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The word prodigy gets used about young chefs so often it's lost most of its force, but Allen is a reasonable candidate for the real version of it.

When you set out to create a fine dining version of street food, with a nod to a specific regional cuisine, you ha...e to get it right. From end to end, you are setting yourself up to be judged. Kolkata Cricket Club is a mix of triumphant innings but very poor work in the field from Mischa Tropp.

The space is airy, nay gallery like, but without the cold pretension. It's all natural light, soft timber, and a little sense of hush, the kind that makes your first bite feel like an event. Residence isn’t just a restaurant. It’s a living, breathing chef’s notebook in real time. It’s generous, it’s curious, and it’s got just enough arrogance to know it’s special without needing to shout about it.

The man who helped define the city’s dining scene in the 2000s, gave it edge with The Smith, and heat with Lucy Liu has returned after a few quiet years up north, and he’s not here to warm the bench.

Perched beside the ghostly bones of the former Pentridge Prison, The Glass Den is part greenhouse and part minimalist fever dream. There are so many hanging plants it’s unclear whether they’re decorating or plotting something. Either way, they frame what might be the best brunch in the north

Don’t bother arriving with a posse because this place isn’t built for brunch mobs or laptop loiterers, nor is it the haven of the pouty lipped influencer. It’s for those who appreciate the fine art of sitting still with a soft-boiled egg, anchovy-laced toast and something chilled in a stemmed glass.

Lanson Place seamlessly merges the heritage charm of the original building with the sleek sophistication of the new structure. It’s thoughtfully done, giving the property a distinct character that reflects Melbourne’s own unique blend of old and new, with the 14-storey glass tower rising behind the building's façade, itself a nod to Melbourne's storied history.

In a city where you can find a rooftop beekeeping workshop, a bar hidden inside a laundromat and a seven course degustation served on a tram, it was only a matter of time before someone decided to make wine in the middle of the CBD.

Embla leans into wood-fired cooking and seasonal ingredients, without feeling like it is jumping into trends. Some real integrity here!

Like stepping into a cartoon!

Now that the P word seems to be less prevalent in the day to day, it's exciting to be out eating and drinking and loving the industry which gives us life. This means a number of things for us. Firstly it's hard to think that just 12 months ago, our industry was at the edge of disaster - and sadly for some, disaster hit. Recovery has been incredibly hard, challenges have been seismic in their magnitude, and far too many of our friends have succumbed. Borders are set to open

This weeks review is taking something of a turn. After having some serious discussions with the mirror and the bathroom scales, it was...

A cold, rainy Spring Friday evening is often non conducive to visiting a brewery and experiencing all that it has to offer. Unseasonal weather aside, a visit to The Nest is a must for craft beer lovers. We are glad we braved the conditions. There's something about the venue I couldn't put my finger on. The tasting space, come bar, come eating house is an interesting mix and exactly what I want to find in a brew house. We did wander out to check out the possibility of sitting

Fair to say, there is a hell of a lot of excitement in the Scoffer team about the emergence from what has been a very long winter. Granted we are heading out of lockdowns across the Eastern seaboard fatter, somewhat pickled and in a slight fog of caution - especially with the idea that we may actually have to stop day drinking and start wearing pants. A quick canvas of the team at Scoffer HQ has provided some very interesting answers. Most involve going somewhere - anywhere

Melbourne's Arbory Afloat, the place to see and be seen every summer since 2016, is reopening Tuesday October 26, with all the relevant social distancing and government regulations in place. The floating pontoon - part bar, eatery and weekend session venue, has had inspirational styles in past years from Miami Vice, the French Riviera and California's Palm Springs. This year, the inspiration is the Turquoise Coast, also called the Turkish Riviera, running along the SW coast o

Gathering a group at Hutong Dumpling House in Market Lane in Melbourne feels like an eternity ago, but it isn't that long ago between one lockdown and another. It's always great fun, made even more so by the chap looking after us who had that rock star kind of service going on. Two parts efficient, one part cheeky and the other part hilarious. Hutong has long been part of Melbourne's heart and soul - not at the top end of the food chain but solid, uncomplicated and serving

Just as the sunshine comes after the rain, so too does a good wine bar experience follow a rather ordinary one. With aging bones and...

From the first day they flung open the doors and invited us down the brightly lit neon red hallway from the cobblestones of Melbourne's Oliver Lane, I have had a thing for Lucy Liu. It is one of my Melbourne staples and they do pan Asian food so very very well. A change of ownership and the departure of Michael Lambie, Scott Borg and Owen Brockfield haven't changed the place a great deal, meaning the legacy remains intact, the food is equally as good and Lambie's influence on

You'd wonder about the logic of opening a hotel in the middle of a global pandemic, when travel is off the cards for so many, borders are...

There had been many a time one of the fellow Scoffers and I have walked past a venue, and reminded each other we should go in and check...