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Restaurant Suggestions 3 nights in Melbourne in mid December

West Hartford...
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Restaurant Suggestions 3 nights in Melbourne in mid December
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Looking for restaurant suggestions for the 3 nights. We usually wander about and find interesting places when we travel and pop in somewhere. Do most places in Melbourne require reservations and should we plan in advance? Steak, seafood, Indian, Asian are all possibilities. Any place that is fun and unusual? We will be in town Monday thru Wednesday.

Melbourne, Australia
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1. Re: Restaurant Suggestions 3 nights in Melbourne in mid December
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Reservations are usually recommended on Friday and Saturday nights (which won’t worry you) but also if there are any really popular places you want to specifically eat at. There are a few popular restaurants that only take reservations if you have a certain number of guests (usually 6+) and for everyone else it’s first come first served.

Without knowing your budget and exactly where in Melbourne you’ll be staying, here are a few of my favourites in the CBD you could google to see if you like the look of (some cheap eats and some expensive)- Maha, Chin Chin, Tipo 00, Rice Paper Scissors, Hutong Dumplings, Ezard, Sezar, Supernormal, Rockpool, MoVida.

If you’re after something different there is also the Tramcar restaurant (you will definitely need to book ahead for this).

Also keep in mind that a lot of restaurants are closed on Monday nights so it might be worth researching what is open on Mondays rather than showing up to places disappointed.

Enjoy Melbourne!

Melbourne, Australia
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2. Re: Restaurant Suggestions 3 nights in Melbourne in mid December
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Wandering around Melbourne is generally a good way to find good food, I find! If you like chinese, look for the restaurants in chinatown (or elsewhere) with queues. I enjoy Shanghai Street for quick, cheap and really nice XiaoLongBao, and there is ALWAYS a queue (although it moves fast). If you like japanese I enjoy Izakaya Den (often a queue here too) and Shujinko Ramen (ditto queues). Em has already listed a lot of my other faves.

Sydney
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3. Re: Restaurant Suggestions 3 nights in Melbourne in mid December
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If you want to try something different and excellent and very tasty, I suggest Dalmatino in Port Melbourne. They specialise in Dalmatian (Croatian) food.

A Peka dish would be my pick, but they don't do it for less than 4 people. Worth asking anyway.

Edited: 5 years ago
Blue Mountains...
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4. Re: Restaurant Suggestions 3 nights in Melbourne in mid December
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I recommend Max's in Hardware Lane for great steaks.

Melbourne, Australia
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5. Re: Restaurant Suggestions 3 nights in Melbourne in mid December
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Don't forget to go to Lygon St for the great Italian food

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489 posts
6. Re: Restaurant Suggestions 3 nights in Melbourne in mid December
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Not trying to be rude ^ but for me Lygon street is a tourist trap with mediocre food.. :)

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489 posts
7. Re: Restaurant Suggestions 3 nights in Melbourne in mid December
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Although nearby check out a new place I'd wanna try.. Capitano on Rathdown... menu on the website.. looks cool and v. Melb (bone in veal parmy for 2!)

Edited: 5 years ago
Melbourne, Australia
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385 posts
5 reviews
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8. Re: Restaurant Suggestions 3 nights in Melbourne in mid December
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There are some good Italian places on Lygon Street but also many not so good ones. In general, avoid any restaurant with a spruiker out the front or specials like a free glass of wine with your meal. Good restaurants already have a lot of customers and don’t need these things to get people in the door.

Zomato is a widely used website/app where people post reviews of restaurants if you’re unsure or want to check before committing to somewhere for dinner. Places with ratings of 4+ are generally very good.

Melbourne, Australia
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2,961 posts
303 reviews
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9. Re: Restaurant Suggestions 3 nights in Melbourne in mid December
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To avoid the queues for popular restaurants you could try for an early or late dinner. Admittedly, eating at 5.30 or 9pm may not suit all. Happy eating.

p.s. if you're not watching your cholesterol, my suggestion is the roasted pork hock at Lucy Liu's. The crunch on the crackling is crazy.

Melbourne, Australia
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163 reviews
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10. Re: Restaurant Suggestions 3 nights in Melbourne in mid December
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You will definitely need to book your restaurants in advance at that time of year as they are usually very busy with Christmas Functions etc.

For my three nights I would chose as follows

1. Lucy Luis Restaurant (CBD)- Asian, Hip and definitey great food. If only two of you ask for a seat up at the kitchen and watch them create all the amazing meals.

2. Matilda's (South Yarra) - definitely try the steak. Don't sit up at the chef's bar. This is a wood fired restaurant so it likely will be too hot, but definitely agreat food and great steak!

3. Colonial Tram Car Restaurant - whilst in my opinion the food isn't great the experience minus the food is. You travel aroung Melbourne on a restired W class tram and have dinner or lunch. Definitely a great way to see another side of Melbourne by night.

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