Victoria

Patience. You'll need it to land one of six seats at chef Jung Eun Chae's Cockatoo home, where the seasonal, medicinal, ferment-heavy Korean menu unfolds.

Chauncy only opens four lunch services each week but rest assured that any planning involved is well worth it.

Is it possible to improve on alt-bistro perfection?

Her Bar keeps feet on the ground with a swanky fit-out and a menu delivering greatest hits in the key of France.

Crisp and refreshing, with a thrillingly sour backbeat, the hot and sour shredded potato at Lagoon Dining should be awarded some kind of medal for services to Australian tastebuds.

The dining room at Manzé is as breezy and charming as the service and drinks list – a short, sharp collection with a penchant for vin naturel and Mauritian rum.

Where many modern meat-free restaurants exist to highlight the verisimilitude of their mock meats and faux cheeses, Patsy’s can seem almost radical in its approach.

Serai feels like instant fun – of the fire-fuelled, Filipino-flavoured kind.

A Piedmontese trattoria promises to become a Fitzroy favourite with impressive dishes and wines to match.