The Best Thing I’ve Eaten Lately: Our Favourite Dishes in Melbourne Right Now

At Broadsheet, we’re constantly discovering dishes at new venues around town, and rediscovering old favourites – it’s part of the gig. There’s a lot of delicious eating out there, but some bites shine more brightly than others.
Here are a few plates that our staff and contributors have been eating – and loving – in recent weeks.

Jersey cheese, Brico, Carlton North

I’ve been dying to try Goldstreet Dairy’s Jersey cheese, so I was overjoyed to see it on the menu this month at Carlton North newcomer Brico. It’s grilled like haloumi and has a similar texture – but slightly softer, stretchier and less salty. Brico serves it gloriously golden on a bed of silverbeet and crisp pangrattato.
– Sasha Murray, content marketing manager

Steak and eggs, Butchers Diner, CBD

Go to Butchers Diner and order this with a side of duck hearts. It has magical healing properties that I promise will stop any hangover the following day. Thick-cut, generously buttered toast. Runny, salty fired eggs. Perfectly cooked steak. And duck hearts – because fuck it, why not?
– Rory McKenna, product manager

Heirloom tomato bagel, Masses Bagels, Carlton Farmers Market

Masses is only at the Carlton markets every other week, so it took about three months from hearing about their bagels to finally being there on the right weekend to try them. But they absolutely lived up to the hype and anticipation. I’m slowly making my way through the menu, but the star so far is the heirloom tomato with parmesan cream, fermented red habanero and green oil.
– Stephanie Goldwater, brand and marketing director

Corn tortellini, Atria, CBD

I’ve recently discovered a new love of all things corn. At a (very platonic) Valentine’s Day dinner at Atria, the à la carte restaurant on the 80th floor of the Ritz-Carlton, I had three delicate corn tortellini filled with young corn, Victorian Comté and topped with two sorrel leaves. The dish was unbelievably fragrant, and the filling was a perfect distillation of the versatile vegetable.
– Audrey Payne, Melbourne food and drink editor

Chirashi bowl, Hinoki Japanese Pantry, Fitzroy

I don’t think I’ve eaten any other Melbourne dish more than I have this takeaway bowl. The variety of sashimi (salmon, kingfish, tuna, scallop) with cooked prawn, tamagoyaki (rolled omelette), marinated mushrooms, avocado and ikura (salmon caviar) over seasoned sushi rice hits the spot each time. It was the first thing I craved after a month-long holiday.
– Chynna Santos, deputy branded content editor

Batata harra, Rumi, Brunswick

You know those menus where only a few dishes look good? Rumi’s is the opposite of that. Everything seems like a must-try. On a recent visit I ordered sigara boregi (cheese-filled pastry cigars), chicken wings, makanek (sausages) and Persian meatballs – all total knockouts. But to my surprise, they were all outdone by the comparatively simple roast potatoes with garlic, chilli and crisp fried saltbush. Come Christmas or another roast lunch this year, I’m going to be advocating hard for the usual spuds to get this sort of spicy touch-up.
– Nick Connellan, publications director

Charcoal-grilled pork with steamed rice sheets (banh uot thit nuong), Co Thu Quan, Richmond

Call me a sheep, but after reading Mischa Tropp’s glittering review of Co Thu Quan in Richmond, I had to try it myself. As promised, the canary-yellow banh xeo (stuffed crepe) was a standout, especially when wrapped in bitter Vietnamese perilla leaves. But it was the chewy, charcoal-grilled chunks of pork on a bed of steamed rice sheets that I wanted to take home with me – if I hadn’t licked the plate clean.
– Holly Bodeker-Smith, directory editor (app)

Duck hearts, One Trick Pony, Fitzroy North

I’m a big snacker, and a big fan of OTP chef Jacob Muoio’s snacks in particular. He always has a different spin or tweak to the standard wine bar food. These hearts are soft, warm and lush, with the perfect lick of char. They’re served with a fermented hot sauce that’s a lovely compliment to the delicate, gamey bite of offal. Duck hearts on skull skewers are also just deliciously goth.
– Kosa Monteith, contributing writer

Burrata with fresh and pickled watermelon, Ugo Burrata Bar, South Melbourne

Controversies aside, there’s something very satisfying about watching an artisan deftly making their product and handing it over fresh for you to eat. Ugo Burrata Bar’s chefs stretch and pinch and twist their burrata into little man-bun-esque blobs that serve as the perfect vehicle for flavoursome market produce, like the fresh watermelon and pickled watermelon rind combo.
– Jo Rittey, contributing writer

Scallop crudo, Young Hearts, Windsor

I wasn't expecting an exceptional meal over a casual dinner with friends, but on my recent visit to Young Hearts, the team over-delivered on flavour. Chefs James Cornwall and Ben John have an outstanding pedigree from some of the finest kitchens in the world, and their snack game is polished and, frankly, next level. If I had to pick one dish from my recent trip, it would be their scallop crudo with makrut lime mayo, avocado, and wasabi leaf.

This elegant dish features Japanese Hokkaido scallops bound with a floral makrut lime leaf mayonnaise and a fermented jalapeno yuzu kosho, wrapped in avocado and topped with fresh wasabi leaf.
– John Anderson, contributing writer

Ice-cream sundae, Sundae School, Fitzroy North

I mean it’s in the name, but by golly does this spot know how to perfect the nostalgia of an ice-cream sundae. You get three scoops of vanilla, salted chocolate fudge that’s almost too salty – in a good way, people! – and a scattering of brown butter chopped peanuts in that retro craggy shape. This masterpiece is then topped with whipped cream and a glacé cherry.
– Claire Adey, contributing writer

Bluefin tuna with white soy, Messmates, Warragul

This wine bar in Warragul, Gippsland, is a total unicorn. In a sleek, angular room that looks like it’s been teleported from Northcote, it has a genuine family vibe (it’s a brother-sister team – front of house and chef, respectively – joined by their partners). I loved the whole meal, from exemplary steak tartare to handmade pasta with summer truffles, but my pick of the set was a plate of tender southern bluefin tuna pulled out of the bay that morning, with sugar snaps, herbs, pickled ginger and white soy. Simple, elegant, delicious.
– Michael Harry, national editor

Red Packets gelato, Kariton Sorbetes, Chinatown, Glen Waverley and Footscray

Ah, Laughing Cow cheese: a fixture of school lunches worldwide. However you feel about the spreadable fromage, there’s no denying Kariton has done it justice with its recent Lunar New Year special. Creamy and subtly salty, this cheese was made to be spun into gelato. Adding to the genius, it’s dotted with candied goji berries, pleasantly boozy baijiu jelly, and chunks of red velvet cake (another childhood favourite of mine) given new life with the addition of jujube.
– Quincy Malesovas, contributing writer

Vegan pho, Shop Bao Ngoc, Brunswick

Omnivore or herbivore, this bowl will heal you. Deeply aromatic, carefully tended broth honours its Vietnamese heritage while welcoming plant-based diners to the table. Springy noodles, mushrooms and veg are accompanied by fresh bean shoots, herbs and a bright squeeze of calamansi. Soul-restoring stuff.

*Note: Be sure to check Shop Bao Ngoc’s Instagram for regularly updated business hours – this gem opens only when the owners have capacity.
– Sandra Tan, contributing writer

Spiced freekeh sourdough and mushroom butter, Embla, CBD

Acting on an impassioned recommendation by a friend, I tried the sourdough at Embla. It did not disappoint. The wine bar’s take includes freekeh, which lends a fragrant nuttiness to the bread. It’s served alongside a perfectly salty and umami mushroom butter. With a crunchy crust and spongy, chewy interior, this sourdough is seriously addictive. I wish they sold it by the loaf.
– Irene Zhang, contributing writer

Bean and corn tacos, Tacos LA

Here in Melbourne (or dare I say Australia), this is the closest you will get to food as flavoursome, and fresh as you’d find in Mexico. I keep going back – I can’t get enough.
– Jessica Kirsopp, media partnerships manager