Raph Rashid’s All Day Doughnuts is worth the queue, says Dan Stock. Picture: Nicole Cleary Source: News Limited
From 8 Bit burgers to Korean at Kong, here are the 20 dishes from the hottest restaurants in Melbourne that you need to eat right now.
1. Doughnuts at All Day Donuts ($4-5 each)
He got us hooked on eating burgers outdoors when he introduced us to his Beat Box Kitchen food trucks, now Raph Rashid is doing a damn good job of getting us hooked on the sweet stuff at his first bricks and mortar store.
At All Day Doughnuts he’s keeping it simple: just a changing roster of doughnuts — perhaps a raspberry glaze with strawberry sprinkles, a Jaffa with choc rocks, or the simple OG (original glaze) among the six or seven varieties offered each day — and single-origin filter coffee.
You might have to queue, but with everything made on site (including the sprinkles), it’s worth every minute (here and on the treadmill).
All Day Doughnuts, 12 Edward St, Brunswick
The $12 fried wings at Kong in Richmond are delicious. Picture: Kristoffer Paulsen Source: Supplied
2. Korean Fried Wings at Kong ($12)
Chris Lucas’s latest hot spot in Melbourne’s dining landscape is everything we’ve come to expect from the restaurateur with the Midas touch — bustling, buzzy and always busy, with queues to match. Kong takes Korean and gives it the Chin Chin treatment, and Melbourne can’t get enough.
Barbecue here is definitely king, but it’s the fried wings, all sticky with honey and teamed with garlic and sesame that has us reaching for the paper towels time and again.
It’s fast and fun finger food that’s messy, moreish and madly addictive.
Kong, 599 Church St, Richmond
HAVE YOUR SAY: How do you rate our list of Melbourne’s 20 hottest dishes? Have you tried any of them? Share your thoughts in the comment box below or on social media using the #hotmelbdishes hashtag.
Coconut yoghurt with fruit, seeds and nuts. is made using vegan non-dairy culture. Picture: Nicole Cleary Source: News Corp Australia
3. Coconut yoghurt at The Kettle Black ($13)
Pretty as a picture and so hot right now — this may be your new favourite breakfast. It’s from The Kettle Black, the latest from the cafe crew behind a couple of spots you may have heard of: Richmond’s Top Paddock and South Yarra’s Two Birds One Stone.
Head chef Jesse McTavish makes the yoghurt daily using vegan non-dairy culture, coconut cream, agave syrup and pectin as a thickener.
It’s topped with a mix of Aussie-grown grains, nuts, seeds, seasonal fruit, flowers and a dusting of citrus powder made by dehydrating local citrus peel so you get a different citrus hit with each spoonful.
There’s also prickly pear, grown from a thriving bush at the Toorak train station McTavish spied during his morning commute to Richmond when he was setting up the Top Paddock Kitchen.
The Kettle Black, 50 Albert Rd, South Melbourne
Who would walk past the 8bit cheese burger with a peanut butter shake? Picture: Nicole Cleary Source: News Limited
4. Burger ($8.50) & shake ($6.50) at 8 Bit
Are we sick of burgers yet? Judging by the queues out the door at 8 Bit, which have formed every day since they opened their doors in May, Melbourne’s answer is a resounding, “No way!”
That 8 Bit brings the new wave of burgers out west is only part of its charm; that those burgers are good enough to cross the West Gate for, well, that backs it up.
The signature 8 Bit has plenty of sharp pickles, red onion and melted American cheese on a patty that gets the juicy-factor just right.
Mustard, mayo and fresh tomato on a soft brioche bun complete the picture that’s all the more satisfying when washed down with their peanut butter shake, which has shards of peanut brittle that bolster its ice-creamy goodness.
8 Bit, 8 Droop St, Footscray
Stagger Lee’s Fat Bacon Toasty doesn’t disappoint. Picture: Nicole Cleary Source: News Limited
5. Fat Bacon Toasty at Stagger Lee’s ($14.50)
Stagger Lee’s swaggered onto Brunswick St earlier this year and quickly became the go-to base for Fitzrovians who no longer have to schlep over to Collingwood for their Proud Mary coffee fix.
To go with your expertly (and obsessively) made coffee, chef/co-owner Chris Hamburger has created a breakfast menu that’s all class.
If coffee isn’t enough to restart you after the night before, his Fat Bacon Toasty most certainly will. It’s a glorious thing — apple wood-smoked bacon, cut thick and cooked crisp, comes generously piled between two hunks of fried buttery bread.
Gruyere fondue adds a creamy, cheesy sharpness, a fried egg on top adds gooey colour.
A lovely little salad — shaved fennel, rocket and endive — means you get some greens, too, and good spicy chutney is served to the side.
It is the ultimate hangover buster, hands down, but is equally good for the virtuous having a day off.
Stagger Lee’s, 276 Brunswick St, Fitzroy
Boat noodles are a must for any foodie and great value for money at just $9, says Dan Stock. Picture: Nicole Cleary Source: News Corp Australia
6. Boat noodles Jinda Thai ($9)
In a funky cool warehouse space down a lane just off the Victoria St main drag you’ll find some of Melbourne’s best Thai food.
While the menu is extensive, the boat noodles — so called as they are traditionally sold from small boats along canals and rivers — are a must.
A dark, thick and deeply satisfying broth with hints of sweet spice playing with hits of sour is the base in which the noodles swim and the tender strips of beef lay on.
A scattering of fresh herbs add a fleck of colour, and puffed pork crackling adds salty crunch.
What it loses in the looks department it gains everywhere else — thick, rich and restorative, it’s a dish guaranteed to bring a smile.
Jinda Thai 3 Ferguson St, Abbotsford
The delicate yet incredible pork belly parcels at Kirk’s Wine Bar are incredible. Picture: Nicole Cleary Source: News Corp Australia
7. Pork belly parcels at Kirk’s Wine Bar ($15)
You could just go to Kirk’s for some cheese and a glass of something interesting; it is after all a day-through-night drop-in wine bar first and foremost. But there’s some excellent things coming out of the kitchen helmed by Ian Curley for those who fancy getting stuck into a bottle and more than a bite.
The pork belly parcels are a great case in point. Four tender cubes of firm flesh with a touch of crackle crunch are encased in buttery, flaky pastry.
A delightful salad of apple batons, onion, chives and pretty clover tumbled atop tames the richness of all that porky goodness.
With a plate of this in front and a glass in hand, it’s hard not to feel all’s rather right with the world.
Kirks, cnr Hardware Lane and Lt Bourke St, city
Supernormal’s fried custard dish may have begun as something of an accident, but the result will impress any sweet tooth. Picture: Nicole Cleary Source: News Limited
8. Fried custard at Supernormal ($12)
“It was a bit of an accident, really,” says Andrew McConnell of the dessert that has proven one of the must-eat dishes at his new Supernormal canteen.
A take of sorts on the fried ice-cream served in the suburban Chinese restaurants of the past, here Andrew takes a scoop of set vanilla custard, coats it in tempura and deep fries it for two minutes.
The crisp crunchy little balls are then drizzled with spicy-sweet ginger syrup.
These taste-texture-sweet-spice flavour bombs will have you thinking, once again, that Andrew McConnell really is one of our very best.
Supernormal, 180 Flinders Lane, Melbourne
The crispy Korean pork hock with pancakes at Lucy Liu has a perfect velvety crunch to it. Picture: Nathan Dyer Source: News Corp Australia
9. Korean pork hock at Lucy Liu ($38)
There are many (many) good things to eat on Michael Lambie’s menu at his new pan-Asian diner, Lucy Liu, but the go-to dish for every carnivore is the Korean pork hock.
Sure, it’s a vegetarian’s nightmare and is ugly as sin, but there’s no faulting its dramatic appearance when it hits the table impaled with a hefty carving knife.
You’ll need this to crack the gloriously crisp exterior of the hock, which, having been marinated in gochujang for 24 hours, then braised in masterstock for another 12 hours, then flash-fried and rested until the flesh inside is wonderfully gelatinous, is the perfect marriage of velvety crunch. Served with little steamed pancakes that you DIY to taste with cucumber batons, spring onion and spicy hoi sin sauce, along with a fresh apple kimchi salad, it’s Korea via Beijing that’s very much at home in Melbourne.
Lucy Liu, 23 Oliver Lane, city
Sparrow's Philly cheesesteak may not look pretty, but you won’t care once you’ve taken your first bite. Picture: Nicole Cleary Source: News Limited
10. Philly cheesesteak at Sparrow’s ($15 with fries)
There’s no two ways about it, a Philly cheesesteak won’t win any bun beauty contests, but boy, doesn’t it have a great personality.
It’s a simple, classic snack that has been scoffed in Philadelphia for more than a century — just thin slices of steak, fried onions and melted cheese in a long white roll — but how those three ingredients come together is keenly debated.
Sparrow’s, run by native Philadelphian Geno Sparrow as a kitchen in The Catfish pub, is Melbourne’s first authentic cheesesteak shop, where you can sop up (excellent) craft beers with a soft, slightly sweet roll filled to bursting with tender steak slices and fried onions slathered in hot, gooey cheese (American or provolone, your choice).
There are many options to trick up your ride — mushrooms, sweet pepper, hot pepper, pizza steak — but it’s hard to go past the original, especially for first timers.
Sparrow’s Philly Cheesesteaks at The Catfish, 30 Gertrude St, Fitzroy
Smith & Daughters $7 tortilla is packed with flavour. Picture: Tim Carrafa Source: News Corp Australia
11. Spanish tortilla at Smith & Daughters ($7)
It’s vegan, Jim, but not as we know it. Thanks to Shannon Martinez and Mo Wyse, this year vegan has become cool. Way cool. And their new Brunswick St eatery remains one of the hottest tables in town since opening a few months back.
The menu, painted with a broad Mediterranean brush, features tacos and tamales, parole and paella, all of which fly out the kitchen. They serve up a rollicking good version of the Spanish classic, tortilla, too.
A thick slice of potato pie is elegantly hearty and packed with flavour, the garlic “aioli” alongside providing creamy accompaniment. Meet the new kids on the block.
Smith & Daughters, 175 Brunswick St, Fitzroy
Stokehouse’s porridge with banana and toasted coconut is hard to beat. Picture: Mike Keating Source: News Limited
12. Porridge at Stokehouse City ($11)
Yes, you can come to the relocated Stokehouse and enjoy its breezy bayside vibe in the grand upstairs dining room. Many do, and chef Ollie Gould’s menu has much on it to make a visit memorable. Or you could come and have after-work drinks and fab bistro fare, in the downstairs bar area. There’s lots to like here, too.
And now during the week you can also use the blond and bright downstairs area for your breakfast meetings or some quiet time with a (good) coffee. The menu keeps things simple: a ham and cheese toastie, or mushrooms on toast keeps things suitably light for the day ahead.
But while the mornings still have a sub-10 degree chill on them, a bowl of porridge is hard to beat. Hand-rolled oats come dusted with muscovado sugar, with slices of banana and a sprinkling of toasted coconut to the side. It’s a little taste of the tropics on a cold Melbourne morn that goes a long way to brightening a day.
Stokehouse City, 7 Alfred Place, city
Mr Big Stuff’s kale greens will have you loving this humble vegetable. Picture: Andrew Brownbill Source: News Corp Australia
13. Kale greens at Mr Big Stuff ($12)
When it comes to soul food, anything green usually takes a back seat to the sugary fried delight that is the famed chicken and waffles. Actually, when it comes to most food, greens usually take a back seat, but the team at Mr Big Stuff, under the watchful eye of Louis Naepels (ex-Grossi Florentino), know how to get kids and adults alike to dig on veg.
A take on the traditional collard greens, they dress vibrant kale leaves with a sweetly sharp honey vinegar. Cubes of candied yams add soft, sweet colour, and a handful of pecans add rich crunch. It’s veg, but not as we know it. A little bit naughty, a whole lot of nice.
Mr Big Stuff, 16 Meyers Place, city
Le Bon Ton’s smoked brisket is tender and supple. Picture: Nicole Cleary Source: News Corp Australia
14. Smoked brisket at Le Bon Ton ($19 half pound)
It seems every second restaurant in Melbourne is now filled with the alluringly sweet smells of burning mesquite and cherry wood; that barbecue meat — proper US barbecue — is all we now eat.
And it’s true, to a point, but one of the best places to eat that proper barbecue meat is at Le Bon Ton, a late-night New Orleans-style oyster bar and absinthe den.
Alabama-born, Texas-raised Jeremy Sutphin is the man who lovingly tends the smoker out the back, where grain-fed Riverina Angus spends 18 hours before ending up sliced on a wooden board and served simply with house pickles — jalapeno, gherkin, onion.
Tender and supple but with a great smoky crust, it’s a magnificent way to eat your beef.
Le Bon Ton, 51 Gipps St, Collingwood
Patch cafe will change your mind about when to eat salad. Source: Supplied
15. Breakfast salad at Patch ($16)
While the jury is still out as to whether the paleo way is just a craze or if it’s the cure, you don’t have to subscribe to activating your almonds or going all caveman to know that a salad hefty with kale and broccoli is a pretty good way to start your day. Add in avocado, pomegranate and a handful of almonds, all drizzled with a sharp lemony dressing, and you have a bowl that both your head and your heart can go for. A perfectly poached egg is the crowning glory of this nutrient-packed alternative to cereal and toast.
Patch, 32 Bendigo St, Richmond
Belle's hot chicken has a good amount of lip-tingling chilli heat. Picture: Nicole Cleary Source: News Limited
16. Hot chicken ($16) at Belle’s Hot Chicken
Chef Aaron Turner, who shocked the industry when he closed his award-winning country restaurant Loam last year, has returned to our shores after spending time out in Tennessee.
And he’s brought with him more than a few secrets gleaned from eating Nashville’s famed hot fried chicken. Along with co-owner Morgan McGlone, Aaron is keeping things simple at his new home, Belle’s Hot Chicken.
You choose your meat — whether wings, tenders, dark meat — and the level of heat, which ranges from mild through to really f---king hot. That chicken has fantastic crunch, and the mid-level “hot” has a good amount of lip-tingling chilli heat.
Your basket of chook (served on a slice of white bread) comes with a side — fries, mac and cheese, slaw, potato salad — but otherwise all you need is a can of Pabst beer to make for a meal that’s so hot right now.
Belle’s Hot Chicken, 150 Gertrude St, Fitzroy
Who doesn't love a lamington jaffle? Source: Supplied
17. Lamington jaffles at Bad Frankie ($7)
Bad Frankie pays homage to an Australian icon — the jaffle — by serving it with an unparalleled range of Australian spirits.
It’s a bar where the jaffles are hot (a lamb roast with peas, gravy and mint, or a fat pie, with braised beef and gravy), the tunes are cool and the cocktails are wildly, deliciously inventive.
And the best way to finish a night here is with another icon transformed with a twist: the lamington jaffle.
Slices of chocolate sponge cake are filled with jam, pressed in the iron until warm, rolled in toasted coconut and served with thick double cream. Bad Frankie is very good.
Bad Frankie, 141 Greeves St, Fitzroy
Woodland House’s bombe alaska has both Meredith goat’s curd and butterscotch ice-cream. Picture: Nicole Cleary Source: News Corp Australia
18. Bombe Alaska at Woodland House (five course tasting menu, $115)
The master’s apprentices are now in charge of the manor. Thomas Woods and Hayden McFarland are the duo who has taken over from where their old boss, Jacques Reymond, left off when he hung up his apron for the last time here last year.
They have quickly made their mark. While the grand mansion remains one of Melbourne’s most refined dining rooms, the new team have added some youthful whimsy into proceedings; none more whimsical — and witty — than their take on bombe Alaska.
Butterscotch ice-cream is hidden under a hedgehog of browned meringue, with dots of seawater caramel adding sweet salt.
Underneath, Meredith goat’s curd, whipped light, adds an element of sharp funkiness that manages to cut through and complement the sugar high. It’s glorious to look at; even better to eat.
Woodland House, 78 Williams Rd, Prahran
The wurstplatten features five types of sausages. Picture: Andrew Tauber Source: News Corp Australia
19. Wurstplatten & beer at Hophaus ($25)
Sausages and beer — there’s no doubt Germans get those two things right, and one of the best places to get stuck into both is at Hophaus, a stylishly modern reimagining of a Bavarian bierhaus at Southgate. The wurstplatten is five types of sausage, cooked over coals, served with good pickled red cabbage, a bit of mustard-y potato salad and sauerkraut.
You get a bratwurst, cheese kransky, frankfurt (of course), an excellent weisswurst, and a smoky, paprika-heavy debrinzer, along with a good selection of senf (mustard) served on the side to slather across. Team with a stein of beer and you have a meal most hearty that’s good for two. Guten appetit.
Hophaus, midlevel Southgate, Southbank
Ike's triple rack stack is finger-lickin’ good. Picture: Brendan Francis Source: News Corp Australia
20. Triple Back Rack Stack at Ike’s Rack Shack ($62)
My, how we love our ribs. Melburnians just can’t get enough of finger-lickin’ American barbecue and Ike’s Rack Shack at The Beaufort is a red-hot favourite. Especially when “Old Man Ike” (aka pitmaster Chris Terlikar) sends out a Triple Back Rack Stack.
This eye-popping combo, served with bourbon barbecue sauce and pickles, combines smoky pork racks with a full rib of blackened beef. Both mighty fine. But for sheer sticky, juicy deliciousness, Ike’s fine-boned lamb ribs are hard to beat. Make sure you order some sides.
We love the house-made cornbread they make here, subtly spiced and served in a scalding hot skillet. To drink? Look to The Beaufort’s crafty ales or impressive hit-list of spirits. Then order up another round of ribs …
Ike’s Rack Shack, 421 Rathdowne St, Carlton.
No comments:
Post a Comment