Best Places to Eat in Melbourne with Platinum Card Dining Credit
Food is central to our lives. A good meal can nourish, inspire and when shared with loved ones, turn into cherished memories. If you’re a foodie and are lucky enough to live in or visit Melbourne, expect to be absolutely spoilt for choice. As part of your Platinum® Card Global Dining Credit1 benefit, we've handpicked a selection of Melbourne’s most amazing eateries, from luxurious fine dining restaurants to cosy hole in the walls serving up local delicacies. Let American Express treat you to your next dining adventure with the local and global dining credit.
Check out some of the best places to eat in Melbourne:
Treat yourself to a fine dining experience
Kisume
If you are looking for a Japanese restaurant that combines tradition and innovation, look no further than Kisume. Kisume draws on the purity and integrity of Japanese cuisine while infusing it with an Australian sensibility. One of the highlights of Kisume is the Chef's Table, an intimate and communal dining experience where you can enjoy a multi-course menu that changes daily according to the chef's inspiration and seasonal availability. The Chef's Table operates from Tuesday to Saturday, with optional beverage pairings available. Kisume is not only a restaurant, but also an art gallery. The walls are adorned with stunning artworks by renowned Australian photographer Polly Borland, who created a series of portraits inspired by Japanese bondage art. The artworks add a touch of drama and intrigue to the dining atmosphere.
Vue de Monde
For over 20 years, Vue de Monde has been synonymous to Melbourne. And dare to say, it showcases one of nation's fine dining experiences. Relish in the sublime native Australian ingredients while you take in the sweeping views of Melbourne’s cityscape from the renowned Rialto Towers at 525 Collins St. With widespread critical acclaim and international recognition, including a then unprecedented 19/20 from The Age Good Food Guide, you won’t be disappointed.
Cutler & Co.
Step off Fitzroy’s iconic Gertrude Street and behind the glass façade into a realm of contrasts at Andrew McConnell’s Cutler & Co. A relaxed fine dining menu pairs with the stark lines of the remodelled metalworks factory, with dishes informed by the season using skilful restraint and technique. The signature Chef’s Seasonal Menu, presented degustation-style, encapsulates this ethos and provides a showcase for local farms, pristine seafood, and rare-breed heritage meats. Every element is perfectly considered: from the moment you enter to the very last decadent sip.
Take your tastebuds to Italy and Europe
Grill Americano
Every dish is skilfully interwoven with the hallmarks of Italian cooking: charcoal, woodfire and steam. Try their Tuscan star, bistecca alla Fiorentina, a 1.2-kilogram T-bone cooked over charcoal and doused in sea salt and rosemary. Best paired with Italian classics such as a smoked Negroni, or choose from their 2,000+ bottle cellar, bringing local and international flavours right to your table.
Freyja
Freyja can be summed up in one word. Unique. Helmed by some of the world's finest culinary talent, their contemporary ‘New Nordic’ approach fuses the taste of Scandinavia with Australian produce. Executive Chef Jae Bang brings his Michelin Star pedigree and more than sixteen years’ experience of global haute cuisine to the kitchen. Running a whole gamut of preparation techniques from pickling to curing to smoking and fermenting, their dishes display an exceptional flavour profile.
Ripponlea Food and Wine
Your favourite little “kinda classy, kinda hood” restaurant has undergone some changes and has expanded to comfortably fit 80 diners. So, make sure to bring a friend or two or three! You’ll need to as their sizable menu is designed to be shared and paired with drinks from their new glamorous cocktail bar. Try some of their signature bites like their creamy burrata, eggplant chips or merguez spiced lamb but make sure you leave space for their delightful desserts.
Eat local with Modern Australian Cuisine
Cumulus Inc.
A turn of the century rag trade building in the heart of the city is home to Andrew McConnell’s Cumulus Inc. The versatile restaurant and bar serve as a busy social hub for all times of the day, all in front of the backdrop of a 2,000 bottle strong wine cellar. A considered seasonal menu highlighting the very best in Victorian produce is built around communal classics like the signature slow roasted lamb shoulder. Not only a place to dine and drink, art and design is central to the venue with works by local artists David Band and Miranda Skoczek, among others, gracing the walls.
Society
With several of Chris Lucas’s restaurants (Chin Chin, Yakimono etc) making Melbourne’s best restaurant list, there’s no surprise that Society is right at the top. The stunning chandeliers in the dining room bring in just the right amount of glamour and elegance as you explore their multifaceted menu featuring a carefully curated wine and cocktail list. The art of à la carte is the centrepiece allowing diners to curate their own experience promising no two visits need ever be the same.
Botswana Butchery
Have yourself a very delicious night out and taste some of Australia’s and New Zealand’s best produce and wine. Choose from a stunning variety of sumptuous Australian steak and lamb cuts from a Vintage Galiciana Rib-Eye to Rangers Valley Wagyu Scotch to Tomahawk MB3, or a lamb rack so fall-of-the-bone tender, it’s served with a spoon and fork. Pop into one of our Bar’s to enjoy a drink before or after dinner.
Succulent steakhouses and decadent wine bars
Meat & Wine Co
Situated on the Yarra River in Melbourne’s trendy Southbank, the three-level dining room features new and rustic design elements and offers views of the city skyline. With a name like Meat & Wine Co, you can bet that providing the choicest cuts and best selection of wine is of utmost importance. Their dedication to steak is second to none, they even have their very own line of exclusive Monte beef, and an in-house dry aged steak programme. This is perfectly complemented by their stellar wine list.
Etta
Etta feels quintessentially Melbourne. Influenced by a global palate, chef Rosheen Kaul draws upon flavours from Asia and the Middle East, as well as her own Peranakan-Chinese, Filipino and Kashmiri heritage. The menu is a melting pot of cuisines. Try the High-Country rainbow trout balanced by a herby coriander salsa verde and tart, rich cider butter or the spiced turmeric spatchcock cut through with the tanginess of calamansi lime and served with a side of peanut sambal. With 250 wines on their list, there is a perfect match for every dish. Come here for a dining experience unlike any other.
Yakimono
Walking up to Yakimono feels like walking onto the set of a futuristic sci-fi film – yet something about it recalls the nostalgia of 80’s anime films. Their decor, ambience and menu is classic contemporary Japanese, seamlessly mixing the modern and traditional. The glass walled entrance illuminated by the neon glow of their blue, pink and purple lights beckons curious passers-by and hungry diners alike. Try one of their cocktails, all named after Tokyo neighbourhoods which combines Japanese flavours with spirits like mezcal, rum and more. Yakimono describes its menu as “A celebration of food cooked over fire—meticulously conceived, inventively executed, riotously enjoyed.” We are intrigued indeed.
Take on Melbourne’s vibrant restaurant scene and let Platinum take care of it with your $200 Local Dining Credit benefit. Check out our full list of participating restaurants you can use your Platinum Card Dining Credit at.
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1.These Benefit terms set out the key terms of our Platinum Global Dining Benefit, which includes the Local Dining Credit and the Abroad Dining Credit
Enrolled Card Members will be eligible to receive a maximum of $200 back on spend at participating local restaurants (Local Dining Credit) and a maximum of AUD$200 back on spend at participating abroad restaurants (Abroad Dining Credit) per redemption period. Spend can be in one or more transactions.
Participating restaurants can be found here. For clarity: “participating local restaurants” are participating restaurants located in Australia, and “participating abroad restaurants” are participating restaurants located outside Australia. Participating restaurant list subject to change, please check before you dine as you may not be eligible for the credit.
A separate one-time enrolment is required for the Local Dining Credit and the Abroad Dining Credit via your Amex Offers from 5 July 2022 and Card Members will
automatically be enrolled for the following redemption periods from their enrolment date and do not need to re-enrol. The final date to enrol and spend
for both the Local and Abroad Dining Credits is 31 December 2024.
Benefit resets annually on 1 January until 31 December 2024. The redemption periods are:
- 05 July – 31 December 2022
- 01 January – 31 December 2023
- 01 January – 31 December 2024
Credit not redeemed during the applicable redemption period will not roll over to the following redemption period and will expire. Your Card must be charged prior to
the end of each redemption period (31 December) to be eligible for the credit within that redemption period.
For the Abroad Dining Credit, valid transactions will be converted to Australian Dollars based on the rate of exchange at the time your Card is charged. A currency conversion fee of 3% applies when payment is charged in a currency other than Australian Dollars. This fee does not count toward the offer spend requirement.
This Benefit is available to Primary American Express Australia Platinum Card Members only. If you switch to a new Card product that is not eligible for this benefit,
enrolment will be removed from your Card Account. If a Card you hold is ineligible, you will not be able to see the benefit, nor will you be able to save the benefit to the Card. If you are no longer eligible for this benefit due to a change in Account status, including but not limited to fraudulent flags, suspension or cancellation, it will be removed from your Account.
Benefit only available for dine in services. Benefit excludes purchases of gift cards and vouchers, transactions made towards deposits charged upfront by the venue,
cancellation and no-show charges, take away or dine-at-home services.
- Benefit limited to the Card to which the offer is saved and only spend on this Card counts towards the benefit. Transactions made with an Additional Card are not eligible for the credit.
Excludes transactions made through a third-party establishment or payment processor.
Credit is not redeemable for cash or other payment form.
Credit should appear on your billing statement within 5 business days from qualifying spend but may take up to 150 days from the offer end date.
Credit may be reversed if your qualifying purchase is refunded or cancelled.
Full Offer Terms available here.