The Best Melbourne Restaurants for an Excellent Lunar New Year Feast
These are the best restaurants in Melbourne celebrating the Year of the Dragon this Lunar New Year — or putting on fitting feasts all year round.
With the Year of the Dragon officially kicking off soon, Melbourne's Lunar New Year festivities are popping up right across the city. Whether you're looking for an extravagant dinner celebration matched with lion dance performances or a more low-key group feed at a local restaurant, Melbourne has you covered.
We've compiled a round-up of the best restaurants in Melbourne putting on festivities and offering up special meals for the Lunar New Year — and a few more that are simply serving cracking festive banquets all year round. From unconventional Lunar New Year gelato flavours to big yum cha feasts, here's where to head if you want to get into the LNY spirit and be well fed while you're at it.
Recommended reads:
The Best Restaurants in Melbourne
The Best Bars in Melbourne
The Best Hot Pots in Melbourne
The Best Bubble Tea Shops in Melbourne
Image: Panda Hot Pot
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Restaurant
Hawker Hall
98 Chapel Street, Windsor
A roomy interior lit by neon signage, a menu packed with hawker-style delights and a standout offering of beers on tap.
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Restaurant
Shu
147 Johnston Street, Collingwood
This is for those after an entirely vegan degustation for Lunar New Year in Melbourne.
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Restaurant
Lagoon Dining
263 Lygon Street, Carlton
Head to this Melbourne restaurant for Lunar New Year or try some of the limited-edition Year of the Dragon gelatos it has made in collaboration with Piccolina.
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Restaurant
Yulongfu Steamed Buns Restaurant
136 Bourke Street, Melbourne
Xiao long bao steals the show at this Shanghainese dumpling restaurant — especially the luxe black truffle variety.
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Restaurant
Moonhouse
282 Carlisle Street, Balaclava
For Lunar New Year, this Melbourne restaurant will have a special banquet menu and be giving away a heap of vouchers.
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Restaurant
Flower Drum
17 Market Lane, Melbourne
Elegance and attention to detail at one of Melbourne's oldest Chinese restaurants.
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Restaurant
Conservatory
8 Whiteman Street, Southbank
Get around the special Lunar New Year buffet at this Crown favourite.
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Restaurant
Panda Hot Pot
100 Victoria Street, Carlton
The former Dracula's site is now home to an international sichuan hot pot chain.
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Restaurant
Din Tai Fung Emporium
Emporium Melbourne, Level 4, 287 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne
Dumpling magic from the ultimate dumpling masters.
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Restaurant
The Albert Park Hotel
85 Dundas Place, Albert Park
Head to this Melbourne restaurant on Lunar New Year for banquets, lion dances and a traditional Yee Sang Prosperity Salad.
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Restaurant
David's
4 Cecil Place, Prahran
Authentic Chinese fare hidden away from the hubbub of Chapel Street.
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Restaurant
MING Dining
299 Queen Street, Melbourne
Head to the Melbourne fine-diner to feast your way through refined dishes that marry contemporary Australian cuisine with Chinese-Canto influences.
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Restaurant
Tian38
350 Flinders Lane, Melbourne
Boozy yum cha brunches and chilli crab jaffles at this CBD Chinese eatery.
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Bar
Oriental Teahouse
378 Little Collins St, Melbourne
Teahouse, retail store and full-blown Chinese restaurant.
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Restaurant
Supper Inn
15 Celestial Avenue, Melbourne
A long-standing Chinatown institution, where the frills are minimal, the Cantonese eats are generous and the dinner service kicks on till the wee hours.
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Restaurant
Mya Tiger
11 The Esplanade, St Kilda
An opulent Cantonese eatery inside St Kilda's new-look Espy.
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Restaurant
Pacific Seafood BBQ House
240 Victoria Street, Richmond
Your seafood will be plucked right from the huge tanks hidden out back — making for a mighty fresh fish feast.
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Restaurant
Dragon Hot Pot Russell Street
213 Russell Street, Melbourne
This Malatang hot pot chain's CBD outpost is open 24/7.
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Restaurant
I Love Dumplings
297 Racecourse Road, Flemington
The place for people who, well, love dumplings.
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Restaurant
Da Long Yi Hot Pot
398 Elizabeth Street, Melbourne
This hot pot chain has over 210 stores in China, USA, UK, New Zealand and Australia.
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Restaurant
Secret Kitchen CBD
222 Exhibition Street, Melbourne
Traditional Chinese cuisine done well.
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Restaurant
Spice Temple
8 Whiteman Street, Southbank
Neil Perry explores regional Chinese fare at this fiery eatery.