Published by Nadia Pearl

November 6, 2019 · 5 min read

The Best Restaurants in St Kilda

St Kilda has a lot to envy. There’s the beautiful seaside location, the historic Luna Park, the charming mansions, the buzzing cultural vibe and convenient proximity to the city centre.

And of course, there’s also the leading dining scene. St Kilda restaurants are amongst some of Melbourne’s best and we’ve picked out the ones you won’t want to miss.

Araliya is a modern Sri Lankan restaurant stealing the heart (and stomachs) of Melbourne locals. Source: Quandoo

By the way, we’ve recently been focusing on food guides for all of Melbourne’s neighbourhoods. So if you’re interested, you can also read about the city’s best restaurants in South Yarra, Brunswick, Brunswick East and Fitzroy.

Donovans

Located right on the dreamy doorstep of St Kilda Beach, Donovans is a leisurely dream. Teaming a stunning location with ever consistent and reliable food, this Jacka Boulevard establishment is an institution with over 20 years experience and welcoming hospitality is at the core of what they offer. Their menu and drinks list celebrates modern Australian dining, quality Victorian producers and the nature of seasonal cuisine. A must try St Kilda restaurant.

Open Monday to Sunday from 12 – 3pm and 6 – 9pm. Located at 40 Jacka Boulevard, St Kilda, Melbourne 3182.

Araliya

Araliya is a modern Sri Lankan restaurant with ambience, charm and most importantly awesomely flavoursome food. Blending spices from the East with culinary techniques from the West since 1985, this popular eatery is known for showcasing the tastes of Sri Lanka in an elegant way. Whether you’re after an eight-course degustation, some street food nibbles, a wholesome curry or a Sunday brunch like no other, Araliya has you sorted.

Open Tuesday to Thursday from 5 – 11pm, Friday from 12 – 11:309pm, Saturday from 3:30 – 11:30pm, Sunday from 12 –11pm. Located at 157 Fitzroy Street, St Kilda, Melbourne 3182.

St LuJa

Both a fusion restaurant and a specialist cocktail bar all wrapped in one, St LuJa is one of St Kilda’s most exciting food and drink precincts. Inspired by both Australian and American cuisine, the seasonal menu here is a deluge of dishes with smokey flavours. Their 12-hour smoked brisket is not to be missed and neither are the impressive cocktails. We’re particularly fond of St LuJa’s speciality negronis.

Open Thursday from 5pm – 12am, Friday from 5pm – 3am, Saturday from 4 – 3am, Sunday from 12pm – 12am. Located at 9 Fitzroy Street, St Kilda, Melbourne 3182.

Machi

Taking a big focus on contemporary dining, Machi is not your typical Japanese restaurant and isn’t afraid to overlap cuisines with an innovative approach. While the menu at this Inkerman Street restaurant definitely has roots in Japan – think sushi, sashimi, donburi and grilled specialities – guests can also expect exciting specials on the regular. For example, we’re talking dishes like sea urchin sushi tacos, raw spicy tuna on squid ink scallop crackers and Japanese seafood paella with truffle.

Open Tuesday to Sunday from 5 – 10pm. Located at 14 Inkerman Street, St Kilda, Melbourne 3182.

Book a table

Supernormal Canteen

Supernormal Canteen is a dynamic restaurant on Fitzroy Street serving pan-Asian food amongst a cruisey yet polished atmosphere. There are some parallels between this St Kilda restaurant and its sister eatery Supernormal on Flinders Lane, both being the creation of Andrew McConnell and inspired by culinary experiences in Tokyo, Shanghai, Seoul and Hong Kong. However the hibachi, a traditional Japanese grill, churns out inventive smoking dishes at the St Kilda joint which aren’t available at the CBD location.

Open Wednesday to Friday from 5 – 10pm, weekends from 12 – 10pm. Located at 2/157 Fitzroy Street, St Kilda, Melbourne 3182.

Stokehouse

If you’re after a special dining experience in St Kilda, the restaurant leading the pack is most definitely Stokehouse. Award-winning food, fine wine, sophisticated decor and truly mesmerising views of crashing waves on St Kilda Beach… The ambience at this One Hat restaurant is unmatched in St Kilda and it’s well-known throughout Melbourne’s dining scene. Reservations, as you can imagine, are essential.

Open Monday to Sunday from 12pm – 12am. Located at 30 Jacka Boulevard, St Kilda, Melbourne 3182.

Las Tapas

Bringing the buzz of Spanish tapas bars to Melbourne, Las Tapas is a sought-after and trendy restaurant on St Kilda’s Chapel Street. The atmosphere here is welcoming which suits the sharing nature of tapas dining, but better yet the food is seriously authentic. You can dine here and graze on some of the best Spanish cuisine in the city. FYI, on Tuesdays it’s BYO for $10 corkage.

Open Tuesday to Sunday from 5:30 –11pm. Located at 100 Chapel Street, St Kilda, Melbourne 3183.

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Babu Ji

Babu Ji is not your normal Indian restaurant in Melbourne. Instead it’s a contemporary blend of modern cooking and intense Indian flavours, resulting in exciting food that’s complemented nicely with boutique beer and wine. Get amongst handmade samosas with dried pomegranate and green mango, prawn momos with wild pepper sauce, pork vindaloo sprinkled with crispy pork chicharon and a range of vegan and vegetarian dishes. Furthermore, BYO wine is available and their beer follows a GYO (grab your own) policy from the ice-cold, self-service fridge.

Open Monday to Friday from 5:30 – 9:30pm, weekends from 11:30am – 2:30pm and 5:30 – 9:30pm. Located at 4-6 Grey Street, St Kilda, Melbourne 3182.

Book at table

I Love Dumplings

The name says it all, really. If you’re craving dumplings and you’re in St Kilda, I Love Dumplings is the restaurant for you. From wontons and xiao long bao to pan-fried numbers and steamed har grow, they’ve got them all and gluten-free varieties are also available. It’s little wonder why it’s one of our favourite places for dumplings in Melbourne, and in addition, there’s plenty of other Chinese dishes and it’s BYO. What’s not to love?

Open Monday to Thursday from 12 – 3pm and 5 –10pm, Friday to Sunday from 12 – 10pm. Located at 2/29 Fitzroy Street, St Kilda, Melbourne 3182.

Book a table

Cicciolina

Considering how much Australians love Italian food, it’s only necessary to include one Italian eatery on our list. However, that’s not the only reason Cicciolina is one of our favourite St Kilda restaurants. Opened in 1993, experienced chef Virginia Redmond has been around since the beginning and her seasonal approach to cooking is authentic, wholesome and indulgent all at the same time – just like Italian food should be. Here you can find an extensive wine list complementing a traditional menu of flavoursome pasta, mains and desserts.

Open Monday to Sunday from 12 – 10pm. Located at 130 Acland Street, St Kilda, Melbourne 3182.

Mya Tiger

Hotel Esplanade is home to the two trendy St Kilda restaurants of Espy Kitchen and Mya Tiger. While the former is definitely worth a mention, we prefer the Cantonese flavours on offer up the stairs at Mya Tiger. There’s something about their signature roasted Peking duck, a gourmet range of dumplings and baos, as well as other classic Chinese dishes and nice drinks, that we simply can’t resist. In addition, we love the decor and vibe of the dining room.

Open Monday to Sunday from 12pm – late. Located at 11 The Esplanade, St Kilda, Melbourne 3182.

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