Melbourne News

The team behind Australia's best pizza have found a new southside home.

Melbourne’s best birria has a new northside home, bringing the playful spirit of its food truck to the comfort of bar seating. 

The overhaul will more than double the current drop off and pickup capacity and put an end to the chaotic congestion along both Arrival Drive and Departure Drive.

Expect a relaxed public bar pouring tap beers and natural-leaning wines, a Mediterranean-inspired dining room primed for long lunches, and a cocktail bar promising a speakeasy feel.

One of Melbourne's most beloved bandrooms has been given a second life as a live music venue, pub and dining room. 

Set to open later this year, Masia is Saravia's most ambitious project yet—and you can watch the whole thing unfold on Instagram.

After more than two decades at its enviable perch above Federation Square, Transit Rooftop Bar is finally getting a renovation to match the uninterrupted city and Yarra River views. 

Beauty-lovers, this one's for you. After treating us to the opening of the incredible MECCA Bourke Street Flagship last year, Australia's favourite beauty retailer has done it again, with the announcement of a major new beauty destination at Chadstone. 

After more than a decade of being Melbourne's go-to for plant-based food in Collingwood, Shannon Martinez has expanded Smith & Deli with a CBD location.

Three of Melbourne’s coolest Japanese restaurants are taking a detour from their usual menu this June—here's why. 

Chris Lucas has built some of Melbourne's most celebrated restaurants, but the latest addition to his arsenal feels like the most personal yet. 

From 1 June, public transport will run at half price until the end of the year. Here's everything you need to know. 

With restaurants in Mordialloc, St Kilda and Hampton, the Frankston location marks Bang Bang’s largest venue—with capacity for over 130 guests. 

London’s cult golf and social club Pitch Golf is heading to Aussie shores, with Melbourne set to be home to the first venue. 

Popping up for a limited run is Little Rose, a joint project between Rosheen Kaul and Joe Jones.

It’s time to start planning your next trip over the West Gate, because Geelong’s popular waterfront precinct is getting a new wave of food and entertainment experiences. 

Armed with a pasta-led menu and warm, unhurried approach to neighbourhood dining, Julietta is a cosy new Italian restaurant that’s right at home in South Yarra. 

In its 2026/27 Budget, the Victorian Government has committed a record $1.04 billion investment in road maintenance. That’s more than ever before—here's what it actually means for road users. 

Some of Melbourne's most exciting top chefs are coming together for a genuinely good cause. On Thursday 30 April, Scarf Community is hosting its annual gala fundraising dinner at the iconic Potter Museum of Art in Parkville, and it's a big one.

Restaurateur Chris Lucas is the brain behind some of Melbourne's favourite venues, and he's just announced his next big venture: an all-day diner inspired by eclectic Hong Kong kitchens.

Classy cocktails, vinyl DJ nights and a “Lankan-leaning” cuisine you’ve never tried before: Dutch Rules Distilling Co has raised the bar in Mitcham.

Grounded in somatic movement, KICStudio is built entirely around presence and connection, encouraging a deeper and more meaningful approach to health. 

Melbourne is set to get a whole lot greener, with the City of Melbourne’s draft 2026–27 Budget proposal earmarking $26 million to speed up the delivery of 13 new or upgraded parks and open spaces across the city. 

As petrol prices surge, bowsers run dry, and the cost of simply getting from A to B creeps into absurd territory, Victoria has made a bold call: free public transport across the entire state.

This morning the Australian Football League announced that Australia's own pop princess Kylie Minogue will take to the stage this September, headlining the pre-game entertainment at the 2026 AFL Grand Final.

It’s no secret that good things grow close to home in Victoria, and Sydney Road’s newest little bar and bistro, The Forager’s Fork, puts ‘local’ in the centre of the table.

The first international flight in six years takes off from Melbourne's Avalon Airport today, following a massive $32 million upgrade.

For the first time in over a decade, global hotel group Mercure has opened a new-build in the city centre. 

Your morning commute might be about to get a whole lot easier: Victorians are finally getting a taste of contactless ‘tap-and-go’ travel on myki fares. 

The Victorian state government has announced new anti-price gouging laws requiring retailers to set a daily cap on fuel prices and publish that price in advance. 

Attention, Melbourne ARMY: it's finally your time. That's right, BTS is coming to Melbourne. Mark your calendars for February 2027 because the iconic seven-member South Korean boyband have added Aussie dates to their 79-show world tour. Here's everything you need to know. 

The latest round of the Live Music Festivals Fund has opened this week, with the state government pledging grants of up to $50,000 for Victorian festival operators. 

The Commons Health Club are opening a second location this March, and it's set to be Melbourne’s largest social wellness destination. 

Victoria’s beautiful Port Phillip Bay can look forward to over $2 million in funding after the latest round of state government grants. 

Melbourne airport has officially revealed it will drop $4.5 billion on expanding its international terminal, to be done in stages over several years.

The Allan government has officially greenlit major upgrades to the Mornington Peninsula’s iconic Arthurs Seat Eagle precinct, including a roller coaster-style luge ride. 

Boasting over 40 ultra-exclusive membership clubs across the globe, it might just be Melbourne's turn for our very own Soho House.

YoYou’re about to start finding excuses to “accidentally” wander down Elizabeth Street more often. That’s because Mondo Gelateria, Melbourne’s newest dessert daydream, is opening on Friday, 23 January—bringing with it gelato flights laced with limoncello, pastries pretty enough to live behind gallery glass and flavours that sound like they’ve been backpacking through Europe.

Melbourne is quickly becoming one of the most talked-about housing markets in the country—and not because prices are soaring.

Blue shakes, crinkle-cut fries and cult-favourite burgers—Shake Shack has landed down under for the first time at the Australian Open in Melbourne. 

Sydney Road's finally got its big-screen swagger back—over 40 years in the making. The Thornbury Picture House duo, Gus and Lou Berger, just flipped the switch on Brunswick Picture House at 510-512 Sydney Road, turning a heritage horse-stabling relic into an 81-seat indie haven with killer sound and a bar built for all-night film analysis debriefs.

Touching down on 16 January 2026, this high-voltage mash-up of elite tennis and live music is returning to Rod Laver Arena for one night only, revving up the party vibes for Australian Open Opening Week. 

Lacoste is bringing its global Le Club Lacoste experience to Australia for the very first time, and they’re doing it by building a 20+ metre floating tennis court on the Yarra.

Melbourne’s bar scene is in its vinyl era and the newest name dropping the needle is LB’s Record Bar, opening Friday 28 November on iconic Meyers Place.

Melbourne’s festive forecast is famously unpredictable (yes, even by Melbourne standards), but early signs are already giving us a sneaky glimpse at what December 25, 2025 might look like.

Melbourne’s city centre is finally getting its own true-blue independent taproom, thanks to indie legends Venom Brewery.

Melbourne, your pop prayers have been answered: Lady Gaga is bringing her MAYHEM Ball Tour to Marvel Stadium this December.

From jaunts under the sea to sensory deprivation and Village People-themed discos, this concept-dinner-show-bar-chaos with a two-month waitlist is the most fun you’ll have at the table all year.

Is it better than Christmas coming early? Not quite, but we'll take five new train stations instead.

An institution of New York’s cocktail scene is hitting Flinders Lane. Established in Manhattan’s East Village in 2006, Death & Co changed the game for contemporary cocktails, becoming a global icon and drawing hordes of discerning drinkers to its venues across the US.

Get ready for The Waterside Hotel—a seven-level Flinders Street venue with a rooftop bar, Asian restaurant, and restored 1925 facade.

Jump in the DeLorean, we’re taking it back to the 80s with this new Tokyo-vibin’ rooftop izakaya taking over the former Madame Brussels spot. 

Keen eyes watching the Prahran side of High Street will have noticed The Smith quietly shut its doors and has been amidst a glow-up (and dare we say it, a serious upgrade).

If you haven’t had the chance to catch Cirque du Soleil live yet, take this as your cue—their KOOZA tour is landing in Australia in 2026.

Summer in Melbourne is coming in hot (literally).

Fancy foie gras? The stigma long associated with what's regarded as the pinnacle of haute cuisine might have gone out the window with this lab-grown solution.

Kensington’s beloved local, the Doutta Galla Hotel has officially reopened its iconic red doors after a year-long renovation that has completely transformed the 1889 landmark.

In a matter of months, Fitzroy’s Toddy Shop, as we know it, will be no more.

Ready for a blast from the past? Combining the nostalgia of the Australian classic chicken shop with punchy, contemporary Athenian wine bar vibes, Kokoras is bringing woodfired, Greek style chicken to the inner west. 

If you’ve been sensing a distinct lack of excitement in Melbourne’s cookie scene, you’re not alone. While our city boasts an enviable lineup of pastry maestros and artisanal ice cream, the humble cookie has often been left as an afterthought on the cafe counter.

Get ready to twirl your fork as a heap of eateries across Melbourne celebrate World Pasta Day (October 25).

The team behind one of the city’s best rooftops is working their magic on the King & Godfree building, with plans for a neighbourhood osteria, a casual pizzeria and basement cocktail bar.

A mysterious laneway door, marked only by a neon dingo head. Behind it? The best tacos this side of the Pacific.

Victoria is introducing a new move this summer that will give your Myki (and your wallet) a well-deserved break.

Hawthorn’s swish new Japanese-style laneway listening bar is more than just a shrine to vintage hifi. Beyond the wall of vinyl and whisky bottles, and the eye-catching seasonal cocktails, is a fridge of ever-changing sake awaiting discovery.

Melbourne's retail game is (back) alive, with an influx of international traders rushing to the CBD amid vacancy rates dropping to a new low.

Beneath Gimlet is a subterranean shrine dedicated to a silky, region-specific ramen that will have you coming back time and time again.

Two-hatted fine-diner Audrey’s in Sorrento is gearing up for a glow-up, rebranding as Ember as the Scott Pickett Group brings in administrators to reset and refresh the business.

Remember the Golden Square car park? Wipe it from your memory. This spring, that concrete slab on Lonsdale Street is transforming into Spiegel Haus Melbourne, a dazzling, two-level entertainment precinct designed to be your summer destination for a cack and a cocktail.

It’s the most refreshing time of year: spring has finally sprung and it’s time for Negroni Week.

Summer '24 hit Mid Air has closed its doors less than a year after it opened.

Never mind the rides and the showbags. The main reason to get excited about the Melbourne Royal Show is the food. And no, we’re not talking toffee apples and fairy floss, but the smorgasbord of street eats from some of Melbourne’s best-known food trucks, cafes and diners that gets bigger and more diverse every year.

Melbourne is getting a little taste of Tasmania, with the city’s very-own Sauna Boat set to open this weekend.

This market-based food truck is serving up the next viral trend you're about to see in your feeds: soggy burgers. We're betting Melbourne's gonna go wild.

Just like New York—where Sex and the City-famous Magnolia Bakery made tubs of banana pudding go viral—Melbourne is now hopping aboard the trend. 

If you’re seeking a sugary treat with a dollop of nostalgia, these eateries are serving up classic desserts set to send you hurtling back in time.

Cheers to that! An enormous 1200sqm, $7 million-dollar brewery in the heart of Chadstone’s The Social Quarter precinct, is set to open next month, serving more than a dozen unique craft brews.

At Cumbé, Mexico City meets Melbourne over coffee and a sandwich. Specifically, tortas, one of Mexico City’s everyday pleasures.

Book in your tix for this single-screen, 64-seat charmer with daily sessions from 11am, late shows on weekends, a licensed bar—and house-made choc tops plus Pat & Stick’s ice-creams.

There’s nothing more comforting than a ball of sticky rice, seasoned perfectly and stuffed with pickles, egg, meat or even just a spot of tinned fish. 

If we needed more proof the Brisbane-Melbourne migration is a real thing, long-standing River City legends Blackbird are bringing their smoky steaks and bangin’ cocktails down south.

At the end of the 19 tramline are adana kebabs people travel far and wide for, waiting patiently as the intoxicating smell of spiced lamb and charcoal wafts from the Coburg North food truck, which is finding its very own brick and mortar home.

With the highly anticipated debut of Pop Mart's flagship in Melbourne, the city’s love affair with eccentric collectibles has reached a fever pitch. And this time, it’s all about Labubus—the adorably fanged monster with a name that sounds like you’re accidentally summoning a demon.

Meredith Music Festival is back for 2025, and they’ve just dropped a banging line-up to follow the events of last year.

Fancy a UNESCO-listed soup? At Otakoï on Chapel Street, dishes like borshch (a “Ukrainian icon”) are given pride of place by co-owner Hanna Kachura.

A cafe, a moody Thai restaurant, and one of the only rooftop bars in the inner west—all in one.

Inspired by his grandfather, Tom Sarafian’s first restaurant Zareh is set to open in a matter of days, serving delicate cuisine inspired by Armenia and Lebanon.

Will East Brunswick Village ever stop? The latest addition to the hub's smorgasbord of offering is the much-hyped Korean spot, Dodam.

For reasons we all know, the not-so-humble Beef Wellington has been courting attention, so where can you actually try one?

Clear your calendars—MECCA’s game-changing Bourke Street flagship store's opening is imminent and we're betting those queues will be crazy.