The best at-home meal kits to try this lockdown

The 1920s architecture of the Cavendish House building carries through to the interiors, delivered by Sydney design house ACME. Art deco flourishes, marble countertops, chandeliers and leather booths combine to create a nostalgic bistro look – a conscious nod towards the clubby dining rooms of Chicago. And the good news is that Gimlet is open the entirety of the Easter long weekend.

Everything tastes better charred – and Firebird got the memo. A restaurant dedicated to smoke, flames and fire that opened on the brink of the pandemic, with every dish in some way, shape or form having been licked by the fire, and it’s all the better for it. To celebrate Easter, Firebird is offering a ‘Fin to Fin’ pescatarian menu add on. Priced at $75 for 2 people and available from Good Friday to Easter Sunday, it includes kingfish served three ways and grilled pippies.

Already home to Shane Delia’s iconic modern Middle Eastern restaurant Maha, the Bond Street laneway in Melbourne’s CBD has welcomed a new and elegant sister venue, Jayda. It's the perfect spot for a cocktail and fancy snack this Easter long weekend, and is open all four days as per normal trading hours with an 18 per cent surcharge.

At its core, Cutler and Co is about simple, refined food. The menu is influenced by the seasons, an amalgamate of quality local produce and the well-practised cooking techniques of its team of chefs. This Gertrude Street institution is open on Good Friday, Saturday and Easter Sunday. 

As a rule your local pub probably shouldn’t be your first port of call when you crave dumplings, but if you’re in Fitzroy it’s a whole different story. Head to Builders Arms Hotel all Easter long weekend to satisfy your cravings.

What was once Richmond's old and crumbling Great Britain Hotel is now Harlow: an old-school pub with new-school sensibilities. It'll be open as normal all long weekend, and you can swing by on Easter Saturday and Sunday for a brunch sesh that includes two hours of bottomless drinks and a menu item of choice. On Easter Sunday you can also score $15 Bloody Marys, Espresso Martinis and Tommy’s Margaritas from 2-6pm while DJs play. To book, head to the website. 

Fargo and Co is offering two-hour bottomless brunch packages on Easter Saturday and Sunday. The cost is $79 per person (there is a $69 sesh on Sunday, too) and includes prosecco, Mimosas, house wine, seasonal cocktail jugs, schooners of house beer, Frosé and one brunch item of choice. DJs will be playing from 3pm. To book, head to the website. 

Old Palm Liquor is probably as Brunswick as you can get with its daggy-but-beautiful fit-out, natural wine list and menu imparted with flavours we rarely see, but it’s a winning formula that should definitely be experienced this Easter. It's open Good Friday to Easter Sunday from noon to midnight, and there is a 15 per cent surcharge.

The much-loved Terrace Café that overlooks the Ornamental Lake in Melbourne's Royal Botanic Gardens has been transformed into a new all-day café and event space. Check it out for yourself this Easter long weekend – it will be open 8am-5pm across the four days with a 15 per cent surcharge.

A true St Kilda gem, the Newmarket Hotel is celebrating the long weekend with a two-hour bottomless brunch on Easter Sunday. For $60 per person, you'll score an Eggspresso Martini on arrival, endless seltzers, bubbles, Mimosas and beers, a bottle of sparkling on arrival, and a brunch item of your choice. To book, head to the website.

Etta is a the handsome 70-seater ex-fish shop that epitomises the maturation of the area and whose sharing-is-caring menu is about as date night as it gets. This Easter long weekend it's open on Good Friday 4pm to late (with a 15 per cent surcharge) and Saturday 12pm to late (with a 15 per cent surcharge). It's closed on Easter Sunday and Monday.

One of the things the A-Mc does very well is create venues (Cumulus Inc and Cumulus Up spring immediately to mind) that are what you make them, and while Marion could be used as a pre-dinner pit-stop, it deserves more loving. Revert to the hip term bistronomy, if you must, which is another way of saying it has excellent food and wine values while trying really hard not to show how hard it’s trying. It's open on Good Friday, Saturday and Easter Sunday.

Il Bacaro serves up a modern twist on classic Venetian fare in its small, crowded restaurant. This Easter long weekend it's open on Good Friday for dinner from 6pm (a 15 per cent public holiday surcharge applies) and Easter Saturday for lunch and dinner (a 15 per cent public holiday surcharge applies). It's closed on Easter Sunday and Monday.

Shane Delia's flagship restaurant is a much-loved icon of Melbourne's dining scene, and this Easter long weekend it's open as per normal trading hours with an 18 per cent surcharge. 

An Easter brunch doesn't get much better than the fare on offer at the Kettle Black. See what all the hype is about for yourself this long weekend – it's open 8am-4pm every day with a 15 per cent surcharge.

Take your Easter feast underground at Yūgen Restaurant, where you can feast on modern Asian fare. It's open from Good Friday to Easter Sunday, and a 15 per cent surcharge applies.

There’s a lot going on at Her, Lonsdale Street’s four-concept mega-venue. At street level is Her Bar, a French-inspired all-day cocktail spot, and on level one you’ll find the Music Room, an ode to whisky and vinyl. BKK is on level three, it’s a “turbocharged Thai BBQ canteen” that also caters for Her Rooftop, a relaxed garden terrace for drinks, lunches, dinners and nightcaps. The quadruple threat is open as per usual this Easter long weekend, from 8am until late with a 15 per cent public holiday surcharge. 

Things don’t get much more Melbourne than everything about Higher Ground café. However, by virtue of an experienced team, consistently top-quality food and drink, excellent service, high energy and an unmatched atmosphere, Higher Ground personifies our city in the best way possible. It's open 8am-4pm every day of the Easter long weekend with a 15 per cent surcharge.

Bar Carolina exudes Latin charm from its terrazzo foyer to its bar clad in charcoal steel. And we haven’t even mentioned the quorum of liltingly accented waiters who marshal the crowds one ‘ciao bella’ at a time. This Easter long weekend it's open on Good Friday for dinner from 5pm (a 15 per cent surcharge applies) and Easter Saturday for lunch and dinner (a 15 per cent surcharge applies). It's closed on Easter Sunday and Monday.

The Easter festivities kick off on Good Friday, with the Auburn Hotel open from 12pm. Bring the kids along on Easter Sunday to enjoy a petting zoo, egg hunt and a special appearance from the big bunny himself. See out the long weekend on Monday with lunch, dinner or drinks. For more information, head to the website. 

This all-day venue located at Urbnsurf will be serving up a range of special dishes over the Easter long weekend. Think whole prawns served with XO butter and lime and mains like slow-roasted lamb shoulder with smoked honey, salsa verde and almonds. To book in, head to the website. 

Enjoy the start of your Easter weekend at this intimate cocktail bar that is inspired by the golden era of fine drinking. The bar wlil be open across the long weekend, and the expert team will be at the ready to deliver world-class drinks.   

This massive outdoor eatery and beer garden sandwiched between two Melbourne icons (the Yarra River and Flinders Street Station) stretches for 120 metres along the river bank and is officially Melbourne’s longest bar. This Easter long weekend it will be open as per usual, 11am until late with a 15 per cent public holiday surcharge.

If you're sick of the sight of chocolate and it's a quality Sunday roast you're craving, head to the Terminus Hotel in Abbotsford. For just $28 you can score a speciality roast with all the trimmings plus a tasty dessert on the house. 

'Eating house' doesn't quite cut it. ‘All-day diner’ falls worryingly short. In fact, when trying to sum up the place Cumulus Inc plays in Melbourne’s hungry heart, ‘favourite clubhouse’ comes as close as any description. Over the long weekend, Cumulus Inc will be open on Good Friday, Saturday and Easter Sunday. 

Across the entire long weekend at the Hawthorn Hotel, visitors can score one free kids meal with every main meal purchased. Talk about a bargain! To book, head to the website. 

With commanding views over the city skyline, Johnny’s Green Room is the most picturesque place in Carlton to sip Peroni and smash pizza this Easter. It will be closed on Good Friday and Easter Monday, but open as per usual on Saturday and Sunday.

Have you ever tried to style your hair into a ‘messy bob’, or attempted to cook paella at home? As it turns out, looking effortless requires a lot of work. With Agostino, about four years’ worth has resulted in a restaurant that’s breezily confident from the outset, ready to elbow its way into Melbourne’s Italian canon. This Easter, you can pop by on Saturday and Sunday during normal hours. 

Dining on Flinders Lane requires a game plan because more often than not, you’ll be lining up for a table. This is especially true for Supernormal, which is one of those restaurants people are willing to wait hours to eat at. The same goes for Easter long weekend when the venue is open on Good Friday, Saturday and Easter Sunday.

Chin Chin is open all Easter weekend long (with a 15 per cent public holiday surcharge), but it's notorious for boasting huge queues so be sure to make a booking ahead of time or be prepared to wait. 

Richmond's Prince Alfred is the ultimate local pub, ticking all the boxes that a solid neighbourhood watering hole should. On Easter Sunday you can enjoy $13 cocktails, roast with all the trimmings for $22 and live music from 4-7pm.

The fitout here runs with the beach shack theme, with wide, rough-sawn boards and tubular glass chandeliers that undulate just slightly in the breeze. The tables are well-spaced and linen-clad, which is like the Stokehouse of yore, as are the waiters, a full battalion of them, who are uniformly good. All is as it should be, and punters can dine in from 12pm every day of the Easter long weekend with a 15 per cent public holiday surcharge.

After closing for renovations earlier this year, Pontoon – the downstairs beach club of St Kilda’s Stokehouse restaurant – has returned to its roots, re-emerging as casual Mediterranean eatery, Stokehouse Pasta and Bar. It's open every day of the Easter long weekend from 12pm with a 15 per cent public holiday surcharge.

First impressions count, and Grill Americano delivers plenty of good ones. Chris Lucas’ latest restaurant distils a retro-glam brief into a squelchingly expensive fit-out of terrazzo floors and royal blue leather seats, a sweeping white marble bar lit by individual deco-ish lamps and the sultry backdrop of ink-blue walls. It's open as per normal trading hours across the entire Easter long weekend with a 15 per cent surcharge.

Architects Wood Marsh have created three levels of Flinders Lane dining power that is determined to bring the bling (and the some of the best sushi you've ever eaten). Kisumé will open as per normal trading hours with a 15 per cent surcharge.

Whatever the size of your night, you really can’t go wrong with a late-night souva. That includes every night of your Easter long weekend, when Stalactites will have an extended closing time of 2am with a 10 per cent surcharge. 

If you’re looking for an Italian-inspired affair this Easter complete with pizza and Peronis, Baby has got you covered. It's open all long weekend as per normal hours with a 15 per cent surcharge. 

On the ground level of dining and drinking wonderland 127 Brunswick Street, you’ll find Ichi Ni Nana, one of the few places in Melbourne where you can enjoy an authentic Izakaya dining experience. It will be open all throughout the entire Easter long weekend.

Ides is all about fun fine dining, and you can experience it for yourself this Easter long weekend. It will be open as per usual with a 15 per cent surcharge.

Good for dates and family outings alike this Easter weekend, Moonhouse invites you to linger over some of its best seafood dishes. On Good Friday and Easter Saturday, you can even indulge in the restaurant's famous lobster fried rice. 

Save yourself for a Saturday sesh at the Village Belle in St Kilda, which is hosting live acoustic tunes from 12pm, with optional bingo – prizes include a round of shots, a $100 voucher plus much more. You can also enjoy two hours of bottomless sips paired with a brunch feast to share.

Standing tall on the corner of Orrong Road and High Street is Armadale's Orrong Hotel, a pub that's been pouring pints since 1875. It will be closed on Good Friday, but you can pop in on Saturday, Sunday and Monday as per normal trading hours for a beer and counter meal (just be aware there's a 15 per cent surcharge).

Hawker Hall is completely dizzying, in that patented Lucas fashion: visually arresting, olfactorily pleasing thanks to the hard-working woks in the open kitchen, and packed to the rafters with a well-dressed sliver of humanity. It will be open all Easter weekend as per normal trading hours with a 15 per cent surcharge.

Tucked inside the swank-fest of the 80 Collins development, Yakimono is a love letter to the futuristic excess of Tokyo: dimly lit, suffused with the exotic glow of pink and purple neon, and thrumming to a soundtrack that has every second person activating their Shazam app. It's open all Easter weekend as per normal trading hours with a 15 per cent surcharge. 

Top Paddock is a former car park reborn as a dapper Jetsons-era cantina that looks right at home among its fancy-pants neighbours at the furniture showroom end of Church Street. It's open every day of the Easter long weekend from 8am-4pm with a 15 per cent surcharge. Hot tip: order the hotcake, you won't regret it.

The fitout is so luxe you can almost smell the expense. There’s a fire and charcoal-driven kitchen, a botanical-filled glass cabinets and a dining room of rough-edged wooden-topped tables and the fattest, softest leather banquettes that elicit a gasp of surprise from more than one diner. It'll be open on Good Friday, Saturday and Easter Sunday.

If the purpose of a local bar is to reflect its neighbourhood, then Tetto di Carolina obviously got the memo. The rooftop bar component of the Carolina complex on Toorak Road is smooth, suave, expensively dressed and comfortably luxurious. Check it out this long weekend, it's open on Saturday and Easter Sunday from 3pm until late, and a 15 per cent surcharge applies.

The hotel's Lobby Lounge & Bar will be transformed into an Easter oasis, with a decadent high tea buffet on offer. Think sweet and savoury delights like Champagne-cured salmon finger sandwiches and bubble gum panna cotta. Bookings can be made here. 

Located inside the 80 Collins Street precinct, Society is a paean to the old-fashioned dining virtues. It's open Good Friday and Easter Saturday for dinner only with a 15 per cent surcharge.

As if Society could get any more sophisticated, enter Lillian – restaurateur Chris Lucas' refined brasserie that also holds residence in the luxe 80 Collins Street venue. It's open Good Friday and Easter Saturday for dinner only with a 15 per cent surcharge.

Hungry for a modern Japanese take on your Easter feast this year? Tokyo Tina has you sorted. It's serving up a pescatarian special served with a side of Easter-themed bingo. For $6 per person you can dine on devilled eggs and spanner crab through-out the game, with plenty of prizes to be won. It's happening from Good Friday to Easter Sunday. 

This former bistro is now a slick modern Australian restaurant where you can dine in style. Over the long weekend, it will be open on Good Friday, Saturday and Easter Sunday. 

Fancy a taste of Thailand this Easter? Look no further than a stalwart of Melbourne's culinary scene: Longrain. It's open over the Easter long weekend with a 15 per cent surcharge on the public holidays.

If you’ve been to—or even just heard of— Ides, you’ll be familiar with Peter Gunn’s culinary flair. Gunn opened March right next door, and while it shares a kitchen, wall, and cellar with its older sibling, the moody space offers something entirely different. Find out what it's all about this Easter long weekend – it's open as normal with a 15 per cent surcharge.

With exposed bricks, retro Vietnamese watercolours, empty beer cans and party lights, Hanoi Hannah is a fun place to dine this Easter. It will be serving up seafood specials all weekend long, and will be open on Good Friday (for dinner only), Saturday and Easter Sunday (for dinner only).

If you've got a hankering for Hanoi Hannah's hawker-style fare but don't have the time to spare for a sit down meal, head two doors down to Hanoi Hannah Express Lane. It'll be open all Easter long weekend to satisfy your cravings. 

Marameo is giving Italian party vibes – what more could you want this Easter long weekend? It's open on Good Friday from 5pm (a 15 per cent surcharge applies) and Easter Saturday (a 15 per cent surcharge applies). It's closed on both Easter Sunday and Monday.

The Conti is well and truly back, baby. Home to Audrey's, the Atrium and a good ol' pub, it's open all Easter long weekend so hop in the car and head down to the Mornington Peninsula.