Canberra Fine Dining Restaurants Worth Splurging On

Canberra is fast becoming one of the top foodie destinations in Australia, with a wealth of fine-dining restaurants to choose from.

Once known as merely the capital of Australia city, Canberra has proven critics wrong over the past decade, fast becoming known for its thrumming hive of creative, unique restaurants and, in particular, a fine dining scene to rival that of Sydney and Melbourne.

A visit to Canberra would not be complete without splurging on one of the many luxury dining experiences the city has to offer. From modern European cuisine to Japanese-style feasts, these are the best fine dining restaurants in Canberra.

1. Mu

a fresh oyster on a stone plate at Mu, Canberra — Dine on seafood in style. (Image: VisitCanberra)

Using the Japanese dining experience of Omakase (which translates to ‘leave it up to you’), at Mu you won’t be selecting your dishes – rather, the chefs create 11-course menus inspired by what produce and ingredients are best on the day.

Dining is tasting style, with plates starting with lighter fare and moving on to heavier courses. Premium sake pairings are available to really make a night of it, too.

Bookings go fast, so it’s worth locking down a spot in advance – there are two sittings between Tuesday and Thursday at 6pm and 7pm, with Friday and Saturday sittings at 5:45pm and 8pm.

Cuisine: Japanese

Atmosphere: Immersive

Address: 1 Constitution Avenue, Canberra ACT

2. Corella Restaurant & Bar

the cosy seating inside Corella Restaurant & Bar, Canberra — Settle in for a set menu complemented by a cosy ambience. (Image: VisitCanberra)

Corella Restaurant & Bar may only be a few years old, but it’s already renowned as one of Canberra’s best fine dining restaurants.

Inspired by native Australian flavours and ingredients, expect fresh fare and a cosy ambience, with good service and an extensive wine and cocktails list. Whether it’s date night or just dinner with friends, Corella is the perfect place to pop in.

Cuisine: Modern Australian

Atmosphere: Neighbourhood intimacy

Address: 14 Lonsdale Street, Braddon ACT

3. Pilot

a degustation-only menu at Pilot, Ainslie — Take delight in Pilot’s gastronomic menu. (Image: VisitCanberra)

This intimate 24-seater in Ainslie is all about experience. You won’t have to worry about fussing over a bunch of options and picking between two (or more) delicious dishes. The menu here is set, taking the onus off you and letting you sit back, relax and enjoy your meal.

There’s the $105 lunch menu, $150 Pilot menu and, if you want to splash out, the $195 extended menu. Each features an array of fresh produce with seasonal additions, plus a selection of Australian beverages. Pilot is a true hidden gem, and once you find it (hint: it’s tucked behind the local shops), you’ll be coming back for more.

Cuisine: Modern Australian with a quirky twist

Atmosphere: Immersive

Address: 1 Wakefield Gardens, Ainslie ACT

4. Capitol Bar & Grill

a gourmet dish at Capitol Bar & Grill, Canberra — The dishes at Capitol Bar & Grill are to die for. (Image: VisitCanberra)

Many of Canberra’s best hotels also house some of the city’s best fine dining restaurants. The QT Canberra is a perfect example, where you’ll find Capitol Bar & Grill. Local ACT and NSW produce is the hero on its extensive menu, which favours wood-fired grills and fresh ingredients.

Known for its prime meat cuts, it’s no surprise the steak is to die for, arriving cooked to your liking and perfectly juicy. You can also order fresh seafood and sides to enjoy, as well. Order a Canberran varietal from the carefully curated wine list by Sommelier Ashleigh Smith.

Cuisine: Modern Grill

Atmosphere: Vibrant

Address: 1 London Circuit, Canberra ACT

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5. Monster Kitchen & Bar

Chances are, if you’re relatively across Canberra’s fine dining scene, you’ve heard of Monster Kitchen & Bar. A cavernous, moody space at Ovolo Nishi, Monster has long been known for its intriguing dishes and creativity.

Once 100 per cent plant-based, Monster is now “an omnivore", as their website puts it, with seasonal dishes share-style, like golden fried calamari with chilli and fennel salt, and steak frites with rich, creamy Paris butter. Don’t fill up too much though, the dessert options are also to die for.

Cuisine: Modern Australian

Atmosphere: Moody & cool

Address: 25 Edinburgh Avenue, Canberra ACT

6. Courgette

a gourmet dish at Courgette, Canberra — Courgette is a staple of Canberra’s high-end food scene.

Fine dining at its most classic is found at Canberra institution Courgette. Think opulent dining rooms, crisp white tablecloths and an intimate, unhurried experience, with modern European cuisine and premium wines.

Open for both lunch and dinner, Courgette is the perfect place for your next special occasion. You can dine via a three-course a la carte menu, a five-course degustation or the extensive, 100 per cent vegetarian degustation.

Cuisine: Modern European

Atmosphere: Sophisticated and refined

Address: 54 Marcus Clarke Street, Canberra ACT

7. Raku

the fine dining interior of Raku, Canberra — Delight in refined Japanese plates. (Image: VisitCanberra)

If you’re looking for the best Japanese in Canberra, head to Raku. Known for its sushi and sashimi dishes, you can sit around the central workspace and watch chefs deftly slice your fish before it reaches your plate.

Order your dishes individually or choose from one of two tasting menus, priced between $120 and $170. If you’re in town on a weekday, you can get the less leisurely (but equally as delicious) experience with their $60 express menu. Go the extra mile and order something from the wine or dessert menus; perhaps both. Raku also has a dedicated gluten-free menu with extensive options.

Cuisine: Japanese

Atmosphere: Upscale

Address: 148 Bunda Street, Canberra ACT

8. OTIS

a truffle dish at OTIS — Indulge in truffle decadence at OTIS. (Image: VisitCanberra)

OTIS technically aligns itself with ‘fine-casual’ dining. Still, with head chef Damian Brabender’s stellar CV filled with Michelin-starred London restaurants and acclaimed Aussie resorts, OTIS will give you the fine dining experience you’re seeking.

The menu here is fresh, creative and seasonally-led, and all guests share the same selections. Choose from either the classic three-course menu, or the extensive degustation, then go all-out with paired wines for a truly luxurious experience.

Cuisine: Modern Australian

Atmosphere: Relaxed

Address: 29 Jardine Street, Kingston ACT

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9. Rubicon

Cosy, private and surprisingly laid-back, Rubicon is a Griffith icon, and well worth a visit if fine dining is your love language. The contemporary Australian restaurant has a menu packed with flavour, like cognac prunes and pistachio-stuffed pork fillet, and Canadian scallops with bacon jam.

We love Rubicon’s layout – four intimate dining rooms that offer seclusion and romance.

Cuisine: Modern Australian

Atmosphere: Intimate

Address: 6A Barker St, Griffith, ACT

10. Wilma

food and drinks on the table at Wilma, Canberra — The menu at Wilma leans into Southeast Asian and Chinese cuisines. (Image: VisitCanberra)

Classifying themselves as a “progressive Asian BBQ that is fun and approachable", you can probably guess that a visit to Wilma is about having a good time. The menu is broken up into small and large plates, with a heavy emphasis on the grill, like wood-roasted John Dory with charred lime and the “Wilma Snag Sanga", which is absolutely nothing like what you might pick up at a kid’s footy game.

Cuisine: Asian BBQ

Atmosphere: Fun

Address: 1 Genge St, Canberra, ACT

11. The Boat House

the fine dining interior of The Boat House, Canberra — The award-winning fine diner delivers stunning waterfront views. (Image: The Boat House)

Sometimes, fine dining is really about the atmosphere, and The Boat House delivers on this and then some. Tucked away inside Grevillea Park and overlooking Lake Burley Griffin, the Modern Australian menu is sourced impeccably, with barramundi from the Northern Territory’s Humpty Doo region, pork from NSW’s Northern Rivers and Sydney rock oysters to chow down on.

Cuisine: Modern Australian

Atmosphere: Bright and outdoorsy

Address: Grevillea Park, 7 Menindee Drive, Barton, ACT

12. Water’s Edge

Speaking of atmosphere, another Lake Burley Griffin jewel in the fine dining scene is Water’s Edge, one of Canberra’s most famous restaurants with arguably the greatest view. Topping TripAdvisor’s Traveler’s Choice Awards three years in a row, the menu options celebrate Australian produce and change with the seasons, plus you can expect special occasion menus, so it’s a great choice for celebrating.

Cuisine: Modern Australian

Atmosphere: Classically refined

Address: Grevillea Park, 7 Menindee Drive, Barton, ACT

Abandoned mills and forgotten paper plants are finding second lives – and helping redefine a city long underestimated.

Just 15 years ago, Federal Mills was a very different place. Once among the most significant industrial sites in Victoria, the historic woollen mill was one of a dozen that operated in Geelong at the industry’s peak in the mid-20th century, helping the city earn its title as ‘wool centre of the world’. But by the 1960s global competition and the rise of synthetic fabrics led to the slow decline of the industry, and Federal Mills finally shuttered its doors in 2001. Within a few years, the abandoned North Geelong grounds had become makeshift pastoral land, with cows and goats grazing among the overgrown grass between the empty red-brick warehouses. It was a forgotten pocket of the city, all but two klicks from the bustle of the CBD.

Geelong cellar door wine bar — Geelong has shed its industrial identity to become an innovative urban hub with reimagined heritage spaces. (Image: Ash Hughes)

Federal Mills: from forgotten factory to creative precinct

Today, the century-old complex stands reborn. The distinctive sawtooth-roof buildings have been sensitively restored. An old silo is splashed with a bright floral mural, landscapers have transformed the grounds, and the precinct is once again alive with activity. More than 1000 people work across 50-plus businesses here. It’s so busy, in fact, that on a sunny Thursday morning in the thick of winter, it’s hard to find a car park. The high ceilings, open-plan design, and large multi-paned windows – revolutionary features for factories of their time – have again become a drawcard.

Paddock Bakery andPatisserie — Paddock Bakery and Patisserie is housed within the historic wool factory. (Image: Gallant Lee)

At Paddock, one of the precinct’s newer tenants, weaving looms and dye vats have been replaced by a wood-fired brick oven and heavy-duty mixers. Open since April 2024, the bakery looks right at home here; the building’s industrial shell is softened by ivy climbing its steel frames, and sunlight streams through the tall windows. Outside, among the white cedar trees, families at picnic benches linger over dippy eggs and bagels, while white-collar workers pass in and out, single-origin coffee and crème brûlée doughnuts in hand.

Geelong: Australia’s only UNESCO City of Design

Paddock Bakery can be found at Federal Mills. (Image: Gallant Lee)

“A lot of people are now seeing the merit of investing in Geelong,” says Paul Traynor, the head of Hamilton Hospitality Group, which redeveloped Federal Mills. A city once shunned as Sleepy Hollow, and spurned for its industrial, working-class roots and ‘rust belt’ image, Geelong has long since reclaimed its ‘Pivot City’ title, having reinvented itself as an affordable, lifestyle-driven satellite city, and a post-COVID migration hotspot.

And the numbers stand testament to the change. In March 2025, and for the first time in its history, Greater Geelong became Australia’s most popular regional town for internal migration, overtaking Queensland’s Sunshine Coast. Current forecasts suggest Geelong will continue to outpace many other Australian cities and towns, with jobs growing at double the rate of the population.

Tourism is booming, too. The 2023-24 financial year was Geelong and The Bellarine region’s busiest on record, with 6.4 million visitors making it one of the fastest-growing destinations in the country. It’s not hard to see why: beyond the city’s prime positioning at the doorstep of the Great Ocean Road, Geelong’s tenacity and cultural ambition stands out.

As Australia’s only UNESCO City of Design, Geelong is swiftly shaking off its industrial past to become a model for urban renewal, innovation, sustainability and creative communities. The signs are everywhere, from the revitalisation of the city’s waterfront, and the landmark design of the Geelong Library and Heritage Centre and Geelong Arts Centre, to the growing network of local designers, architects and artists, and the burgeoning roster of festivals and events. That’s not even mentioning the adaptive reuse of storied old industrial buildings – from Federal Mills, to Little Creatures’ brewery ‘village’ housed within a 1920s textile mill – or the city’s flourishing food and wine scene.

The rise of a food and wine destination

Restaurant 1915 is housed within a restored former boiler house. (Image: Harry Pope/Two Palms)

Traynor credits now-closed local restaurant Igni, which opened in 2016, as the turning point for Geelong’s hospo industry. “[Aaron Turner, Igni’s chef-patron] was probably the first guy, with all due respect, to raise the bar food-wise for Geelong,” he says. “People now treat it really seriously, and there’s clearly a market for it.” While Igni is gone, Turner now helms a string of other notable Geelong venues, including The Hot Chicken Project and Tacos y Liquor, all within the buzzy, street art-speckled laneways of the CBD’s Little Malop Street Precinct. Many others have also popped up in Igni’s wake, including Federal Mills’ own restaurant, 1915. Housed within the cavernous boiler house, 1915’s interior is dramatic: soaring, vaulted ceilings with timber beams, exposed brick, a huge arched window. The share plates echo the space’s bold character, playing with contrast and texture, with dishes such as a compressed watermelon tataki, the sweet, juicy squares tempered by salty strands of fried leeks, and charred, smoky snow peas dusted with saganaki on a nutty bed of romesco.

The Woolstore, one of The Hamilton Group’s most recent hospo projects, opened in February. It occupies a century-old riverside warehouse and exudes a more sultry, fine dining ambience. Much like Federal Mills, the blueprint was to preserve the original brickwork, tallowwood flooring and nods to the building’s former life. That same careful consideration extends to the well-versed, affable waitstaff as well as the kitchen. Head chef Eli Grubb is turning out an eclectic mix of ambitious and indulgent mod Oz dishes that deliver: strikingly tender skewers of chicken tsukune, infused with hints of smoke from the parrilla grill, and glazed with a moreish, sweet gochujang ‘jam’; nduja arancini fragrant with hints of aniseed and the earthy lick of sunny saffron aioli; and golden squares of potato pavé, adorned with tiny turrets of crème fraîche, crisp-fried saltbush leaves, and Avruga caviar, to name but a few stand-out dishes.

Woolstore menu — Woolstore’s menu is designed for sharing.

Breathing new life into historic spaces

On the city’s fringe, hidden down a winding side road with little fanfare, lies a long-dormant site that’s being gently revived. Built from locally quarried bluestone and brick, and dating back to the 1870s, the complex of original tin-roofed mill buildings is lush with greenery and backs onto the Barwon River and Buckley Falls; the audible rush of water provides a soothing soundtrack. Fyansford Paper Mill is one of few complexes of its time to survive intact. It feels steeped in history and spellbindingly rustic.

“We were looking for an old industrial place that had some charm and romance to it,” explains Sam Vogel, the owner, director and winemaker at Provenance Wines which moved here in 2018. When he first viewed the building with his former co-owner, it was in such a state of disrepair that the tradie tenant occupying the space had built a shed within it to escape the leaking roof and freezing winter temperatures. “To say it was run down would be an understatement,” he notes. “There was ivy growing through the place; the windows were all smashed. It was a classic Grand Designs project.”

Provenance Wines moved to Fyansford Paper Mill in 2018. (Image: Cameron Murray Photography)

The team has since invested more than a million dollars into their new home. Where paper processing machinery once sat, wine barrels are now stacked. Vaulted cathedral ceilings are strung with festoon lights, and hidden in plain sight lies a shadowy mural by local street artist de rigueur Rone – one of only three permanent works by the artist.

While the award-winning, cool-climate pinot noir, riesling and chardonnay naturally remain a key draw at Provenance, the winery’s restaurant is a destination in itself. Impressed already by whipsmart service, I devour one of the most cleverly curated and faultlessly executed degustations I’ve had in some time. It’s all prepared in a kitchen that is proudly zero-waste, and committed to providing seasonal, ethical and locally sourced meat and produce under head chef Nate McIver. Think free-range venison served rare with a syrupy red wine jus and a half-moon of neon-orange kosho, shokupan with a deeply savoury duck fat jus (a modern Japanese take on bread and drippings), and a golden potato cake adorned with a colourful confetti of dehydrated nasturtiums and tomato powder, and planted atop a sea urchin emulsion.

handcrafted pieces — Bell’s handcrafted functional pieces on display.

The complex is home to a coterie of independent businesses, including a gallery, a jeweller, and its latest tenant, ceramicist Elizabeth Bell, drawn here by the building’s “soul”. “There’s so much potential for these buildings to have new life breathed into them,” says Bell, whose studio is housed within the old pump room. “Even people in Geelong don’t know we’re here,” she says. “It’s definitely a destination, but I like that. It has a really calming atmosphere.”

A Melbourne transplant, Bell now feels at home in Geelong, which offers something Melbourne didn’t. “If this business was in Melbourne I don’t think it would’ve been as successful,” she notes. “It’s very collaborative in Geelong, and I don’t think you get that as much in Melbourne; you’re a bit more in it for yourself. Here it’s about community over competition.”

12 fine dining restaurants in Canberra worth splurging on

Canberra is fast becoming one of the top foodie destinations in Australia, with a wealth of fine-dining restaurants to choose from.

1. Mu

2. Corella Restaurant & Bar

3. Pilot

4. Capitol Bar & Grill

5. Monster Kitchen & Bar

6. Courgette

7. Raku

8. OTIS

9. Rubicon

10. Wilma

11. The Boat House

12. Water’s Edge

Canberra’s first floating sauna brings Nordic wellness to the capital

Top 40 things to do in Canberra throughout the year

30 of the best restaurants in Canberra

19 fun things to do in Fyshwick, Canberra

Inside Geelong’s glow-up from factory town to creative capital

Abandoned mills and forgotten paper plants are finding second lives – and helping redefine a city long underestimated.

Federal Mills: from forgotten factory to creative precinct

Geelong: Australia’s only UNESCO City of Design

The rise of a food and wine destination

Breathing new life into historic spaces

Canberra is fast becoming one of the top foodie destinations in Australia, with a wealth of fine-dining restaurants to choose from.

1. Mu

2. Corella Restaurant & Bar

3. Pilot

4. Capitol Bar & Grill

AI Prompt

5. Monster Kitchen & Bar

6. Courgette

7. Raku

8. OTIS

9. Rubicon

10. Wilma

11. The Boat House

12. Water’s Edge

Canberra’s first floating sauna brings Nordic wellness to the capital

Top 40 things to do in Canberra throughout the year

30 of the best restaurants in Canberra

19 fun things to do in Fyshwick, Canberra

Abandoned mills and forgotten paper plants are finding second lives – and helping redefine a city long underestimated.

Federal Mills: from forgotten factory to creative precinct

Geelong: Australia’s only UNESCO City of Design

The rise of a food and wine destination

Breathing new life into historic spaces