Launceston has grown into its appetite – and these are the restaurants leading the charge.
Plenty of us have watched our Australian hometowns grow up. In Launceston, that growth has tasted particularly good. The real turning point came in 2000, when Stillwater opened inside a converted flour mill on the Tamar River. It didn’t look like the restaurants we knew, and the food didn’t taste like them either. Seasonal, local produce-driven and carefully considered – it signalled that Launceston was ready to plate up on its own terms.
The produce was always here: octopus wrestled from Bass Strait, truffles unearthed by keen labradors, leatherwood honey from western Tasmanian forest and pinot noir thriving in the Tamar Valley’s cool nights. What changed was the ambition around it. Local chefs sharpened their focus; others arrived, tasted, and stayed. Dining rooms grew smarter, menus tighter, service polished but still warm. In 2021, Launceston was named a UNESCO Creative City of Gastronomy – fitting for a small city cooking well above its weight.
The shortlist
Hottest new opening: Tres
Best farm-to-table experience: Stillwater Restaurant
Best for vegans: Grain of the Silos
Best waterfront dining: Boatyard
Best vineyard restaurant: Josef Chromy Wines
Best family-friendly spot: Du Cane
Best Italian: Stelo at Pierre’s
Stillwater Restaurant
If friends ask where they absolutely have to eat in Launceston, I tell them to book Stillwater . It’s the restaurant I’ve returned to over the years, watching the menus shift with the seasons and the city grow around it.
Executive chef Craig Will builds his menus around what Tasmania is doing best right now. I’ve had local fish lifted with sharp salted daikon sambal one visit, then rich venison with game jus, beetroot and black garlic the next. Cape Grim beef tartare with lovage mayo, Boomer Bay oysters and Lenah wallaby all feel right at home here. Even the vegetarian dishes – salt-baked beetroot with smoked stracciatella and burnt honey – never feel like an afterthought. After 26 years, it’s still the city’s surest bet. Book early for a window seat, though honestly, every table is a good one.
Cuisine: Contemporary Tasmanian
Average price: $$$$
Atmosphere: Polished riverfront calm
Location: 2 Bridge Road, Launceston
Grain of the Silos
Growing up in Launceston, no one ever said they were heading to Invermay for dinner. It was warehouses, riverbank grit, the industrial edge of town. Now the converted silos hum with diners gazing out over manicured parklands and playgrounds. Invermay has evolved – and Peppers Silo Hotel, with its Grain of the Silos restaurant, is a big reason why.
There was a time when sun-dried tomatoes in a jar felt exotic. Now we chase freshly made, pillow-light gnocchi – and find some of the best outside Italy right here. Under food director Massimo Mele, who learned to cook in Naples beside his nonna, and Austrian executive chef Thomas Pirker, the kitchen works almost exclusively with Tasmanian producers. Italian instinct meets island produce. The gnocchi isdressed with eggplant, tomato and basil, finished with stracciatella. Elsewhere, the menu moves from fried flatbread topped with marinated mussels and whipped ricotta – bright and briny – to porchetta with properly blistered crackling. There’s a thoughtful vegan menu, too.
Cuisine: Modern Tasmanian
Average price: $$$$
Atmosphere: Industrial bones, softened by design
Location: 89 Lindsay St, Invermay
Tres
One of Launceston’s newer dining rooms, Tres brings heat and energy in a compact space suited to date night or a lively catch-up. Tables sit close, conversation hums and cocktails arrive quickly – the kind of place where dishes are ordered for the table and more are added as they arrive.
Partners Stacy Thompson and Sam De Silva build a bold, Latin-inspired menu designed to share. Prawn tostadas come bright and punchy, empanadas golden, Brazilian cheese bread still warm. Slow-cooked pork belly with chimichurri carries depth and spice, while fresh fish and sharp salads keep things balanced. The “Feed Me" option is the easiest way in, sending out a steady run of plates without overthinking it.
Cuisine: Latin-inspired shared plates
Average price: $$
Atmosphere: Tight tables, loud playlists, good-night energy
Location: Shop 2/126 Charles St, Launceston
Black Cow Bistro
Housed in a former butchery on George Street, Black Cow Bistro couldn’t sit anywhere else. The dark tiles and wide windows nod to its past life, and it’s only right that serious beef remains the focus.
Executive chef Nabin Gurung, formerly of Stillwater, keeps the menu tight and purposeful. Premium, grass-fed and dry-aged Tasmanian cuts are listed by breed, origin and age: Cape Grim rib-eye, Robbins Island wagyu, thick-cut porterhouse – each cooked to coax out deep flavour and a proper crust. On my visit, the 40-day aged rib-eye with truffled béarnaise arrived perfectly rested, burnished at the edges and richly marbled. There’s house-made sourdough, Scottsdale pork belly with chilli soy sauce, plus oysters, scallops and octopus if you want to ease in, but the room shifts when the wooden boards of beef land. The wine list leans local, with generous Tasmanian reds built for steak.
Cuisine: Tasmanian steakhouse
Average price: $$$$
Atmosphere: Dark-tiled steakhouse
Location: 70 George St, Launceston
Stelo at Pierre’s
Stelo is where you go in Launceston for a generous Italian dinner. The room is all chessboard tiles, dark walls and deep banquettes, built for settling in. Soft jazz drifts through the room, service is assured without being stiff, and the place hums with easy confidence.
Executive chef Nathan Johnston brings southern Italian cooking to Tasmanian produce. Focaccia scented with rosemary arrives warm; crisp patatine fritte come with seasoning and “mum’s sauce". Pasta is made from Tasmanian flour and potatoes – hand-shaped ziti folded through slow-cooked onion and beef, or melt-in-your-mouth gnocchi baked with tomato and mozzarella. Campania-inspired cocktails carry that warmth into the glass. Reservations are recommended as this small dining room rarely stays quiet for long.
Cuisine: Southern Italian, locally sourced
Average price: $$$$
Atmosphere: Low-lit and built for long dinners
Location: 88 George St, Launceston
Mudbar Restaurant
Down in Launceston’s Seaport precinct in the newer waterfront development, Mudbar runs on genuine hospitality. Owner Don Cameron has spent more than 50 years in the industry, and his guiding principle – “Customer first, every day, in every way" – lives in the restaurant’s handbook and, more importantly, in the way the staff look after you.
Mudbar’s farm – just 20 minutes away at Whitehills – supplies lamb, beef and vegetables, keeping the paddock-to-plate philosophy close to home. The menu reflects that commitment. The farm lamb with elegant potato pavé is the dish to order when you want something generous and memorable. There’s also beautifully cooked farm Wagyu, while vegetarian plates – sticky soy cauliflower or buttered honey mushrooms with Cheung fun noodles –hold their own.
Cuisine: Farm-led modern Tasmanian
Average price: $$$
Atmosphere: Easy seaport dining with a steady hum
Location: 28 Seaport Blvd, Launceston
Brisbane Street Bistro
Occupying a 19th-century terrace in the heart of town, Brisbane Street Bistro is all white tablecloths, chandeliers, polished timber floors and antiques. Refined without being stiff, it’s the kind of inner-city restaurant made for dressing up and lingering over dinner.
Head chef Ian Lewis focuses on modern French-Australian cooking: “We make good food with the best produce on earth and serve wine to match". The house-made bread roll arrives warm with Saint Omer butter, followed by market fish croquettes in brioche crumb with dill pickle aioli, crisp on the outside and soft within. Duck confit à l’orange comes with Paris mash and glossy jus, rich without tipping into heaviness. For dessert, vanilla bean crème brûlée with brown butter and nutmeg shortbread delivers a clean crack of caramel before giving way to silky custard.
Cuisine: French bistro
Average price: $$$$
Atmosphere: White tablecloths in a gorgeous terrace
Location: 24 Brisbane St, Launceston
Boatyard
Perched in a white timber cottage on the edge of the Tamar, Boatyard is the kind of place where you can watch boats drift past while deciding between fish and chips or Peruvian paella. A stone’s throw from Stillwater and Penny Royal, it’s relaxed and genuinely family-friendly.
Seafood anchors the menu. Beer-battered local pink ling comes crisp with fries and tartare if you’re keeping it classic (fish ‘n’ chip Wednesdays are particularly good value). Tasmanian scallops, lifted with citrus before hitting the grill and served with crispy sweet potato, are a standout. The Peruvian thread adds interest – paella loaded with prawns and octopus, or scallop risotto in a saffron-hued sauce – while fish baked en papillote with romesco and asparagus keeps things lighter. There’s plenty of seating inside and out, service is easy and prices are fair.
Cuisine: Seafood with Peruvian leanings
Average price: $$
Atmosphere: Sun-washed cottage by the river
Location: 13 Park St, Launceston
The Royal Oak Hotel
The Royal Oak has been pouring beers since the 1830s, hosting birthdays, graduations and long afternoons that roll gently into night. Downstairs is the classic pub – lively, familiar. Upstairs is where things shift: a proper dining room with polished timber, velvet-cushioned chairs and well-set tables, plus a rooftop bar.
The menu takes recognisable pub fare and gives it a local twist. Slow-cooked Tasmanian lamb shoulder with pomegranate molasses carrots and jus, tender enough to fall apart at the touch of a fork. Scotch fillet with horseradish mash is done properly, and even schnitzel and parmi feel considered rather than routine. It’s generous, flavour-packed cooking – the kind worth heading upstairs for.
Cuisine: Elevated pub classics
Average price: $$
Atmosphere: Classic pub downstairs, dressed-up upstairs
Location: 14 Brisbane St, Launceston
Timbre Kitchen
Timbre Kitchen sits at Velo Wines in the West Tamar, just ten minutes from Launceston, and runs Thursday to Sunday at its own steady pace. Chef-owner Matt Adams works to a seasonal set menu built around whatever local growers have delivered that week. There’s no ordering à la carte; shared plates arrive in sequence, anchored by the woodfired oven.
Hummus topped with slivered almonds and served with charred flatbread might open the meal, followed by blue trevalla with ponzu or roast chicken edged with smoke. One visit might bring fig flatbread; another, beef tartare with a subtle Tex-Mex edge. Dessert – perhaps caramel mousse with miso and peanut butter, finished with shards of honeycomb – balances sweet and savoury in equal measure. It’s thoughtful cooking without ceremony, best enjoyed with time and a bottle from the vineyard next door.
Cuisine: Woodfired seasonal share plates
Average price: $$$
Atmosphere: Woodsmoke, long tables and vineyard lights
Location: Velo Wines, 755 W Tamar Hwy, Rosevears
Josef Chromy Wines
This is the lunch you book when wine is as important as what’s on the plate. Just ten minutes from Launceston, Josef Chromy’s sleek dining hall opens out to neat rows of vines, wooden floors underfoot and comfortable seating (the deck patio is particularly stunning when the weather is warm).
Executive chef Nick Raitt keeps things unfussy and wood-fire driven, cooking with Tasmania’s cooler climate firmly in mind. Vegetables arrive smoky and sweet from the grill. Market fish is delicate against roasted pumpkin and winter radish, the Chardonnay sharpening every bite. The dry-aged scotch fillet comes deeply flavoured, softened by cabbage cream and a flicker of currant gel. Open daily for lunch, it’s a place to settle in – a long table, a good bottle and time well spent.
Cuisine: Modern Tasmanian, woodfire-driven
Average price: $$$$
Atmosphere: Glass, vines and quiet country polish
Location: 370 Relbia Rd, Relbia
Du Cane
If pizza is the plan – and especially if kids are involved – Du Cane makes it easy. Set inside a reimagined camping store in the centre of town, this brewery-restaurant nods to Tasmania’s outdoorsy streak. Maps of local bushwalks line the walls and a climbing wall keeps younger diners occupied while adults settle in.
At the centre of the open kitchen, a woodfired oven turns out pizzas topped with local produce. The pick of the bunch is the Good Game, which layers wallaby salami with mozzarella, parmesan and oregano. Du Cane is loud, upbeat and built for groups – families, friends and bushwalkers refuelling after a long day.
Cuisine: Woodfired pizza and craft beer
Average price: $$
Atmosphere: Bushwalkers, kids and woodfire heat
Location: 60–70 Elizabeth St, Launceston
