Ahead of his appearance as a guest judge on MasterChef next year, Jamie Oliver has been finishing long days of filming by exploring Melbourne’s food scene, hitting restaurants spanning the high-end Gimlet at Cavendish House to casual neighbourhood restaurant Leonardo’s Pizza Palace.

In his adventures through Carlton, Prahran, Thornbury and the city over the past week, Lagoon Dining in Carlton on Saturday night was a highlight for the British chef and cookbook author.

“They’re smashing the brief. Wicked service, the chef’s killing it, every dish was delicious,” he said in an interview with Good Food on Monday.

“They absolutely should be busier.”

While he ordered the signature pork and a brand-new rice noodle dish, it was a dish of shredded potato that blew Oliver away.

“I’ve never had [a dish of raw potatoes] in my life. As far as I was concerned, it can’t work ... But [this] was delicious,” he said.

Lagoon co-owner Chris Lerch says most diners believe the potatoes are raw, but in fact the julienned strands are soaked in water and cooked in a wok for four to five minutes with Chinkiang vinegar, chilli and more until they reach an al dente texture.

“I’ve never had [a dish of raw potatoes] in my life. As far as I was concerned, it can’t work ... But [this] was delicious.”

Jamie Oliver

“It was a stunning meal by good people doing good things,” Oliver said.

Oliver is in Melbourne filming season 16 of MasterChef, the first since the sudden death of series co-host Jock Zonfrillo in April. A subsequent shake-up of the hosting line-up has seen three new judges join Andy Allen: former contestant Poh Ling-Yeow, food critic and journalist Sofia Levin, and French chef Jean-Christophe Novelli.

Oliver’s first stop after getting off the plane more than a week ago was Thornbury’s 1800 Lasagne, where he dined with his friend Tobie Puttock and Puttock’s family in the courtyard before moving inside to soak up the Sunday jazz band the venue books each week.

“Jazz was playing, the wine was flowing. Nice energy with the staff,” he said of the hatted restaurant.

The father of five says his fellow judges have armed him with a list of restaurants to check out.

Serai, a contemporary Filipino restaurant down a Melbourne laneway, was one of Levin’s recommendations.

Oliver described it as “brilliant”. His favourite dish was sinuglaw: a piece of marinated kingfish in calamansi juice and coconut sap vinegar served with a thin sliver of smoked pork belly.

“I’ve never had cooked meat with raw fish before, and it was mind-blowing. That was a bad-ass dish.”

He visited the restaurant just off Little Bourke Street for lunch with his god-daughter.

“As I’m here on my own and don’t have a family [with me] or anything, I’m able to go out and explore. I’ve been to some pretty amazing places. I haven’t had a bad meal yet actually,” he said.

Like many Melburnians, he spent his most recent Sunday wandering the stalls of Prahran Market, paying a visit to G. McBean Family Butcher and cheese shop Maker & Monger. Sandwiches were the main drawcard at both.

The newly renovated G. McBean butcher shop now serves food, including hot porchetta rolls, which was Oliver’s order.

“That porchetta sandwich is worth going the wrong way round town to get,” he said.

His god-daughter got a toasted cheese sandwich from Maker & Monger – but Oliver was lucky enough to get a bite.

“I nearly stole the whole bloody thing,” he said.

Aside from food, Oliver has enjoyed buying his first pair of R.M. Williams boots and witnessing the craftsmanship of the leather goods company, including seeing belts being braided in-store.

With a week left of filming, Oliver has plenty more eating ahead of him, with several of his favourite Melbourne restaurants, Supernormal and Flower Drum, yet to get a look-in.

Oliver will appear as a guest judge on MasterChef for two weeks when the series kicks off next year.