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- Exclusive
- Indian
First look: Bibi Ji, the riotous Indian diner reviving a legendary Lygon Street location
Clashing colours and banana leaf feasts washed down with cocktails bring pulsating energy back to the former site of a beloved Italian restaurant.
- Emma Breheny
This hatted city restaurant is now serving a rare Italian sandwich you should know about
Forget panini and focaccia. This spin-off sandwich bar is all about fluffy flatbreads served still-warm and filled with primo Italian ingredients.
- Tomas Telegramma
- Collection
- Restaurant news
Your May hit list: The hot, new and just-reviewed places to check out this month
Affordable gems worth crossing town for and charming little wine bars galore. Here are Melbourne’s hotspots to visit this month and beyond.
- Exclusive
- Italian
Enter this pasta shop via a back lane to discover Thornbury’s classy and discreet new diner
Two nights a week, the Umberto team’s pasta shop Pastificio Sandro moonlights as a restaurant, with charry mortadella skewers and a fancy version of nonna’s soup.
- Tomas Telegramma
- Exclusive
- Wine bar
‘We need this in Melbourne now’: Hatted trattoria opens a more casual and affordable spin-off
You’ll find delicious things on bread, wine at retail prices and recipes from nonna’s repertoire at Alta’s new sibling, Enoteca Zingara.
- Emma Breheny
Moon Dog’s Footscray brewpub ready to pour first beers after launch debacle
A fire hydrant has stopped the kegs from running at a brewpub set to open on a site many Melburnians hold dear. But the end is in sight.
- Emma Breheny
Owner of hatted 1800 Lasagne transforms quiet cafe into Brunswick East’s next hot spot
Suntop Plaza has a new look and owner, but the heart of the cafe – and most of its home-style sandwich menu – remain very much intact.
- Tomas Telegramma
Three good-looking new locals for a low-key luxe night out
One spot rewards early birds with a free snack. Another is a favourite morning hangout that’s just added dinner. All of them you’d want in your neighbourhood.
- Emma Breheny and Tomas Telegramma
- Exclusive
- Beer and cider
Footscray’s legendary Franco Cozzo site has undergone a wild transformation
A mechanical bull, tequila-sunrise slushies, sizzling fajita platters and a huge rooftop bar. Welcome to Moon Dog Brewery’s new three-level mega-venue.
- Tomas Telegramma
- Exclusive
- Wine bars
Wally’s brings relaxed dining and hard-to-find wines to a corner spot in Albert Park
The bijou new wine bar hopes to become a magnet for the neighbourhood with its 300-bottle wine list and lovable Euro dishes like steak in bordelaise sauce.
- Daniela Frangos