For Pat Nourse, creative director of the Melbourne Food & Wine Festival, it doesn’t get much busier than March, a month when the already food-obsessed city goes into overdrive.

“For me it’s everything from fronting and hosting events on stage to trying to track down obscure ingredients for chefs,” Nourse says. “Last year Isaac McHale from the Clove Club in London needed three different kinds of pine needles for his fried chicken. There was a moment when a parcel of indigenous teas had gone astray so I was literally on my bike going around restaurant to restaurant trying to track down lemon myrtle and gulbarn on a Sunday night.”

Food lovers who have attended MFWF before will know that the experience can be as packed with action for attendees as it is for Nourse. It’s 10 days full of exciting ingredients, tasting your way through cultures and trends, and celebrating food and drink, all delivered through Melbourne’s distinctive culinary lens. Themes this year include an ongoing fascination with bakes and cakes, the rediscovery of cooking over fire, and the subtle power of fermentation, presented across events that range from free demonstrations to fine dining collaborations.

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This year’s festival runs from Friday March 24 to Sunday April 2 and is definitely worth planning a visit to Melbourne around – and as a Broadsheet Sydney reader you can access the program pre-sale as well as buy tickets to two sold out events, World’s Long Lunch and World’s Longest Brunch with the code MFWF2023. If you’re planning on attending, here are a few suggestions from Nourse to add to your itinerary.

Baker’s Dozen
This year, Fed Square is a hub of free festival events, including Baker’s Dozen – an ode to Melbourne’s deep love of baking and pastries.
“It’s fair to say that this is one of the world capitals of cafe culture,” Nourse says. “We’re renowned internationally for the quality of our coffee and, in recent years, there’s been this explosion of really inventive, really interesting patisserie and viennoiserie and baking that I think is really worth celebrating.”

At the open-air market you’ll find one-off treats from 13 cult cakers and bakers such as Lune, Baker Bleu, All Are Welcome, To Be Frank, Tarts Anon and more.

Ikoyi x Vue de Monde
MFWF has a well-earned reputation for attracting the world’s top chefs, and Jeremy Chan from London’s West African-influenced Ikoyi is included in the line-up this year. “I think what Jeremy’s doing is really interesting. I don’t think there’s anyone really doing anything like it in the Michelin-star universe of Europe,” Nourse says.
Chan will be teaming up with Vue de Monde chef Hugh Allen for a 10-course tasting menu designed to show off the best of Victorian produce with the distinct “micro-seasonal” style that has made Ikoyi so highly acclaimed.

The Convenient Store
Returning for a second year is The Convenient Store presented by 7-Eleven. “It’s designed to be reflective of the role that convenience stores play in Japanese food culture, or the bodegas play in the US, or the späti plays in Berlin,” Nourse says. At this year’s Fed Square version, head to the sandwich counter for a Sichuan lamb doozy from Lee Ho Fook’s Victor Liong (described by Nourse as “the greatest thing between two slices of bread”) or pick up some ready-to-go caramelised ghee from Enter Via Laundry, or condiments from Chae.

Swan Country (Attica x Nura Gunyu)
When you think of Melbourne’s fine-dining scene, Ben Shewry of Attica is a name that always comes to mind. For this special event, Shewry has created a menu with Yuin elder Uncle Noel Butler and Trish Butler of Nura Gunyu, an organisation that focuses on Australian Aboriginal education, including bush food.

“Uncle Noel’s a really interesting guy and also an amazing cook and has spent his life in pursuit of cross-cultural connection,” says Nourse. “Exploring a one-off menu at Attica led by Nura Gunyu is pretty amazing, and it’s something you won’t see again.”

Danny Bowien x Smith and Daughters
In a collaboration not to be missed, San Francisco’s Mission Chinese Food’s Danny Bowien and Shannon Martinez of Melbourne’s Smith and Daughters are teaming up to put on a one-night only plant-based party celebrating the very best of Sichuan province and Korea.

“Two chefs who think outside the box and beyond the curve, and two individuals who really like it spicy – this one is not to be missed, and that goes double if you’re vegan,” says Nourse.

This article is produced by Broadsheet in partnership with Melbourne Food & Wine Festival. Broadsheet’s Sydney readers can access presale tickets now, with 100 tickets up for grabs to sold-out events, World’s Longest Lunch and World’s Longest Brunch. Use the code MFWF2023 to purchase.