The 13 best restaurants to dine at in Canberra right now

What is it? A bite-sized Parisian-style restaurant focused on nose-to-tail cooking and natural wines.

Why go? This loosely French diner is easily one of the best places for small plates and good wine in Canberra. Onzieme revolves around a super seasonal menu written up on its grid window every day. Foraged ingredients and local produce are cooked over fire and coals, whether it be mutton skewers, sugar snap peas, kingfish head or duck. Dine in French style with a minimal intervention glass of wine, before backing it up with round two at their tiny underground bar, 11e Cave.

What is it? A funky pan-Asian eatery, perfect for lazy lunching or a dashing date night.

Why go? Follow the big city lights to this hip and happening late-night eatery on Lonsdale Street. Play your cards right by starting with Lazy Su’s infamous wagyu cheesesteak spring roll. It wraps Japanese, American and Korean cuisines all into one crispy package and serves as a bite-sized taste of how the night will unfold. Opting for the set menu is your best bet, where you’ll sample all of Lazy Su’s greatest hits, including donburi nori tacos, spicy wontons and fluffy bao buns. Pump up the pan-Asian party with soju, local beers and a Japanese Spritz.

What is it? The place you want to be seen on a Saturday night in the Berra.

Why go? 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. Think smoked beef tongue with anchovy mayo; lamb ribs (or cauliflower for vegos) with Szechuan and lime caramel; and cheesecake mousse to send it off.

What is it? A modern mash-up of Japanese and Peruvian cuisines, served alongside a stellar list of sake and pisco. 

Why go? Let Inka be your introduction to Nikkei cuisine. A contemporary fusion of Japanese-Peruvian techniques and ingredients, you can travel across the world in one night with everything from crispy potato tapas and prawn tacos to kingfish ceviche and wagyu nigiri. Bring more friends so you can share more dishes, which are prepared in three separate areas: the ceviche bar, the kitchen and the robata grill. We won’t even get started on the drinks menu, which spans almost 30 pages of wines, whiskeys, pisco and sake from around the world.

What is it? A stylish yet small neighbourhood diner serving up a stand-out seven-course degustation with wine pairings. 

Why go? Nostalgic flavours and playful desserts take flight at this small suburban restaurant in Ainslie. 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 is it? The cooler and colourful younger sibling of Canberra’s award-winning restaurant, Pilot.

Why go? Shimmy on down to Such and Such for a fun, fresh and flavoursome feast that you’ll be raving to friends about for the rest of the year. 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 is it: A creative take on modern Australian cuisine with plenty of plant-based options, plus a takeaway wine shop.

Why go? Whether it’s day or night, this groovy all-day diner – named after the David Bowie song ‘Rebel Rebel’ – is buzzing with both corporate and cultured Canberrans. The dining room feels polished yet bare, with bold graphics and bright wall prints taking cue from the proto-punk early ’70s era when ‘Rebel Rebel’ was released. You could drop by for a light lunch of Sydney Rock oysters, grilled prawns and roasted cauliflower with tahini, or draw out your dinner date with fried quail, wagyu tongue, lamb tomahawk, and a burnt honey and citrus ice cream sanga to finish it off.

What is it? A fun and fast-paced pan-Asian diner with Australia’s largest sake list.

Why go? You’re meeting a pal, you want to eat, drink and get a bit merry to the familiar tune of ‘Ghetto Superstar’, and you don’t want to have to dress up. Akiba is definitely where you should head. Inside, it’s decked out a little like a cabin in the woods by way of a neon Tokyo karaoke bar. Pull up a stool to a high table and get snacking, though be mindful that serves aren’t small so you can fill up fast. Their dumpling game is on point – shoutout to the Peking duck parcels – and they don’t get lazy on the veggo front, grilling a whole half eggplant with sweet miso and then adding some snap, crackle and pop with pepitas, puffed rice and seaweed. Keep the good times rolling with fresh oysters and tartare from the raw bar, Japanese fried chicken, lemon tofu cheesecake and a sake flight.

What is it? A raw meets refined fine diner with playful takes on nostalgic desserts

Why go? This Braddon hotspot has worn a comfortable groove, and most importantly, dining here is fun. Watching all the action at the burners is part of the experience – it’s like being in the middle of a Chef’s Table episode, and this time you’ll be the one eating the habanero steak tartare with prawn crackers, or the soft, three-bite steamed buns filled with duck meat, hoisin sauce and quick pickles. The staff here have that knack for making you feel like their personal guest, and their enthusiasm for the local wines on the menu is contagious. However, you can also cash in all your adult life points for a frozen Margarita with caramel popcorn sundae or banoffee pie.

What is it? The place to go for good Italian in Canberra and to access an award-winning wine list.

Why go? Braddon might be where all the cool kids of food and drink are hanging out, but it’s also home to Italian and Sons, an Italian institution serving up the kind of contemporary yet classic Italian fare that we all crave when the mercury drops. It’s a warm, casual spot where you can just pop in for a plate of pasta and some wine – you don’t need an occasion to dine here, but it’s also very popular, so booking is a smart move. The game plan here is simple to follow: bread, antipasti, pasta, and mains, then dessert. Pastas are hand-rolled and adorned with seasonal sauces, focaccias are baked on wood and served with whipped ricotta, and the tiramisu – well, we don’t know the secret for that, but it’s bloody good.

What is it? This is where you come for beautiful, restrained Japanese food with a focus on seafood. 

Why go? Named after a Japanese style of pottery, Raku blurs the lines between art and sustenance. The menu is extensive, showcasing seafood in all its rainbow 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 had the moolah to dine here daily.

What is it? Canberra’s hottest (and perhaps, smallest) pizza joint tucked away behind the Ainslie shops.

Why go? When the sun goes down and the oven heats up, Mama Dough is where you want to be. The cosy space sits only six people inside but does a roaring takeaway trade and serves their pizzas directly to diners at the local pub, Edgar’s Inn, just next door. Mama Dough gets its name from the ‘mama dough’ used to create their original pizza base, which gets fired up in an imported Forno Bravo pizza oven. Picking a favourite pizza here is like picking a favourite child, so we’ll have to settle on the prosciutto and roquette for carnivores, or the mushroom, caramelised onion and sticky balsamic version for herbivores.

What is it? Canberra’s comfort cravings served up from a converted old mechanic’s garage on Lonsdale Street.

Why go? These guys are the mechanics you see when you need to grease up your system with burgers, pizza and a milkshake. When you need a full service and oil change, that’s the time to go big with a burger featuring a beef patty, streaky bacon, egg, cheese, pineapple, lettuce, tomato, beetroot, onion, relish and special sauce. However, you can also bring it home with a fat slab of their Detroit pizzas with toppings like beef brisket, truffle mushroom, chilli prawns and Tandoori chicken. Get extra greasy with liquid cheese-topped fries, stringy mozzarella sticks and Greasy Monkey’s famous milkshakes.