A bastion of exemplary Hakata-style ramen in the city centre. Visit for house-made noodles (with free top-ups), consistently excellent broths and a creation known simply as the “cocktail draft beer”. If you drink too many, do as the shop prescribes: keep calm, eat ramen.

This sultry sibling to Sunda is every bit as stellar. At Aru, chef Khanh Nguyen is effortlessly blending Southeast Asian flavours, native Australian ingredients and ancient techniques. And while there are unexpectedly playful riffs on classics – like banh mi, Peking duck and mi goreng – they never feel gimmicky, just modernised and expertly refined.

Few towns have done as good a job of preserving their history as Maldon, a historic gold mining town 35 minutes south-west of Bendigo. Maldon boomed in the 1850s at the height of the gold rush and remarkably much of the streetscape remains largely unchanged. In 1966 it became the first Australian town to be classified by the National Trust, in recognition of its success in preserving its 19th century heritage. The town has many tours and workshops available to experience throughout the year as well as three self-guided historic walks taking you around Maldon’s most notable historic buildings, including the Kangaroo Hotel, the Freemasons’ Hall, the Royal Hotel & Theatre and Warnock’s Flour Mill.