Melbourne chefs’ food guide to eastern suburbs

MELBOURNE’S east is home to plenty of foodie gems, regardless of whether you’re a budding MasterChef or cafe hopper. Here are the best of the best, as picked by the suburbs’ top chefs.

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MELBOURNE’S east has plenty of foodie gems, regardless of whether you’re a budding MasterChef or keen foodie.

Here are the best of the best, as tried and tested by resident Melbourne chefs.

RICHMOND

Head chef Zico Lu, centre, with An Uong owners Richard Nguyen and Le Nhat.

Zico Lu is head chef at An Uong. Serving up regional Vietnamese food, the 378 Bridge Rd eatery’s name means “eat, drink”. He shares his Richmond secrets below.

Chef’s Armoury

I really like this specialist Japanese cookware and ingredients shop. We buy our konro grill and Japanese white charcoal binchotan here. When used with the konro, binchotan is the perfect charcoal for barbecuing due to its long steady burning properties. Food grilled over this charcoal has a juicier texture and heightened flavours compared to other charcoal.

422 Church St, Richmond

Minamishima

Minamishima offers the best sushi omakase, which means “leave it up to you”, in Australia. My partner is Japanese so when she’s feeling a bit homesick or I’m in the doghouse I take her there to get back in the good books.

4 Lord St

Fresh seafood sashimi at Minamishima.

Richmond Supermart

This is a one-stop Asian grocery shop. It has everything one would need. Sometimes I hang out in there and get lost in all the amazing ingredients and different produce to get inspired for specials at the restaurant.

200 Victoria St

Pho Chu The

This is my go-to place for a classic Vietnamese pho. They have two branches, one in Footscray and one in Richmond. For me, it’s the closest to home-cooked pho, which is the best after a long night in the kitchen!

270 Victoria St

RINGWOOD

New Shanghai Emporium head chef Wei-Qiang Huang.

There’s always a queue outside New Shanghai Emporium for a reason. The authentic Shanghai-style cuisine ranges from noodles and soups to rice and specialty soup dumplings known as xiao long bao. Head chef Wei-Qiang Huang shares his local haunts.

Golden Duck

I love coming here with my family for yum cha. My favourite dishes are their Peking duck two ways — Peking duck pancakes and duck dumplings.

Eastland Shopping Centre

Hunter & Barrel

Hunter & Barrel do a great steak but my top recommendation is the king pork belly ribs. The marinade is so flavoursome I often find myself licking my fingers after polishing them off. Not the best table manners I know, but the taste is worth it!

Eastland Shopping Centre

Yum cha at one of Eastland’s numerous restaurants.

Thai Ute

My guilty pleasure is to order Thai Ute for a delicious takeaway dinner. They do great monthly specials but their deep-fried barramundi dishes are my go to. Especially the Pla Lui Suan dish served with their homemade chilli jam and lemon dressing.

3 Old Lilydale Rd, Ringwood East

Lavezzi Gelateria

Lavezzi do fantastic gelato. It is super creamy and they give really generous scoops which I love. My go-to flavour is peanut butter and Nutella. They also do 1kg take home packs which are great to indulge on the couch, or for easy dessert options when I have friends over.

Eastland Shopping Centre

BALWYN

Mister Bianco chef and owner Joseph Vargetto in his Kew restaurant.

Joseph Vargetto is the chef and owner of Mister Bianco in Kew, and resides in neighbouring Balwyn. The Sicilian restaurant joins sister restaurant Massi in the CBD, showcasing Joseph’s classic Italian cooking.

Postino Pizza Bar

Postino’s pizza is the best, made by an all-Italian crew, with fresh ingredients. It’s great to have a place I can go for pizza that reminds me of home.

97 Whitehorse Rd

Signorelli’s Fresh Fruiterers

This place has the freshest and best produce around. The owner is very particular about what fruit and vegetables he brings in.

66C Doncaster Rd, Balwyn North

Restaurateur Joseph Vargetto at Mr Hendricks cafe in Balwyn. Picture: Rebecca Michael

Apples and Sage Organic Wholefoods

An amazing variety of food. I come here with my boys and we make our own muesli. They also have Kombucha on tap so we go there and stock up on bottles of it.

371 Whitehorse Rd

Mr Hendricks

A great vibe, always buzzing. They do great coffee and when I feel like something sweet, I can’t go past their chocolate brioche French toast (pictured below).

469 Whitehorse Rd

Lemongrass Chicken

A Balwyn staple, it has been around for such a long time. We come here to get delicious chicken and chips on those nights we don’t want to cook.

70 Doncaster Rd

Belmore Meats

A family business that sources meat direct from family-run, organic farmers. They have a huge range of wholesome, organic meat.

340 Belmore Rd