Degustations and Set Menus Worth Booking for a Proper Splurge
The tasting menus across Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide that reward the leap of faith — for when you're feeling indecisive and appropriately ravenous.
Ordering a set menu is an act of trust: you're handing the kitchen every decision, course after course, with no options to hedge against and no way to back out halfway through. Say yes, and you might end up eating parts of the fish you didn't know were edible, or served sweets before you've even finished the mains. The good venues repay that trust — a pace that builds thoughtfully, a wine list built to match course for course, a reason behind every plate that lands.
We've tracked down the dining rooms across Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide doing it properly. A converted heritage church in Brisbane, original architecture intact, that'll let you BYO on Sundays if you'd rather skip the wine pairing. Down a Fortitude Valley laneway, ten seats face a chef's table serving exactly eight dishes and nothing else. Whole-fish cookery taken so literally there's a dessert course built from tuna bone marrow fudge. A 9+ wagyu bistecca gets grilled Florentine-style in Adelaide and shared down the middle of the table. And in Melbourne, a butter chicken that's never once touched butter or cream — the chef's own rule, non-negotiable. Presented by Honda ZR-V, these are the tables worth clearing the calendar for.
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RestaurantJoy Restaurant
690 Ann Street, Fortitude Valley
One continuous story unfolds across Joy’s single seasonal tasting menu, built dish by dish under chef Sarah Baldwin.
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RestaurantBianca
46 James Street, Fortitude Valley
House-made pasta, cheese and Italian classics anchor Bianca’s set menu, filling out its sprawling James Street laneway restaurant.
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RestaurantAugust
19 Dornoch Terrace, West End
A heritage-listed church now houses August’s, where precise, restrained plates lean hard on seasonal Queensland produce.
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Restaurant+81 Sushi Kappo
259 Montague Road, West End
Tokyo-trained chef Ikuo Kobayashi runs a seasonal omakase at +81 Sushi Kappo’s 12-seat counter, plating each course to the minute.
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RestaurantPast / Port
508 Flinders Street, Melbourne
Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia all show up on Past/Port’s set menu, anchored by chef Sarah Chan’s signature Sarawak laksa.
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RestaurantPalermo
401 Little Bourke Street, Melbourne
Charcoal does most of the work at Palermo, where a custom-built parrilla sends smoky Argentinian meats out course by course.
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RestaurantDaughter In Law
37/41 Little Bourke Street, Melbourne
Tandoori snacks, naan pizza and prime cuts off the grill make up Daughter in Law’s set menu, rule-breaking as ever.
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RestaurantKIRISHIMA
622 Camberwell Road, Camberwell
23 courses unfold at Kirishima’s 12-seat counter, where the chef builds the menu around whatever’s freshest that morning.
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RestaurantSaint Peter at The Grand National Hotel
161 Underwood Street, Paddington
Josh Niland’s latest Saint Peter turns whole fish into an entire tasting menu, nose to fin, snacks to dessert.
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RestaurantKiln
53 Foy Lane, Sydney
Rooftop views set the scene at Kiln, where banquet-style set menus turn smoky share plates into a full group event.
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RestaurantLuMi Dining
56 Pirrama Road, Pyrmont
LuMi’s tasting menu blends modern Italian technique with Japanese precision, plated high above Sydney’s harbour.
This guide was produced in partnership with Honda ZR-V. To learn more about the ultimate car for urban discovery, click here.