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.
Aru Archives: taste the greatest hits for $75
To celebrate five years of Southeast Asian deliciousness on Little Collins Street, Aru is digging into its back catalogue and offering you a great deal. Aru Archives brings original bar manager Darren Leaney back alongside chef Nico Koevoets to revisit and rework the drinks and snacks that made the restaurant’s reputation. This means the return (for a month, at least) of the duck sausage sanga (Aru’s take on the sausage sizzle), alongside 2026 remixes of the warmed oyster with perilla mignonette, finger lime and paperbark oil, and the steamed mussels on baguette with turmeric mayo, both dishes that helped define the venue early on. In the glass, you’ll be able to revisit the Pretend Marriage – the cucumber-scented, cucumber-free cocktail born out of lockdown – plus the Houndstooth, a Martini powered by Hartshorn whey vodka, and the crowd favourite Kaya Toast Milk Punch.
Aru Archives runs June 29 to July 24, Monday to Saturday, 5pm–10pm, $75pp for three mini cocktails and snacks, aru.net.au.
An Etta experience for $38? Here’s how it’s done
After a sell-out run last year, Etta chef Lorcán Kan’s laksa makes its way back to specials board every Wednesday night during winter. The deeply warming, deeply fragrant dish is full of everything you’ve come to know and love about Kan’s noodle soup: lemongrass, garlic, makrut lime, galangal, crisp shrimp and golden tofu, all coming together with a bounty of noodles they’re making in house. And these aren’t just any noodles; they’re wheat noodles made with the ash of roasted oyster shells – a process they say makes for near perfectly chewy noodles.
Lorcán’s laksa is available at Etta every Wednesday throughout winter. Bookings are recommended.
The state’s most exciting distilleries are coming to a cocktail menu near you
Have you ever tried a Bramble shaken and stirred with sake-spiked ice? How about a wintry spin on a Spritz that’s all about white chocolate-washed whiskey? Maybe you prefer your Espresso Martini expertly infused with seven-spice chai? Serves of the State is back, bringing together your favourite distilleries with your favourite bars for a cocktail menu takeover like no other.
We’ve got Death & Co’s Melbourne outpost linking up with Starward Whisky, British brasserie Reed House working wonders with Kinglake distillery, Hawthorn’s best and only sake and vinyl spot Bar Selecta making magic with Recollection Spirits, and plenty, plenty more. Whatever your flavour, finding your spirit is easy this Serves of the State.
Serves of the State runs until Sunday 14 June. Right this way for the full list of participating venues and distilleries.
Saadi transforms into an Indian charcoal chook shop for one night only
Saadi chefs Saavni Krishnan and Sriram Aditya love nothing more than a glass of wine and some charcoal chook during the cooler months, and so they’ve decided to serve exactly that for one night only this winter. Their take on charcoal chicken is basted in browned butter, coriander and peppercorn paste before being cooked whole on the spit. It comes prepped and plated with pickled kohlrabi and spiced potatoes along with a few standout snacks – including goat kebab and spicy fried cauliflower for good measure.
Indian Chook Shop by Saadi, Saturday 20 June, 4pm-10pm, starting at $65 per person, bookings via saadimelbourne.com
World’s Longest Dinner, a stunning new event led by star chefs Nat Thaipun, Audrey Shaw and HyoJu Park
Four stand-out courses from Nat Thaipun, Carnation Canteen’s Audrey Shaw and Madeleine de Proust’s HyoJu Park; exclusive after-dark access to Rone’s brand-new immersive exhibition; plus a gift bag worth over $300. The World’s Longest Dinner at Chadstone is the unmissable new chapter of Melbourne Food & Wine Festival’s flagship event, World’s Longest Lunch.
World’s Longest Dinner, Chadstone, Wednesday 17 June, 6.30pm-10.30pm, tickets selling fast
It’s exceptionally affordable cocktails at Stokehouse Pasta & Bar this winter
Throughout winter, the price of your Negroni, Martini or Limoncello Spritz at Stokehouse Pasta & Bar will set you back no more than the minimum temperature of the day. The team at the beachside diner are capping it at one degree celsius, which means you could be fronting as little as $1 at the bar.
Stokehouse Pasta & Bar’s weather-dependent cocktails run throughout winter from Wednesday to Saturday, maximum two drinks per person.
Mahjong makes its way to Gertrude Street
Have you gone Mahjong mad? You’re not the only one. Join Steve Chan and the gang at Moondrop for a series of Sunday Mahjong sessions in their newly minted Mahjong Room. The $20 buy-in will get you four chips to play in a four-person game, with each chip fully redeemable on Moondrop’s Mahjong-inspired cocktail list.
Mahjong Nights at Moondrop begins at 6.30pm every Sunday. More information here.
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
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