Restaurant Guide

Vue de Monde: Restaurant review

Vue de Monde impresses not just with the views that come with its lofty 55th-floor perch, but for holding its position in Melbourne's premier restaurant league for so long.

Address

Level 55, Rialto
525 Collins St
Melbourne, Vic

Hours

Lunch Thu-Sun noon-1pm
Dinner daily 6pm-8.45pm

Prices

Dégustations $275-$310

Consider lunch at Vue de Monde. Sure, it's hard to beat the night view from 55 storeys high with the city sketched out in lights, but there's also something to be said for watching clouds roll towards you at eye level while sipping vintage Dom Pérignon and diving into exquisitely fresh sea urchin with caviar and bunya nut cream or delicate slivers of kingfish and avocado sandwiching wasabi leaf and topped with pale wasabi "snow". New executive chef Hugh Allen brings a youthful (he's 24) enthusiasm to one of Melbourne's great fine-diners, one still embracing the hits – the crab snags on a table-top barbecue, the liquid-nitrogen frozen herb and petal palate cleanser – while taking a deeper dive into Australian flavours. Excellent oysters, shucked in front of you at the kitchen bar, are teamed with condiments flavoured with lemon myrtle, native pepper and finger lime; lamb gets the saltbush treatment; and there are petits fours riffing on classic Australian biscuits, including a Davidson's plum-flavoured Iced Vovo. Service is superb, as is the pricey wine list that's always a welcome sight, day or night.
Phone:
(03) 9691 3888
Bookings:
Bookings essential
Features:
  • Licensed
  • Bar
  • Vegetarian-friendly
  • Wheelchair access
  • Private room
  • Impressive wine list
Accepted card types:
  • American Express
  • Diners Club
  • Eftpos
  • MasterCard
  • Visa
Chef:
Hugh Allen
This review was made independently for the Gourmet Traveller Restaurant Guide. The guide's reviewers visit unannounced and pay their way.