Supplied/Beverly Rooftop
While we’ll always have a soft spot for indulgent long lunches, sometimes all we want (and have time for) is a fine-dining express lunch option that’ll give us a taste of the menu – at a fraction of the price. From two-course lunch sets at slick bistros to flame-kissed Japanese plates at neon-lit diners, these are the best lunch specials in Melbourne when you want fancy flavours on a budget.
Pull up a seat, they’ll have you wined and dined in no time.
Best lunch specials and set menus in Melbourne
Yakimono
Chris Lucas’s high-octane Japanese-inspired eatery on Collins Street dishes up a bold lineup of weekday lunch specials for hungry office workers. Available from noon until 3pm Monday to Friday, you can tuck into Donburi with the likes of karaage chicken or a range of sashimi from $24.5, or order cult-favourite Bento Boxes with options like sake salmon from $25.5.
Marameo
This laid-back Italian diner from the team behind Il Bàcaro and Bar Carolina takes its pasta very seriously. Made in-house daily, you can get crowd-favourites – like the jet-black squid ink linguine with blue swimmer crab – as part of the express lunch menu, together with starters such as fried calamari and a garden salad, for $55 a head. The express lunch menu is available from noon until 3pm, Monday to Friday.
Cleo
Hyde Melbourne Place has scored a chic new rooftop restaurant and bar, and it’s built around an Eastern Mediterranean concept. From Monday to Thursday, you can feast on a selection of mezze from $59, including house-baked pita or nigella seed pide bread with your choice of five dips and small plates.
Common Cuts
When it comes to one-dish restaurants championing steak frites, Melbourne is putting its best foot forward. This moody grill and listening room opposite Old Melbourne Gaol specialises in just-pink steak frites for under $30. Choose from one of six sauces – from classic mushroom and peppercorn to Ndjua or spring onion butter – and soak up the atmosphere.
BKK
HER’s party-forward Thai BBQ canteen on level three offers more than just fun energy. From 11:30am to 3pm Monday to Friday, you can enjoy $15 noodles. Slurp up thick ribbons of drunken mama noodles laced with minced pork, a fiery hit of wild ginger and green peppercorn, or dig into smoky pork and prawn noodles – all at sub-$20.
Omnia
South Yarra’s Euro-leaning bistro, Omnia, ticks all the right boxes: an award-winning chef, voluminous wine list and slick interiors. And now, from Thursday to Saturday, you can dine in the light-filled conservatory room and enjoy a two-course lunch set for $49. Choose from a kingfish or calamari starter, and finish with the likes of a crackling pork belly or wagyu.
Greta
Located in Flinders Lane, this sophisticated Euro-centric wine and sandwich joint has been satisfying all our carby cravings for half a decade. And now, it tickles our fancy with a $37 set menu. Split a serve of French fries with special sauce and a salad for balance before tucking into a steak frites sandwich topped with cacio e pepe sauce and garlic butter. Bellissimo!
Beverly
The stunning rooftop oasis above the hustle and bustle of Melbourne’s CBD offers a one ($35), two ($50) or three-course lunch option ($65), featuring dishes like handmade pastas or vibrant salads. The menu is available Tuesday to Friday, noon until 3pm, and the mains change fortnightly.
Nomad Melbourne
Nomad’s daily lunch special features a share-style menu with Mediterranean/Middle Eastern influences, available Wednesday to Sunday from noon until 3pm. Dip into hummus, toum, Gundagi lamb skewers and more for $66 — and be in and out within the hour.
Society
A democratic peek into one of Melbourne’s most glamorous — and expensive — fine-dining restaurants, the Society Social‘s lavish lunchtime set-price menu (available Friday to Sunday from noon until 2:30pm) offers the choice of two or three courses. With a starting price of $55, it’s a steal.
Entrecôte
If your heart belongs in Paris (and whose doesn’t?), book a ticket for south-of-the-river darling Entrecôte’s two- or three-course prix fixe menu. Featuring dishes like pork rillette and the Entrecôte Cheeseburger with frites, it’s a flurry of Gallic charm enjoyed amid a fit-out that conjures up fin de siècle France.
Centonove
Private school belt favourite Centonove has won the hearts of locals over the past 25 years with its confidently luxe Italian food, and its prix-fixe menus are the cherry on the panna cotta. Tuesday to Saturday lunches offer a particularly wallet-friendly two courses for $89 from the á la carte menu – just don’t forget school pick-up.
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