Dining room overlooking beach
Photograph: Mathilde Bouby | Rick Shores

The 30 best restaurants in Australia right now

Plan your trip around a meal at one of our country’s finest and fanciest restaurants

Melissa Woodley
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What’s the secret recipe for crafting an exceptional dining experience? In coming up with Time Out’s list of the best restaurants in Australia we considered a mix of ingredients. Talented chefs? Stylish decor? Lively ambience? Top-notch drinks? And of course, food that you can’t stop thinking about for days, months, or even years. Luckily, Australia’s restaurant scene is sizzling with spots that check all these boxes, plus so much more.

Our nation’s top restaurants are a celebration of Australia’s native ingredients too. From an intimate 40-seat dining room cut into the rolling hills of Tasmania’s countryside to a 30-year-old institution overlooking Sydney’s sparkling Bondi Beach, these are the restaurants Time Out Australia’s team, including resident foodie Melissa Woodley, recommends for your next culinary adventure.

RECOMMENDED: These are the best luxury hotels to book in Australia.

The best restaurants in Australia

  • Modern Australian
  • Ripponlea
  • price 4 of 4

Attica is not just a meal. It's an all-consuming sensory experience that has been a regular on the World’s 50 Best Restaurants list for years. Given its worldwide reputation, scoring a table is no easy feat, and you’ll need to book far, far in advance. Those lucky enough to try chef and Netflix star Ben Shewry’s ambitiously Australian menus can expect artful dishes that hero hyper-local ingredients, including barbecued saltwater croc ribs, smoked emu with warrigal greens and finger lime, and wattleseed cake.

What's the deal? 11-course tasting menu, with alcoholic and non-alcoholic pairings (or a mix of both) available 

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Melissa Woodley
Travel & News Editor, Time Out Australia
  • Seafood
  • Paddington
  • price 2 of 4

Sydney is home to – dare we say – the world’s most revolutionary seafood restaurant, helmed by the pioneer of ‘nose to tail’ cookery, Josh Niland. Perched at the restaurant’s beautiful marble-topped counter, you have front-row access to watch Saint Peter’s chefs transform a whole fish – guts, flesh and bones – into the most sustainable eight-course tasting menu. Think coal-kissed coral trout head, salt and vinegar mackerel, dry-aged swordfish, and even ice cream made from fish eyes. 

What's the deal? Seven-course evening tasting menu, à la carte lunch menu and full wine list

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Melissa Woodley
Travel & News Editor, Time Out Australia
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No gas. No electricity. Only fire. At Adelaide’s first open-flame restaurant, main character energy comes from a three-and-a-half-tonne wood-burning oven that sizzles everything from local figs and sourdough crumpets to black Angus strip steak, bone marrow and Southern Rock lobster. Michelin-trained chef Jake Kellie heads this sleek barbecue restaurant, which is housed inside a heritage-listed sandstone building. You can dine à la carte from Arkhé’s seasonally-driven menu, or try for a seat at the exclusive chef’s table, located in the heart of the restaurant.

What's the deal? Seasonal à la carte menu, with extensive beverage list

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Melissa Woodley
Travel & News Editor, Time Out Australia

Named after a Japanese style of pottery, Raku blurs the lines between art and sustenance. The menu is extensive, showcasing seafood in all its glory. You can have it raw in the kingfish served with truffle yuzu, cold in a spanner crab sushi roll, or hot as king prawns doused in XO butter. Masters of the blades, the chefs expertly slice up fresh snapper, tuna belly and scallops into sashimi or nigiri; add crunch with popcorn shrimp on the tempura menu; and grill high-grade Wagyu on a robata charcoal grill. From the express lunch to the royal tasting degustation, Raku will leave you wishing you lived in Canberra (almost). 

What's the deal: Two tasting menus (with optional wine pairings); a weekday express lunch; an à la carte menu; and a beverage tasting menu for sake, gin and whisky

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Melissa Woodley
Travel & News Editor, Time Out Australia
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  • Australian
  • The Rocks
  • price 4 of 4

What does it take to earn the crown of Sydney’s finest diner? Perhaps the dress-circle harbour views? Or the exquisite works of art on each and every plate? The custom-made crockery? The cornucopia of produce grown exclusively for the restaurant? The service team’s unrivalled professionalism? Some restaurants are engineered for special occasions and totally worth the splurge – Quay is most definitely one of them. 

What's the deal? Six- or eight-course tasting menu, and four-course weekend lunch menu, with thoughtfully curated wine list

  • Modern Australian

It’s up, up and away at this sleek waterfront restaurant, serving up one of the most exceptional degustation menus in Australia. Aløft, meaning ‘attic’ or ‘high place in the sky’, is perched on the top floor of Hobart’s award-winning Brooke Street Pier. For the ultimate experience, we’d fight for one of the prized bar seats overlooking the open kitchen. Here, you can watch head chef Christian Ryan and his team transform seasonal produce, local seafood and small-farm poultry into an extravagant nine-course degustation with a pan-Asian flair. 

What's the deal? A nine-course tasting menu, with a dedicated vegan menu, plus alcoholic or non-alcoholic pairings.

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Melissa Woodley
Travel & News Editor, Time Out Australia
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  • Bars
  • Melbourne
  • price 3 of 4

To question Gimlet’s beauty is like pondering out loud whether the sky is blue. One foot through the door into the almighty fine diner (in fact, Time Out Melbourne’s crowned winner of the Best Fine Dining award in 2023) and you’re swept into an era of astonishingly impressive 1920s glamour. The handsome, plush curved booths invite you to settle in and share a bottle of Champers with a friend, uniformed staff skate around the floor with ease, and warm light dances off the grand chandeliers overhead. You can, of course, go all out at Gimlet and dine on lobster, caviar service and exxy bottles of wine all night, but even just popping in for a few cocktails and a taste of a few dishes here and there is truly a lovely way to experience the restaurant, which tends to feel welcoming and adaptive no matter how much you’re willing to splurge.

What's the deal? Seasonal four-course menu, à la carte menu, and bar menu with snacks and cocktails

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Lauren Dinse
Food & Drink Writer
  • Modern Australian
  • Hackney

It’s rare to find a restaurant in Australia where you’re asked to drink broth through branches and feast off sticks or rocks. Tucked in the 51-hectare Adelaide Botanic Gardens, this award-winning restaurant offers a sensory menu that changes with the seasons and daily weather patterns. You’ll need at least four hours to fully appreciate the degustation, which showcases more than 26 different flavours and highlights native Australian ingredients – like emu, green ants, desert lime and lemon myrtle – along with herbs and leaves foraged directly from the gardens. 

What's the deal? A four-hour, 20-something-course menu, with alcoholic and non-alcoholic pairings available

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Melissa Woodley
Travel & News Editor, Time Out Australia
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Cut into the rolling hills of Tasmania’s countryside, this intimate restaurant is a tribute to all that’s good in Tasmania. Guests must enter through an enclosed foyer to reach the warm, sun-kissed dining room (seating only 16 guests), which offers exceptional views of Hell Fire Bluff and Maria Island beyond. Van Bone’s menu takes guests on a journey of up to 14 courses, showcasing Tasmania’s finest from the surrounding land and sea, along with produce harvested daily from their onsite orchards and evergreen market gardens. The all-Tasmanian drinks menu completes this exemplary, small-scale dining experience.

What's the deal? Set menu of up to 14 courses

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Melissa Woodley
Travel & News Editor, Time Out Australia
  • Indigenous Australian

When it comes to once-in-a-lifetime meals, it’s hard to top Australia's first under-the-stars dining experience. Taking place in the middle of the Australian desert with spectacular views of Uluru (Ayers Rock) at sunset, guests will enjoy a beautiful three-course bush tucker-inspired buffet with premium Australian wines and beers. The evening becomes even more magical with a didgeridoo performance and a star talk that brings the twinkling night sky to life. 

What's the deal? Canapes and chilled sparkling wine to start, followed by a three-course buffet served at an interactive chef's station

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Melissa Woodley
Travel & News Editor, Time Out Australia
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Nostalgic flavours and playful desserts take flight at this small suburban diner in the Bush Capital. Pilot’s seven-course set menu is quintessentially Australian, and on any given day, you may be served IPA beer pretzels, Hawaiian pizza scrolls or brandy butterscotch Wagon Wheels. The experimental non-alcoholic drinks pairing is just as impressive as the boozed-up version, with a focus given to small, sustainable Aussie producers.

What's the deal? Seven-course evening degustation, with alcoholic or non-alcoholic pairings, plus a shorter weekend lunch set menu

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Melissa Woodley
Travel & News Editor, Time Out Australia

Such and Such is the cooler and colourful younger sibling of Canberra’s award-winning restaurant, Pilot. You could mistake the bright and bold dining room for an art gallery, where the walls pop with artworks, ceramics and sculptures by local artists. Each dish is a playful masterpiece too, with the super seasonal menu featuring contemporary takes on nostalgic snacks and share plates. Don’t take things too seriously and add on a glass (or three) of lo-fi, organic wines from both local makers and far away places.

What's the deal? Shared set menu, à la carte menu and 29-page wine list

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Melissa Woodley
Travel & News Editor, Time Out Australia
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  • Armadale

Amaru is everything a contemporary fine diner should be – enigmatic, daring and engrossing at every turn. Nestled in leafy Armadale, the restaurant is run by chef Clinton McIvey (Auterra) and offers multi-course seasonal degustation tastings with the option to pair alcoholic or non-alcoholic beverages. Expect fresh local produce with a native edge, cutting-edge fermentation and cooking techniques, and plating aesthetics prettier than a picture. 

What's the deal? Two multi-course seasonal tasting menus, with four beverage pairing options

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Lauren Dinse
Food & Drink Writer

Perched sky-high on the rooftop of the renowned Como The Treasury Hotel, Wildflower is proudly the highest-ranked restaurant in Perth. Every plate has a story to tell and revolves around the Indigenous ethos of six seasons. As the narrative unfolds over a four-, six- or eight-course degustation, you can take in sweeping views across the Swan River and city skyline. It’s worth playing with Wildflower’s cocktail list too, where native Australian ingredients steal the spotlight, including Davidson plum, strawberry gum, fingerlime and quandong. 

What's the deal? Seasonal four-, six- or eight-course evening degustation; two-course lunch; bar menu; and lengthy wine list

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Melissa Woodley
Travel & News Editor, Time Out Australia
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  • Bondi Beach
  • price 3 of 4

This 30-year-old beachside institution, affectionately known as the ‘salty jewel' of Bondi, has been championing seasonal produce long before it was cool. Award-winning chef Sean Moran’s creativity is showcased on the restaurant’s daily-changing three-course blackboard menu, which takes cue from the restaurant’s farm harvests in Bilpin – and is so closely tied to the seasons that it could quite literally change mid-service. Cross your fingers that Moran’s famous roast chook is on the menu, and don’t underestimate the nostalgic comforts of his seasonal jelly with ice cream for dessert.

What's the deal? Daily changing three-course set menu, including an appetiser and house-baked bread, plus a concise wine list 

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Melissa Woodley
Travel & News Editor, Time Out Australia
  • Melbourne
  • price 3 of 4

Under the stewardship of the Grossi family, this Bourke Street Italiano staple still shines. The grand Mural Room is one of Melbourne’s last bastions of lavish European dining charm where the lighting is set to dim, and the mood set upon arrival by the proffering of a handbag stool. Through three generations of hard graft and some damned fine cooking, they’ve cemented their place in the city’s dining history.

What's the deal? Two set menus, à la carte offering and 84-page beverage list

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Lauren Dinse
Food & Drink Writer
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For ten years, Rick Shores has set the bar high for fine dining on the Gold Coast. The glamorous and contemporary Asian fusion menu draws inspiration from Vietnam and Thailand, featuring their now-famous fried Moreton Bay bug roll with bug mayonnaise and sriracha — arguably the Gold Coast’s most iconic snack. Rick’s cured king salmon sashimi and freshly shucked oysters with Thai vinaigrette go down a treat, while the roasted red duck curry and honey-glazed pork deserve a spot on your table for mains. You’ll need to book a table at Rick’s, but if you’re feeling spontaneous, arrive early and try to nab a table in the bar or on the sunny patio.

What's the deal? Two shared set menus and full à la carte menu 

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Melissa Woodley
Travel & News Editor, Time Out Australia
  • Restaurants

If anyone ever complains about Canberra’s nightlife, just nod quietly and then laugh all the way up the stairs to Bar Rochford. This is undoubtedly the best little wine bar in the ACT and it’s hidden away in one of the capital’s oldest buildings. Once you’re up in the cosy confines of this first-floor bar you could be in Melbourne, Munich or Manhattan. Let their young gun team guide you on a vinous adventure that traverses the world, but if you don’t order food too, it’s a lost opportunity. The $90 set menu isn’t a cop-out; it’s more like a tour of their latest and greatest seasonal hits. 

What's the deal? Four-course set menu (with vegetarian option), à la carte offering and expertly-curated wine list 

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Melissa Woodley
Travel & News Editor, Time Out Australia
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This is not your white-tablecloth kind of fine diner; it’s a casually charming Northern Rivers edition, run by award-winning chef and Noma alumnus Ben Devlin, and his wife Yen Trinh. The best seats in the house are at Pipit’s open kitchen counter, where wild foraged plants – most sourced from within 15 minutes drive of the restaurant – and sustainably caught seafood are smoked, charred or kissed on the woodfire grill. From the koji sourdough to the delicate linguine and tropical ice cream, everything is made in-house, with any offcuts fermented or converted into dressings, charcuterie, vinegar and even, kombucha. Pipit’s five-course tasting menu is seasonally curated, and with advance notice, they can cater for pretty much any dietary requirement.

What's the deal? Signature five-course evening set menu from Thursday to Saturday, or à la carte menu for Sunday lunch and Monday dinner. Australian-only wines, spirits and cocktails available from the bar

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Melissa Woodley
Travel & News Editor, Time Out Australia
  • Birregurra
  • price 3 of 4

It takes a full day to dine at Brae. A meal at one of Victoria’s most highly decorated fine dining institutions fits a micro holiday into the hours needed to get out to the gently sloping paddocks of Birregurra (an easy two-hour drive from Melbourne), dine in rural splendour at an appropriately relaxed pace at Dan Hunter’s famous farmhouse restaurant, and return home. You could make it a genuine mini-break should your budget stretch that far, but it’s hard to think of a more pleasant day trip than one centred around the country’s pre-eminent dining experience. Now excuse us while we try to score a booking before everyone else does.

What's the deal? Seasonal nine-course tasting menu with matched alcoholic or non-alcoholic beverages available

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  • Modern Australian
  • Fortitude Valley
  • price 2 of 4

Pushing the boundaries of what can be accomplished in a kitchen using exclusively the power of woodfire and smoke, Agnes brings precision to this unwieldy and demanding medium. Executive chef Ben Williamson and his talented team use different types of wood – ironbark, apple wood, cherry wood and olive wood – to uniquely interact with each of the dishes, whether it be Wagyu sirloin, pork tomahawk, Murray cod or potato flatbread. Agnes’s brilliance lies in merging food with architecture; those hanging lights transition from necessary beacons into spotlights over the table, forcing you to focus on every flavour, every technique, every crumb. You’ll want something to wash it all down with and fortunately, the team at Agnes has curated an impressive cellar of over 1,400 bottles from across Europe and Australia.

What's the deal? Four-course set menu, à la carte offering, extensive wine list and small bar menu

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Melissa Woodley
Travel & News Editor, Time Out Australia
  • Mediterranean
  • The Rocks

This ambitious wine bar and Mediterranean restaurant from the Swillhouse crew (Hubert, Alberto's Lounge, Shady Pines Saloon ) was penned as Sydney’s most anticipated opening of 2023. And Le Foote – with its charming wine bar, dining room complete with a striking custom mural, sublime dishes and wait staff wearing bow ties  – may be their best one yet. This is a place you’ll want to return to again and again. Our Food and Drink Editors sure as hell have. 

What's the deal? Petit or grand banquet for minimum four people, á la carte offering and express bar menu

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Avril Treasure
Food & Drink Editor, Time Out Sydney
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34 seats, eight sittings, two spaces and one signature menu. In the foothills of Penfolds’ historic Magill Estate vineyard (est. 1844), this blowout restaurant matches stellar views of Adelaide city with seriously sophisticated food and hospitality. Chef Scott Huggins works with the finest South Australian produce in an innovative degustation menu that can be paired with predictably brilliant wines (go all out and order some Grange – you know you want to).

What's the deal? Seasonal set menu with two wine pairings available 

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Melissa Woodley
Travel & News Editor, Time Out Australia
  • Sydney
  • price 3 of 4

Multimillion-dollar views of Sydney Harbour demand nothing less than a degustation set to impress, and Aria delivers. For more than two decades, chef Matt Moran’s fine diner has gazed across the water toward the Opera House, hosting special occasions, milestone anniversaries and for the lucky few, a regular pitstop before a show. Aria’s unmistakably Australian tasting menu sways with the seasons, while the panoramic outlook from the floor-to-ceiling windows, remains some of the city’s best.

What's the deal? Seven-course signature tasting menu, with alcoholic or non-alcoholic wine pairings available; seasonal four-course menu; two-course weekday lunch; three-course pre-theatre menu; and seasonal wine list

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  • Melbourne
  • price 3 of 4

Both the dining room and kitchen at this long-reigning restaurant have recently been refurbished, while the menu has evolved to become a 14-serving series of culinary enchantments – not too far of a stray from the globally recognised fine diner’s usual brand of refinement, but with just enough changes to thrill returning and new visitors. (Don’t fret – that mind-blowing chocolate soufflé hasn't gone anywhere.) 

What's the deal? 14-course chef's tasting menu, with multiple alcoholic and non-alcoholic pairings available. Additional wine also available by the glass from the extensive wine list

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Lauren Dinse
Food & Drink Writer

You could easily spend the whole day at this dreamy winery, which is perched just behind the shimmery Wyaralong Dam on the Scenic Rim. Start with a tasting of their signature wines, including a refreshing sparkling rosé or timeless tempranillo. Then, settle in for a French-inspired long lunch overlooking the luscious vineyards. The exquisite two or three-course menu features snails in wild mushroom arancini, carb and crayfish lasagna, slow-cooked beef cheeks and pistachio crème brûlée. Bon appétit!

What's the deal? Two- or three-course menu, six-course degustation with paired wines available, or casual grazing menu for on the lawns

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Melissa Woodley
Travel & News Editor, Time Out Australia
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  • Beaconsfield
  • price 3 of 4

Time Out Melbourne's Restaurant of the Year in 2023 may be almost a decade old, but it still stands out as one of the most energising fine dining experiences in Melbourne. This farm-to-table restaurant’s kitchen sources all of its ingredients from a nearby 2.5-acre farm in Cardinia, owned and run by friends of the chefs. Each dish elevates humble produce to new heights, an alchemical feat that looks far outside the box in delivering an experience you'll remember. Up the ante and pair your four- or seven-course seasonal menu with regional wines from small producers near and far.

What's the deal? Seasonal four- or seven-course menu, with snacks and sourdough, plus optional alcoholic or non-alcoholic drink pairings

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Lauren Dinse
Food & Drink Writer

Perched on a hill overlooking one of the most magical beaches in Byron Bay – where surfers glide on seemingly endless gin-clear waves – is where you’ll find Raes on Wategos. Built in the 1960s, the Mediterranean-style boutique hotel and restaurant is without a doubt one of the country’s most lusted-after institutions. Jason Saxby (PiluQuay and The Ledbury in London) heads the kitchen, where the brief is modern Australian food with a Mediterranean touch. That’s encapsulated in an exquisite snack of kangaroo ‘tart-are’; Australian bay lobster with hand-rolled pasta and native spiced butter; and Iced Vovo semifreddo with native berry jam. 

What's the deal? Eight-course tasting menu, with paired wines available; two- or three-course à la carte menu (with dedicated vegetarian menu); and casual bar menu

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Avril Treasure
Food & Drink Editor, Time Out Sydney
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  • Modern Australian

Odyssey lives up to its name in every way possible, presenting a long, adventurous and flawless dining experience in the heart of Hervey Bay. The fate of your journey at this farm-to-table bistro is presented in a hand-sealed menu, featuring a three-course line-up that changes monthly based on the produce and proteins available from local suppliers. You can trace the origin of your freshly shucked oysters, fish crudo or triple cream brie, along with the perfectly paired drinks from local distilleries, breweries and wineries. Every dish and drink really is a love letter to the Fraser Coast region and its people.

What's the deal? Seasonal three-course menu, with wine pairings available

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Melissa Woodley
Travel & News Editor, Time Out Australia
  • Sri Lankan

Nothing can beat a great curry and few chefs can outdo Minoli De Silva’s jaggery goat with spiced sticky figs. The former MasterChef contestant has set up a city centre establishment that marries creativity with reverence for traditional Sri Lankan ingredients. Fill the table with curry leaf-cured snapper, spiced lamb ribs and black pepper pork belly, and pick from Ella’s extensive cocktail list, where ingredients like makrut limes, cardamom and pandan steal the spotlight.

What's the deal? An à la carte dinner menu, with mostly-Australian wines and beers.

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Leah McLennan
Contributor
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