Three New Hot-Listed Restaurants – and One Absolute Classic – To Try This Spring

The Hot List is the definitive guide to Melbourne's most essential food and drink experiences, updated weekly. Learn more.

It’s that funny time of year when we’re constantly getting teased by spring. Every week or so there’ll be one warm day – or maybe a handful – that will get your hopes up. And then the rug gets pulled out from under you and everything gets frigid and miserable again. But still, any amount of sun and warmth is worth taking. Especially when it’s a sign that we’re nearing the home stretch of the year.

Pretty soon, your calendar will be clogged with office Christmas parties, end-of-year shindigs and all the other social obligations life throws at you. So while your free time still belongs to you, why not get into the swing of spring by checking out a few of our favourite places on The Hot List?

Etta

A beloved restaurant losing its head chef is a painful – sometimes mortal – wound. But at Etta, it’s almost something to look forward to. Each former head chef, from Hayden McMillan and Charley Snadden-Wilson to Rosheen Kaul, leaves big shoes to fill. And somehow, improbably, they always get filled. Each time in a totally different way. Since taking over the pans in May last year , new head chef Lorcán Kan has put his own stamp on the kitchen – winning over the Etta faithful and ushering a new congregation of fans into the fold. Etta is a little bit like the Doctor Who of Melbourne restaurants: constantly regenerating, always itself, but each time different enough to warrant complete reappraisal. That spirit of continuous reinvention wouldn’t be possible without some continuity. Thanks to Hannah Green, Etta’s omnipresent owner, floor-leader and overall cheerleader, you’re always guaranteed to see at least one familiar face – regardless of who’s behind the pass. So while we wait patiently for Daphne , consider heading in for a meal at Etta. If it’s been a while since your last time, don’t worry – everything’s different, nothing’s changed.

Harriot

When the team that brought us Tipo 00 , Osteria Ilaria , Figlia , and Grana announces a new venue, you just naturally assume that you’ll be getting an Italian restaurant. And an excellent one at that. But that’s not what we got when Harriot opened at the tail-end of June. Instead we got a sleek restaurant that feels deeply European, but also unmistakeably Melbourne. That’s in large part thanks to head chef James Kelly, whose CV includes a big chunk of time at the acclaimed, now-closed, restaurant Lyle’s. That restaurant’s remit was all about seasonality and drawing ingredients – and ideas – from across the continent. At Harriot, Kelly’s doing that, but this time with inspiration – and produce – from Victoria. Come for classical cooking, with immaculate execution, that makes the most of whatever’s available from the finest suppliers in the state. It’s all backed up by topnotch service and a wine list that’s already considered among the city’s best.

Suze

Suze dares you to get excited about things that haven’t been exciting in years, and completely pulls it off. Think you’ve experienced everything that a ricotta dish in a wine bar has to offer? Think again. The house-made ricotta, which is enveloped in a gauze of sauce, will make you fall in love all over again. And focaccia, which seemingly every spot in Melbourne since Napier Quarter is duty-bound to offer, has never tasted better than it does here. Head chef and co-owner Steve Harry’s cooking will kill the cynic in you – and will remind you that something’s only played out if it tastes bad. And nothing here tastes bad. The hearty, congenial service at Suze, led by co-owner Giulia Giorgetti, is charming too. Giorgetti and the staff make you feel totally welcome – whether you’re just stopping by for a drink, or settling in for a meal featuring liberal amounts of focaccia and ricotta.

Zareh

Talk to anyone that’s been to Zareh and, once they’ve gotten through a 10-minute bite-by-bite, sip-by-sup rundown of every single delicious thing they ate and drank, the next thing they’ll mention is the calmness. The serenity and complete lack of chaos. How can a restaurant this new, this anticipated and hyped, be this relaxed? Everyone says it already has the confidence, the smoothness, of a restaurant that’s been open for months – if not years. They say good things come to those who wait, and Melbourne has been waiting. For years, chef-owner Tom Sarafian has teased us with pop-ups that remind us what he could do in the kitchen – and what the city’s been missing. We’ve been parsing every elliptical announcement and update for clues as to when we would finally, actually, get Zareh. Now we have it, and it feels like we always have. And even though we missed Tom Sarafian during his prolonged absence from Melbourne’s kitchens, we can confidently say this: he’s more than made up for lost time.

The Hot List is proudly sponsored by Square.