Melbourne, for
eating alone
16 open rooms tagged for it
Where they are
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Embla13◆
Destination · Wine bar / wood-fired · CBD · $$$
walk-in
Thirteen working Melbourne chefs name this room when Broadsheet asks them where they eat, which is roughly double the next venue in the city.
Gimlet8◆
Destination · Glam European grill · CBD · $$$$
booking essential
Andrew McConnell built Gimlet inside the 1920s Cavendish House on Russell Street around a square black-and-gold marble bar, and Broadsheet reads that bar as evidence of "the team's…
Above Board
Destination · Intimate cocktail bar · Collingwood · $$$
walk-in
The spirits are not on display anywhere in this bar. They sit in unmarked decanters in drawers under the counter, and the drinks list is about twenty-five long because that is how much fits.
Tipo 002◆
Destination · Italian / pasta · CBD · $$$
book ahead
The kitchen cooks the ox tongue for 24 hours with garlic and bay, peels it, shaves it on the salumi slicer like ham, then threads it onto skewers and flashes it on the grill before it reaches the plate.
Taqueria Sin Nombrenew
Destination · Mexican taqueria · CBD · $$
walk-in
The al pastor is turned by hand rather than on a motor, because the team decided a motorised trompo dries the pork out.
Patricia Coffee Brewers
Solid · Specialty coffee · CBD · $
walk-in
Bowen Holden left Seven Seeds in 2011 to open Patricia with Pip Heath, named it after both their grandmothers, and built it with no seats.
Napier Quarterjust added4◆
Solid · Cafe / wine bar · Fitzroy · $$
book ahead
Asked to name his quintessential Melbourne experience, Alejandro Saravia described a piece of toast: anchovies on crisp sourdough, big dollops of mayonnaise, sliced egg and salsa verde.
Cumulus Inc.
Solid · Modern Australian · CBD · $$$
book ahead
The lamb shoulder comes out at 1.2 kilograms, slow roasted with almond and red pepper, which is a portion built for two people to argue over rather than a table of four.
Joe Taylornew
Solid · Thai-heritage wine bar · North Melbourne · $$$
book ahead
The kitchen smokes the duck in the miang kham for three days in-house, before it ever meets the pepper leaf.
Aunty Peg's
Solid · Specialty coffee · Collingwood · $$
walk-in
Three espresso handles were cut off a Synesso machine and set into the concrete benchtop beside three keg taps, so the room pours espresso and cold brew from the same bar.
Bar Kaerunew
Solid · Sake bar / Japanese · CBD · $$
book ahead
The bar is a horseshoe on purpose, so the staff stand inside the curve and talk a hundred bottles of sake through with whoever is sitting there.
Cutler & Co
Solid · Modern Australian fine dining · Fitzroy · $$$$
booking essential
The bar takes walk-ins, and Time Out's own reviewer tells you to skip the set menu for a few a la carte dishes.
Calere Coffee
Solid · Specialty coffee · Fitzroy · $
walk-in
There is one single origin on at a time, and if you ask, whoever is behind the counter will tell you what it is doing.
Rose Garden BBQ
Listed · Cantonese BBQ · CBD · $
walk-in
A chef who cooks in the city was asked where he goes for a quick lunch and named the crispy chicken ribs here.
Dukes Coffee Roasters
Listed · Specialty coffee · CBD · $
walk-in
The beans are Regenerative Organic Certified, which is a farming standard with an audit behind it rather than a word on a bag, and the shop sells the lots whole rather than hiding them in a house blend.
Cathedral Coffeejust added
Listed · Specialty coffee · CBD · $
walk-in
It opens at 7.30am for espresso, and three nights a week the same counter becomes a wine bar. That second half is not on the pin, and it is the better reason to go.
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