If you’re a hardcore foodie, you’ve probably eaten your way across Australia’s big-time foodie destinations like Sydney, Melbourne and Canberra. They’re known for their fine dining scenes and hole-in-the-wall restaurants, where scoring a table can take weeks or months. But, hey — you haven’t lived in a culinary sense until you check out Hobart’s dining scene.
One of Australia’s teeniest capitals has some of its best restaurants, packed with local produce, fresh seafood and internationally-trained chefs behind the stoves. Whether your vibe is cool wine bars, fancy-pants restaurants or Insta-worthy meals that are so arty you’re scared to eat them, you’ll be covered. Here are the best restaurants to visit in Hobart right now.
Urban Greek
Featuring some of the biggest portions we encountered, Urban Greek is a newer addition to Hobart’s dining scene and is shaping up to be one of its most popular restaurants.
As the name suggests, you come here for authentic Greek dishes with modern twists, like the Cretan Village Salad (a fresh Greek-style salad atop crushed barley rusks and creamy feta cheese) and charcoal-grilled octopus drizzled with Greek olive oil and dusted with herbs. The banquet options are a big win — starting at $60 a head, you’ll get a mix of meze, entrees and grill dishes that’ll definitely have you unbuttoning your pants.
Lucinda
From the folks behind popular Tasmanian restaurant Die Makr, Lucinda is like the fun little sister — a chilled-out wine bar with excellent food and (of course) a killer wine list. The food is fancy but easy to share, with the menu changing regularly and dishes served until they run out that day.
Get amongst the delicious wine accompaniments like whipped anchovy with crudites, beef tartare and tomato with hemp seed cream — creative stuff, but not so creative that you have no idea what you’re eating.
Faro
If you love your food on the odd side, you have to visit Faro. Part of MONA, who self-describes this quirky bar/restaurant as a “bit of an experiment”, things are definitely weird here.
For example, on their sample menu, you’ll find dishes such as “Gucci Oyster” — a combination of kombucha pearls, creme fraiche and oyster leaf, and something called “Elderflower Perfume & Thomas Austin’s Bad Idea”. Essentially a glass box suspended over the river on the side of the museum, it’s got some spectacular views for you, too.
Frank
Down on the Hobart waterfront, you’ll find Frank, an Argentinian steakhouse that serves up a mean piece of beef. Order a cocktail and take your pick from shareable snack plates and small plates, like fried potatoes with chipotle vinegar and ciabatta with jalapeno and lime butter (sounds weird, is delicious).
Vegetarians are catered for, as are non-beef eaters, but if you enjoy a good steak, you’ve come to the right place. Prime cuts are cooked over an asado grill and accompanied by salsas and chimichurri — the striploin with jalapeno salsa will change your life.
Landscape Restaurant & Grill
Another one for the steak lovers, Landscape Restaurant & Grill is tucked underneath the Henry Jones Art Hotel. All sandstone walls, mood lighting and, of course, stunning artwork, it’s a total date night dream. The walls are adorned with the works of Tasmanian artist John Glover, showcasing the natural wonders of the island in the 1800s.
Landscape is also all about the asado grill, this time using sherry, bourbon or port casks from the Tasmanian Cask Company, which add unique flavour to its meats. Don’t skimp on the sides, either. We had some duck-fat potatoes that we’re still having food dreams about.
Omotenashi
A teeny-weeny restaurant with just 10 seats, dinner at Japanese restaurant Omotenashi is certainly an experience, and not just because the food is impeccable.
This is about as intimate as it gets for Hobart dining, and while it’s not the place to come if you want to be picky about your dishes, the multi-course menu (with sake and tea accompaniments) is unlikely to disappoint any foodie.
You can book the whole thing out if you’re travelling with mates, or head down and make some new friends over pink-eye potatoes in dashi and Tasmanian sashimi.
Ogee
Another of Hobart’s small restaurants (they’re very good at these), Ogee has a simple vision — great food, great wine, and hanging out while consuming it all with great people.
Inspired by European bistros, the menu changes daily and is all about sharing, although you can also order a set menu for $100 per person. Expect dishes like gildas, calamari ragu and handmade pasta.
Peppina
Love yourself some quality Italian? You’ve got to head to Peppina, one of Hobart’s best restaurants, where you’ll find the tiramisu of your wildest dreams.
Inspired by the laid-back Italian dining experience of sharing with friends and family, Peppina’s menu is for feasting — think wood-fired meatballs in tomato sugo, gooey burrata with grilled bullhorn peppers and, of course, plenty of pasta dishes — the gnocchi with stracciatella, baby roma tomatoes and pangrattato was fought over by our crew.
Where to stay?
For our foodie trip to Hobart, we stayed at Macq01 — a quirky hotel right down on Hobart’s waterfront. Each room was named after a famous Tasmanian, and there’s even a free storytelling tour you can take to find out more about Tassie history (in a fun way, not a boring way).
We were within walking distance of most of these restaurants and near loads of cool bars and pubs, plus it was pretty sweet waking up to ocean views every day. You can check them out here.
Melissa travelled to Hobart with support from Tasmania Tourism and Macq01.
Lead photo: Peppina / Lucinda Wine Bar via Instagram.
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