13 Melbourne Food & Wine Festival Events You Don’t Want To Miss

The Melbourne Food & Wine Festival officially kicks off this Friday with the flagship event, World’s Longest Lunch. There are 200 events taking place across Victoria as part of the festival, which runs from March 20 to Sunday March 29. Choosing what to go to can be overwhelming, so we’ve narrowed the program down to 13 highlights – that aren’t sold out. 

Bakers Dozen

A bakery crawl is a quintessential Melbourne weekend activity. At Baker’s Dozen, the festival brings far more than a baker’s dozen of the city’s best bakers to Fed Square. This year, there’ll be stalls from Butter Days, Dua, Madeleine de Proust, Masses Bagels, The Flour and more selling an impressive 105 unique goods.

Lunch with Helen Goh

Pastry chef and psychologist Helen Goh has been part of the Ottolenghi universe for more than a decade. Goh, originally from Malaysia, worked as the pastry chef at Melbourne institution Donovans before moving to the UK where she now resides. She co-authored Ottolenghi Comfort and Sweet with Yotam Ottolenghi, and last year, published her first solo cookbook Baking and the Meaning of Life. 

Join Goh at Fed Square event space Zinc for an in-conversation event with Masterchef winner Emelia Jackson on Sunday March 29. The chat will be accompanied by a three-course meal consisting of dishes from Goh’s solo Baking and the Meaning of Life. There’ll be prawn sambal buns; Dutch babies with mortadella and rocket; sticky date pudding with miso butterscotch and coconut ice-cream; and more. Plus, wine from Tahbilk and beer from Holgate Brewhouse.

Daphne x Bar Planet: Martini-thon

Etta restaurateur Hannah Green’s more casual venue Daphne and Sydney Martini destination Bar Planet are teaming up for a MFWF edition of Daphne’s Monday night Martini club on Monday March 23 from 5pm. The cocktail menu will have drinks from both venues, including Bar Planet’s citrusy Sunbeam Martini (there’ll also be serves of the Sydney bar’s signature spicy popcorn). The bar will be open for walk-ins, but you can also book in for a three-course Martini dinner where each course comes with a Martini, of course. 

Monique Fiso at Farmer’s Daughters

Monique Fiso has made a name for herself with Māori and Polynesian cuisine. The chef behind Hiakai in Aotearoa New Zealand, and author of Hiakai and the official Moana cookbook, will join chef Alejandro Saravia at his restaurant Farmers Daughters on Saturday March 28, where they’ll prepare a tasting menu where each course has a distinct colour theme.

Musings & Merienda

James Beard Award-winning Mayumu author Abi Balingit is one of the most exciting (and colourful) bakers to come out of New York in the past five years. Balingit and a group of Filipino baking stars including Laurice Fajardo of Halaya, Con Buada of Drom, Grace Guinto of Sweet Cora, Kristina Náray of Malindang, are hosting afternoon tea at Halaya on Friday March 20. 

Mindy Woods at Residence

Chef and Bundjalung woman Mindy Woods will bring her expertise in native cuisine from Karkalla in the Northern Rivers in NSW to Residence at The Potter. From Wednesday March 25 to Saturday March 28, Woods will prepare a three-course meal that showcases traditional cooking methods and native ingredients. 

Clichy: Original Food in the French Manner at Bistra

Ian “Huey” Hewitson is best known for this television work. But from 1977 to 1982, the suspender-sporting chef ran Clichy, a fine-dining French restaurant in Collingwood. Hewitson and the team from Carlton’s Bistra are bringing Clichy back for four nights-only from Monday March 23 to Thursday March 26. 

Daniela’s Pasta Window

Chef Daniela Maiorano, who splits her time between Abruzzo in Italy and Australia, has become a sensation online thanks to her natural charm and her no-BS approach to good, honest Italian cooking. Last year, she held a three-week residency at Carlton’s Sunhands. For the festival, Maiorano returns to Sunhands to run a takeaway pasta window from Thursday March 26 to Sunday March 29. Expect dishes priced between $15 to $30, available from 4pm to 9pm (or until sold out). The event is not ticketed, so you can simply rock up and enjoy.

Bez at Florian

In September, former Bar Liberty head chef  Zackary Furst launched Bez, a pop-up series through which he showcases contemporary Polish food. The chef is teaming up with Carlton North favourite Florian for Bez dinners on Saturday March 21 and Sunday March 22. 

Caregiver’s Place Launch Party

Wesley Place in the CBD is home to two of Melbourne’s most exciting venues: Reed House, from Ottolenghi alumni chef Mark Hannell and front-of-house pro Rebecca Baker; and Caretaker’s Cottage, which ranked number 19 on The World’s 50 Best Bars list. From 1pm to 5pm on Sunday March 22, the two will celebrate the festival’s opening weekend with a takeover of Urban Park at Wesley Place. Reed House will fire up the barbeque, Caretaker’s Cottage will be on drinks, and there’ll be food trucks and good tunes. Entry is by gold-coin donation, with funds going to MND Victoria, which supports people living with motor neurone disease.

A Night at Caregiver’s Place

Superstar chefs Rosheen Kaul (Bistro Marigold), Junda Khoo (Ho Jiak), Mark Hannell (Reed House) and Dessert Masters winner John Demetrios (Butter Days) are joining forces for a dinner hosted by Masterchef Australia judge Sofia Levin on Monday March 23 inside the heritage-listed School House at Wesley Place. There’ll be drinks by Caretakers Cottage, plus a charity auction with food and lifestyle experience. All funds from the night will go to MND Victoria, which supports people living with motor neurone disease.

Home Cooking with Elizabeth Hewson and Rosa Mitchell

Elizabeth Hewson of Saturday Night Pasta is joining forces with Rosa Mitchell of Rosa’s Canteen in the CBD for a long lunch celebrating Hewson’s new cookbook Home Food. On Saturday March 21, the duo will prepare a meal of recipes from the book and from Mitchell’s years in the kitchen. The long lunch will also include a talk between Hewson and Mitchell, a copy of the cookbook and products from Hewson’s Saturday Night Pasta line.

William Gleave at Brico

William Gleave of Kent restaurant Sargasso is stopping by cosy Fitzroy North wine bar Brico. A friend of Brico co-founders Josh Begbie (of Bar Liberty) and Phil Bracey (of London’s P Franco), Gleave brings both pedigree and good energy to the kitchen. Book a table at Brico from Wednesday March 25 to Sunday March 29 for a set menu that reflects their shared passion for local produce and honest cooking.