A Fresh Set Of Dining Awards Have Landed In Melbourne: Here’s How To Cast Your Vote
Melburnians don’t need much encouragement to get fired up about their fave restaurants. We’ll debate which hole-in-the-wall cooks the best pasta, and defend our local wine bar with our whole chest. Have you heard about the new place that books up a month in advance? You will once you speak to a local.
And with 65% of Australian diners believing that Melbourne is Australia’s top ‘foodie city', it's about time we had a fresh awards list to dissect.
OpenTable has launched its inaugural Restaurant Awards, giving much-deserved flowers to the venues and operators helping make Melbourne one of the best places in the country to eat right now. Sorry, every other city.
Better still, one of the categories is decided by the public, which means your strongest culinary opinions can finally be put to use.
Industry Choice Category
Image Credit: Scarf Community | Supplied
The first category is Industry Choice, where the people who actually work in hospitality vote for the venues they rate the most highly. It covers everything from standout service and restaurant design, through to innovation and impact, which feels like a timely reminder that great dining is about far more than what lands on the plate.
The shortlist here includes familiar names like Coupette, Circl, Disuko, Yiaga and Yugen Dining for their design, while Amaru, Babines, Serai, Shelanous and Vue de monde are up for innovation. Bistra, II Solito Posto, Malin, Reed House and Ripponlea Food and Wine also feature in the service category, while Scarf, All Things Equal, RESIDENCE at the Potter, The Mulberry Group and Farmer's Daughters made the list for impact.
People's Choice
Image Credit: Salona | Supplied
The second category, and arguably the most anticipated, given Melburnians get to run their mouths, is People’s Choice.
This is where diners decide the winners across Neighbourhood Gem, Bar & Pub of the Year, Bucket List, and Opening of the Year. In other words, the reliable local, the place for a long lunch, the big-ticket booking, and the newcomer everyone’s gushing about.
Nominees include Lagoon Dining, Neighbourhood Pizza, Punch Lane Wine Bar, Salona and Carlton Wine Room for Neighbourhood Gem; while Lui Bar, Marquis of Lorne, Babines, Lamaro's Hotel and Toorak Cellars feature in Bar & Pub of the Year. For Bucket List, we have Attica, Lee Ho Fook, Shelanous, Vue de monde and Amaru in the mix, with Daphne, Disuko, Suze, Muses Wine Bar, and Yiaga shortlisted for Opening of the Year.
It’s an incredibly accurate snapshot of how Melbourne eats right now, and all the more reason to make the most of our free public transport to check these gems out.
So, if you’ve ever insisted your local is underrated or forced a friend to try a certain restaurant against their will, now’s the time to make it official.
Vote for the OpenTable’s People’s Choice Awards here and be in to win one of several $250 gift cards, with winners announced on 15 June at the ceremony held at Bourke Street’s iconic Luci.
Editor’s note: This article is sponsored by OpenTable and proudly endorsed by The Urban List. To find out more about who we work with and why read our editorial policy here.
Main Image Credit: Yiaga | Supplied