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Duck egg char kwai teow at Lulu’s Express.

Melbourne hit list August 2023: Hot, new and just-reviewed places to check out, right now

Hawker stalls and Mexican street food spin-offs, top-quality lunchtime sushi bowls and more.

Margherita pizza.

Sydney hit list August 2023: Hot, new and just-reviewed places to check out, right now

Beautifully chewy sourdough pizza slices, Taiwanese rice bowls, Mexican street food and butter-fuelled crab ... here’s what we’ve been eating and recommending lately.

Enter Via Laundry’s winter menu explores rich and luxurious Mughlai dishes such as shirin pulao, a goat biryani.

Bargain noodles, schnitzels and strudel: Six Melbourne restaurants doing hot things this winter

Cafes are branching out into dinner, neighbourhood wine bars are making mid-week great again, and restaurants are firing on all cylinders. Who said winter was boring?

  • Emma Breheny
The Melbourne Bitter mural at Odd Culture in Fitzroy.

10 hot, new (and renewed) Melbourne bars and pubs to try right now

From a four-storey mega-venue to some popular old North Melbourne pubs given new life, here are the watering holes we’ve been loving lately.

Reine & La Rue’s cathedral-like interiors will be a major distraction for diners.

French dining on a grand scale: What to expect at Reine & La Rue in Melbourne’s stunning former stock exchange

The granite columns and vaulted ceilings of Melbourne’s 1891 stock exchange are the definition of grand city dining.

  • Emma Breheny
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The kitchen, bar, storage and dining room of  tiny restaurant Greasy Zoes occupy a single room.

Pocket rockets: Melbourne’s smallest restaurants, from sushi bars to bush cabins

A Japanese restaurant in Footscray has set a new bar for hard-to-score seats with its four-person capacity. But there are plenty of others not far behind.

  • Emma Breheny
Birria tacos on the menu at CDMX.

First look: New Brunswick East taqueria CDMX is the pure taco restaurant that Melbourne’s been missing

A taqueria inspired by those in Mexico City is now open, with a large bar to prop at with margaritas and tacos al pastor.

  • Emma Breheny
French cooking technique is on show at Magnolia.

Magnolia bistro brings French flair to a century-old space on Sydney Road

Behind leadlight windows lies a Euro-style bistro serving comforting classics like steak with Bordelaise sauce, creme brulee and more.

  • Emma Breheny
Pandan Dessert Bar in Hardware Lane.

Cult Melbourne CBD noodle shop Lulu’s expands with new Malaysian dessert bar and takeaway outlet

Step into the pandan-focused bar next door for a warm winter dessert, or walk one block for speedy takeaway char kwai teow.

  • Emma Breheny
Ima owners Ako Miura and James Spinks are thrilled to be in a bigger venue.

Brunswick’s Ima Asa Yoru is the new grown-up version of one of Melbourne’s most popular cafes

Moving to bigger digs in Brunswick has opened a world of delicious possibilities for one of Melbourne’s best-loved Japanese venues - and there’s more to come.

  • Emma Breheny