There’s plenty of news to digest in Melbourne’s food and drink scene; so much so that keeping up with the goings on might sometimes feel overwhelming. But we’ve got the cure for what ails you – or at least your attention span – with Melbourne and Victoria’s latest served up hot, fresh and fast.
Everything on the menu is $14 at Melbourne’s newest French restaurant
How would you like your entrecôte steak? Medium rare and served with a price tag of just $14? Perhaps you prefer your confit duck leg and potato sarladaise at a modest $14? Or are you of the opinion that your salad Niçoise should set you back no more than $14? That’s the proposition at Frenchie on Collins Street, arguably Melbourne’s most approachable French bistro, where everything on the menu is just $14.
“Taking a lot of inspiration from Parisian bistros and late-night wine bars, the menu celebrates all your favourite French classics served in a way that feels unpretentious and full of energy,” says co-owner Lucas Boucly. Your outrageously affordable outing awaits – make a booking at Frenchie today.
Frenchie, Shop 1/15 Collins St, Melbourne, open 5pm-midnight seven days a week, frenchierestaurant.au, @frenchie.melb
The only thing better than a fried chicken festival is when it’s free
Would you like 1,000 pieces of free fried chicken? Make for Healeys Lane this Melbourne Food & Wine Festival when Koreatown’s favourite wing slingers dish up their best for absolutely nothing. Seven Star Pocha will be there with fried chicken dusted in a deliciously creamy, supremely snowy cheese; Dong Dae Moon is exploring the spice of life with a punchy gochujang-glazed fried chicken thigh; there’s a banging barbecue soy situation care of Gangnampocha; and Sinjeon K Street Food are keeping it classic with a honey-soy serve of the good stuff.
Did we mention it’s free?
The Festival of Korean Fried Chicken, presented by Brights & Park, Park St Laneway, Melbourne, 11am-2pm Tuesday 24 March
Join bona fide Box Hill Central expert Rosheen Kaul on a food tour to remember
Our Crawl and Bite series is back, baby, this time taking to the halls, stalls and vendors of Box Hill Central – and better still, each itinerary is put together by chef, author and friend of the Festival Rosheen Kaul.
She’ll be hosting the first two crawls, sharing her insider intel – like which dumplings to order from Henan Street Food, and why the wontons are better at Tina’s Noodle Kitchen – all the while hooking into several specialty snacks from specialty grocer Phoenix Produce along the way. The round-ticket to flavour-town departs late March – get on board here.
In the Box: Crawl and Bite at Box Hill Central runs every Sunday beginning 22 March until 5 July. Book your tickets here.
A very saucy, entirely free pizza party with Super Norma and Leonardo’s Pizza Palace
Ever wondered about an alternate reality where the pasta pros from Super Norma serve pizza instead? Us too. Dreams come true at Something Saucy: The Pizza Party, presented by Leggo’s, when Luca Muscato and Marco Salzano take to the dough at Leonardo’s Pizza Palace. Together, they’re serving up 1,000 free slices of eggplant pizza alongside 800 free Bloody Marys for those who think 11.30am on a Tuesday is better with a cocktail in hand.
Something Saucy: The Pizza Party, presented by Leggo’s, Leonardo’s Pizza Palace, 29 Grattan St, Carlton, 11.30am-2.30pm Thursday 26 March
Munchies, the late-night suburban snack stop finds a home in inner-city Melbourne
John Chinsami’s no-fuss snack stop Munchies is making a comeback, ditching the original Berwick location for the kitchen out the back of Brunswick’s Bar Oussou. Like in its suburban locale, Munchies’ focus is on comfort food, except this time there’s an inner-city edge: the chilli cheeseburger is all about the 200 grams of wagyu within, there’s an anchovy-laced potato salad, and a dessert in the form of a deep-fried Oreo – using the fancy red velvet variant, of course. Fans of the OG Munchies will relish the return of Chinsami’s wings with yellow rice, and the fact he’s cooking right up until midnight.
Munchies, Bar Oussou, 653 Sydney Rd, Brunswick, open 5pm-midnight Weds-Sat, @munchiesbrunswick
Lorcán Kan brings another banger to the Etta specials board
Lorcán’s very reasonably priced laksa was a hit last season, but for 2026, your entry point into Etta looks like a delicious duck rice. This one is a spin on Hainanese chicken, and comes with everything there is to love about the fragrant, full-flavoured dish and more. There’s dry-aged duck cooked in a long, slow-simmering stock; chives and jasmine rice keeping things grounded; and an addition of house-made pork lap cheong (the Cantonese-style sausage) that’s toasted in duck fat with ginger and garlic before being simmered in duck stock.
It’s double the duck and generously feeds two for $75, available on Wednesday evenings throughout March.
Bookings for Lorcán Kan’s duck rice are essential. Book a table at Etta here.
Melbourne Supper Club returns – almost exactly as you remember it
In a boon for late-night revellers, Melbourne Supper Club is making its return to the CBD in its original Spring Street home. It takes place Tuesdays through Saturdays from 11pm, where Kafeneion’s menu rich in Greek rarities gives way to late-night oysters, snacks galore, that sticky-date pudding and Burgundy well past bedtime.
Melbourne Supper Club, first floor/161 Spring St, Melbourne, open 11pm-4am Tues-Sat, melbournesupperclub.com.au, @melbournesupperclub