380.

Estelle by Scott Pickett. Re launched mid 2015 in the inner northern area Northcote, Scott Pickett’s revamped venture includes both bistro option and a new fine dining restaurant. 245 High Street, Northcote. Tel. +61 3 9489 4609.

Crown Melbourne offers more than 40 food and wine establishments, both inside the complex and lining the Yarra River’s Southbank promenade. Two new comers recently opened their doors…

San Antone by Bludso at Crown – Texan BBQ restaurant opened late 2015, from US BBQ king Kevin Bludso. Level 1, Crown Entertainment Complex, Southbank. Tel. +61 3 9292 5777.

Dinner by Heston – Heston Blumenthal’s first restaurant outside of the UK, this new permanent restaurant follows the 2015 temporary residence of Fat Duck at Crown. 8 Whitman Street, Southbank. Tel. +61 3 9292 5777.

Melbourne’s love affair with Asian cuisine ushered in several new arrivals in recent months…

Lee Ho Fook. This former Collingwood establishment relocated to one of the city’s smallest laneways. In addition, owner Victor Liong will this month open a second city eaterie, Lawyers, Guns & Money, which will open early hours to present Asian breakfast favourites such as congee and cold meats. 11 Duckboard Place, Melbourne. Tel. +61 3 9077 6261.

Hawker Hall. Asian hawker style food and beer hall taking its inspiration from the Hawker centres of Singapore and Malaysia. From Chris Lucas, the restauranteur behind Chin Chin, Baby and Kong. 98 Chapel Street, Windsor. Tel. +61 3 8560 0090.

Toko. Open kitchen, indoor and outdoor dining, and a whisky room make up this new Japanese restaurant, based on the izakaya concept of an after work place for friends to meet for drinks and shared bites. By Matt Yazbek. 142 Greville Street, Prahan. Tel. +61 3 9521 3155.

Son in Law. Modern Thai style eatery in Collingwood named after a dish that plays upon the sometimes fiery relationship between son and mother in law. By husband and wife team Tony and Oh Rungpradit. 56 Johnston Street, Collingwood. Tel. +61 3 9410 0399.

And for the meatlovers…

Lamaro’s Bodega. Newly relaunched Spanish influenced restaurant with majority of produce sourced locally in Victoria, such as Cape Schanck Farm and Greenvale Farm. Offers  ‘nose to tail’ throughout the menu. 273 Cecil Street, South Melbourne, Tel. +61 3 9690 3737.

Meatworksco. Billed as a ‘pleasureplace for meatlovers’ this restaurant comes with its own 450kg in-house wood smoker. It has recently expanded to offer breakfast, with lighter dishes such as smoked salmon pockets (egg pancake, blanched asparagus and sliced salmon). 28-30 Ross Street, South Melbourne. Tel. +61 3 9041 5727.

Lady Carolina. Latin ‘profit for purpose’ eatery celebrating the food and culture of Peru, Mexico and Cuba. Supports the Pay a Sack Forward homeless initiative and is headed by restaurateurs Paul Wilson and  Alby Tomassi. 175 Lygon Street, Brunswick East. Tel. +61 3 9381 0898.

Coming up in 2016

Stay tuned for more culinary arrivals in Melbourne over coming months, including Neil Perry’s Burger Project, a new city restaurant from Phillippe Mouchel, the arrival in Melbourne of Hong Kong Michelin starred Tim Ho Wan, Higher Ground (from the team behind Kettle Black and Top Paddock), Paul Dunlop’s Smith + Singleton at the Larwill and Miss Chu in South Melbourne.