Melbourne With Kids: Where to Eat, Stay & Play

Your go-to guide to Melbourne’s best places to eat, sleep and top things to do with kids.

Where to eat in Melbourne with kids

Parents looking to ignite their children’s appetite will find a lot to inspire in the multicultural capital of Victoria. Make Melbourne your next food-focused getaway at these sought-after spots attuned to pleasing the palates of diners young and old.

HERO at ACMI

ACMI is Melbourne’s museum dedicated to film, TV, videogames and art. After exploring the exhibitions, attending a talk or workshop, head to HERO, chef Karen Martini’s new on-site restaurant, which champions the produce of local farmers and purveyors. Line up for a house-made choc top or Maker & Monger cheese platter from Martini’s carefully curated cinema cart before heading in to see a cult classic or anime film.

Address: Federation Square, Melbourne VIC 3000

Inside Hero at ACMI — Inside HERO at ACMI. (Image: Peter Tarasiuk)

The menu at Hero at ACMI — Dine at HERO at ACMI. (Image: Peter Tarasiuk)

Lona Misa

This restaurant inside the funky new Ovolo South Yarra hotel is the perfect way to get vegetables into your kids without them even knowing. The kitchen here is helmed by chefs Ian Curley and Shannon Martinez, whose vegetarian and vegan food at Smith & Daughters has made root-to-stem dining seriously cool. The heavily vegan menu here is influenced by Martinez’s Latin roots and includes incredibly flavoursome dishes like whole peri peri cauliflower, tortilla (Spanish omelette) with aioli and moqueca, a Brazilian seafood stew with prawns fashioned from konjac (and painted pink for full effect) and tofu that looks just like fish fillets.

Address: 234 Toorak Rd, South Yarra VIC 3141

400 Gradi

What’s a visit to Melbourne without a visit to 400 Gradi? Melbourne’s pizza game has been strong for decades but founder and pizzaiolo Johnny di Francesco has taken it to the next level at 400 Gradi, which brings a slice of Naples to Brunswick in the form of his pizza, judged to be the World’s Best Pizza in 2014. Go for the marinara, or the award-winning margherita verace. Budding pizzaiolos can also sign up for a class to learn to make pizza Napoletana.

Address: 99 Lygon St, Brunswick East VIC 3057

China Red

This informal Chinese restaurant has a playful vibe that children will love. Beautiful red lanterns, dark-wood tables and ornate latticework set the scene in the casual restaurant where the large Chinese character symbol for ‘double happiness’ is everywhere. Double your family’s happiness by ordering a banquet comprising dishes such as deep-fried squid in salt and pepper, special fried rice, stir-fried Chinese broccoli and stir-fried pork in plum sauce.

Address: 206 Bourke St, Melbourne VIC 3000

Brunetti Carlton

Melbourne’s big-city culinary smarts are on show for all to see at Brunetti, a glitzy 1500-square-metre eye-popping emporium where children will love browsing the dazzling display cabinets full of pizza, cakes, pastries, macarons and gelati. Brunetti’s cafe is part of the renaissance of the city’s Little Italy, and while much of the business revolves around its ‘grab and go’ menu, there are also multi-generational families celebrating over polpette, parmigiana, pizza and pastries.

Address: 380 Lygon St, Carlton VIC 3053

Brunetti Carlton is a treasure trove of eats.

Grazeland

Situated next to Scienceworks and five kilometres from the CBD, Grazeland is billed as a ‘Playground for Foodies’, where a riot of colourful custom-built food stalls have created a thrilling place for lovers of good food to wander. Arrive by bike via the Hobsons Bay Coastal Trail and pinball around the precinct where you can pluck food from 50 vendors including Doughville (doughnuts), the Hooked Fish and Chipper, BBL Tea and Lucky Little Dumplings.

Address: 20 Booker St, Spotswood VIC 3015

Higher Ground

Higher Ground is a hip café that extends over six levels in a heritage-listed powerhouse on Little Bourke Street. The post-industrial space, all tall arched windows and exposed brick walls, is full of discerning Melburnians who you will find scattered around bars and tables, and draped over lounges and easy chairs. Children will find ricotta hotcakes or seasonal avocado with a Vegemite emulsion enticing propositions.

Address: 650 Little Bourke St, Melbourne VIC 3000

Higher Ground menu — Creative dishes at Higher Ground. (Image: Carmen Zammit)

Top Paddock

Glimpses of life around Richmond’s bustling Church Street are unavoidable when ensconced in Top Paddock. That’s perhaps part of the appeal as those threading past the space – all warm woods, floor-to-ceiling windows and wall panelling – become part of the performance art. Located near to the Botanic Gardens, families dining at Top Paddock will also enjoy the creativity on the plate on show in simple dishes such as buttermilk waffles and chilli scrambled eggs.

Address: 658 Church St, Richmond VIC 3121

Dine at Top Paddock with kids — Dine at Top Paddock.

Need tips, more detail or itinerary ideas tailored to you? Ask AT.

Tim Ho Wan

When Tim Ho Wan staked out a place in Melbourne’s CBD mid-2020, locals couldn’t be happier. While the original Michelin-starred institution was a humble hole in the wall in Hong Kong, the Melbourne version of the franchise is big, bright and boisterous. Here, you can order dim sum for breakfast, lunch and dinner in the no-frills space. We recommend sweet-and-savoury pork buns, prawn and pork dumplings, and spinach and shrimp dumplings to get the party started.

Address: 206 Bourke St, Melbourne VIC 3000

High Tea at The Langham

The Children’s High Teas at The Langham, Melbourne, are both satisfyingly decadent and innovative. The hotel, which runs a range of themed high teas throughout the year, offers a morning or afternoon tea which arrives on a three-tiered cake stand. Kids are encouraged to dress up and dig into treats that could range from rainbow cupcakes to mermaid doughnuts and unicorn cake pops.

Address: 1 Southgate Ave, Southbank VIC 3006

Where to stay in Melbourne with kids

Notel

This one is capital F fun: Notel is a collection of six sleek silver 1970s Airstream caravans assembled on an inner-city rooftop, and little ones can be accommodated in an extra bed or cot. Each trailer comes with an en suite, its own private deck, mini-bar with complimentary snacks, free wi-fi and Netflix via an iPad Pro, and an HP Sprocket Photo Printer to print out happy moments and selfies.

Inside the stay at Notel — Inside Notel’s 1970s Airstream caravans. (Image: Andrew Curtis)

SoYa Apartment Hotel

Your teens will adore SoYa (it stands for South Yarra, don’t you know), a 1960s apartment complex transformed into a boutique hotel of one- and two-bedroom apartments complete with kitchens, Netflix, funky mid-20th-century furniture (which you can buy), arresting wall murals, and even a pet-friendly room.

Milano Serviced Apartments

The kids may never want to go home after staying at this CBD property which boasts an indoor pool, private cinema, rooftop tennis court and rock climbing wall. You are going to love the bright and cheery apartments, laundry service, on-site supermarket and terrace barbecue area.

Arise Australia 108

Located in Melbourne’s bustling Southbank precinct, this ultra-modern tower juts into the sky offering expansive views from its family-friendly two-bedroom apartments. While in residence be sure to make the most of the facilities including an indoor pool, gym and private cinema.

Brady Hotels Jones Lane

This Little Lonsdale Street laneway property has 153 rooms spread out over 21 storeys, with great views through floor-to-ceiling windows. The rooms are all sleek and modern, and families can be accommodated in two interconnecting rooms that create a private wing. There’s a self-service laundry, casual dining and 24-hour reception.

Mantra on Russell

Enviably positioned on Russell Street in the heart of the city, rooms here include one- and two-bedroom apartments with all the facilities needed for a comfortable stay. The real selling point for the kids is the indoor pool where they can splash away rain, hail or shine.

Travelodge Hotel Melbourne Docklands

Leave your preconceived notions at the door and embrace this hotel’s bright and stylish interconnecting family rooms with kitchenette and two bathrooms, the free wi-fi, the lobby with its coffeehouse vibe (and grab-and-go café for morning caffeine hits) and the great position close to all the action.

What to do in Melbourne with kids

Festivals and events in Melbourne

Treasures of the Natural World, Melbourne Museum

12 June – 16 January

Let London come to you by heading to the Melbourne Museum to be transported to the Natural History Museum via some of its most fascinating treasures on display in Australia for the first time. This family-friendly exhibition invites visitors to journey through the natural world and marvel at more than 200 objects that changed the course of scientific history, including the rare Queen Alexandra’s Birdwing, the biggest butterfly in the world, and the Latrobe Nugget, one of the largest clusters of cubic gold crystals. Add on a screening of Museum Alive 3D at IMAX, where Sir David Attenborough leads you on a nocturnal adventure through London’s world-famous museum.

See Treasures of the Natural World at Melbourne Museum. (Credit: Queen Alexandra’s Birdwing Butterfly, The Trustees of the Natural History Museum, London)

Skywhales: Every Heart Sings, MPavilion

11 December

Earlier this year, two monumental sculptures by artist Patricia Piccinini in the form of hot-air balloons graced the skies above Canberra in a spectacle staged by the National Gallery of Australia. Now those two strangely compelling whale-like mammals, Skywhale and Skywhalepapa – together the Skywhale family – are on tour across the skies of Australia, arriving in Melbourne in December.

Don’t miss Skywhales: Every Heart Sings, MPavilion. (Image: Patricia Piccinini: Skywhalepapa, 2020; National Gallery of Australia, Canberra)

Harry Potter and The Cursed Child, Princess Theatre

Ongoing

Believe the hype. Our sources say that the Harry Potter and the Cursed Child play absolutely deserves the buzz it has generated but can’t spill any secrets about what exactly goes down in the five-hour spectacle in two parts. The first official Harry Potter story to be presented on stage, it finds the protagonist as a grown-up father of three. A fully immersive experience, the Princess Theatre has even undergone a makeover so that it looks and feels like it’s straight out of Hogwarts.

Harry Potter and The Cursed Child, Princess Theatre.

Disney: The Magic of Animation, ACMI

Until 17 October

Australia’s national museum of screen culture, ACMI, has had a huge revamp and the first big show off its newly polished ranks will spellbind the whole family. It celebrates nearly 100 years of Disney animation through more than 500 original artworks from the 1920s through to the present day, with classics ranging from Mickey Mouse’s first talkie Steamboat Willie to Bambi and all the way to Frozen.

Disney: The Magic of Animation exhibition — See Disney: The Magic of Animation at ACMI. (Credit: Artwork: Bambi, 1942, Disney Studio Artist, story sketch, coloured pencil and graphite on paper @Disney Enterprises)

Dates for the diary

From 9 June Frozen The Musical Her Majesty’s Theatre
18 June – 3 October Plans For The Planet: Olaf Breuning For Kids NGV International
28 June – 10 July The Melbourne Magic Festival Various venues
Until August 29 The Winter Village Federation Square

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Take a day trip from Melbourne

The Yarra Valley and Dandenong Ranges

The Yarra Valley and Dandenong Ranges combine to offer day-trippers a grab bag of quaint towns and stunning natural landscapes. Drop in at Healesville to visit Healesville Sanctuary to see our fabulous fauna up close, then head to the Rainforest Gallery/Donna Buang in Yarra Ranges National Park. When tummies start to rumble, visit Meletos Garden and Café in Coldstream for gyros overlooking the vineyard and then venture into the lush natural landscape of the Dandenong Ranges to ride the Puffing Billy Railway on your way back to the city.

Visit Meletos Garden and Café in Coldstream. (Image: Rob Blackburn)

Torquay

Driving the Great Ocean Road needs to be undertaken over a few days to do it justice, so in the case of a day trip head straight to one of its sparkling coastal towns. In Torquay, less than 1.5 hours from Melbourne, life revolves around the water so spend the day paddling at Torquay Front Beach or Cosy Corner. The kids can take surf lessons (try Torquay Surfing Academy) and you will all love the Australian National Surfing Museum ($25 for a family ticket).

Stop by the Australian National Surfing Museum,

Mornington Peninsula

The Mornington Peninsula is where Melburnians day-trip to in search of beaches, cute towns and great food and wine. There is so much to do here that you will need to plan ahead (or go back for a longer stay), but some suggestions include a visit to Mt Martha to see the colourful bathing huts, a tour of Pt Leo Estate’s Sculpture Park in Merricks, and zip lining at the Enchanted Adventure Garden in Arthur’s Seat.

Churchill Island

In spite of the fact it’s right next to Phillip Island, Churchill Island (the land of the Boon Wurrung /Bunurong people) is definitely a secret gem. Head here to wander the wide open spaces, do a spot of birdwatching and see the historical buildings dating back to European settlement in the 1850s. Spend the arvo at Churchill Island Heritage Farm watching displays of blacksmithing, cow-milking, sheep-shearing and whip-cracking, and enjoy a horse-drawn carriage ride, too.

Phillip Island

Just 90 minutes’ drive from the city, Phillip Island is famed for its penguins (32,000 versus just 10,387 people), its motorbike race and as the spot where the Hemsworth brothers spent their formative years. It’s also a great day trip with lots to explore, from visiting the Penguin Parade Visitor Centre and watching the little cuties shuffle ashore to wandering the treetop boardwalks to see koalas in their natural habitat at the Koala Conservation Reserve to spotting whales in season and spending time in the island’s townships of San Remo, Newhaven, Cape Woolamai and Cowes.

Ballarat

An attraction that combines dressing up and a sneaky history lesson is worth a 1.5-hour drive, ask any parent. Sovereign Hill in Ballarat recreates life at the height of the gold rush complete with hands-on gold panning and the chance to dress in Victorian-era school clothes.

Victoria’s ‘mussel capital’ is the source of exceptional shellfish used by top chefs far and wide. Step aboard a beautifully refurbished trawler to see how these plump and juicy bivalves are sustainably cultivated.

A curtain is slowly winched from the placid, teal waters just off Portarlington , like a floating garland beside our boat. The ropes heave with blue mussels, the star attraction of our tour. But as we reach to pluck our own, it’s quickly clear they’re not alone; a mass of weird and wonderful creatures has colonised the ropes, turning them into a living tapestry. ‘Fairy’ oysters, jelly-like sea squirts, and tiny, wriggling skeleton shrimp all inhabit this underwater ecosystem.

We prize our bivalve bounty from the ropes, and minutes later the mussels arrive split on a platter. The plump orange morsels are served raw, ready to be spritzed with wedges of lemon and a lick of chilli as we gaze out over the bay. They’re briny, tender and faintly sweet. “This wasn’t originally part of the tour,” explains Connie Trathen, who doubles as the boat’s cook, deckhand and guide. “But a chef [who came onboard] wanted to taste the mussels raw first, and it’s now become one of the key features.”

A humble trawler turned Hamptons-style dreamboat

inspecting bivalve bounty from the ropes — Inspecting the bounty. (Image: Visit Victoria/Hannyn Shiggins)

It’s a crisp, calm winter’s day, and the sun is pouring down upon Valerie, a restored Huon pine workhorse that was first launched in January 1980. In a previous life she trawled the turbulent Bass Strait. These days she takes jaunts into Port Phillip Bay under the helm of Lance Wiffen, a fourth-generation Bellarine farmer, and the owner of Portarlington Mussel Tours . While Lance has been involved in the fishing industry for 30-plus years, the company’s tour boat only debuted in 2023.

holding Portarlington mussels — See how these plump and juicy bivalves are sustainably cultivated.

It took more than three years to transform the former shark trawler into a dreamy, Hamptons-esque vessel, with little expense spared. Think muted green suede banquettes, white-washed walls, Breton-striped bench cushions, hardwood tables, bouquets of homegrown dahlias, and woollen blankets sourced from Waverley Mills, Australia’s oldest working textile mill. It’s intimate, too, welcoming 12 guests at most. And yet there’s nothing pretentious about the experience – just warm, down-to-earth Aussie hospitality.

As we cruise out, we crack open a bottle of local bubbles and nibble on the most beautifully curated cheese platter, adorned with seashells and grey saltbush picked from the water’s edge that very morning. Australasian gannets soar overhead, and I’m told it’s not uncommon for guests to spot the odd seal, pod of dolphins, or even the occasional little penguin.

The sustainable secret behind Victoria’s best mussels

blue mussels off Portarlington — Blue mussels sourced just off Portarlington.

Connie and Lance both extol the virtues of mussels. They’re delicious. A lean source of protein and packed with omega-3 fatty acids, vitamin B12, iron, selenium, and zinc. They’re cooked in a flash (Connie steams our fresh harvest with cider and onion jam). And they’re also widely regarded as one of the most sustainable foods in the world.

Portarlington mussels with lemon and chilli — Mussels served with lemon and chilli.

“Aquaculture is [often] seen as destructive, so a lot of our guests are really surprised about how environmentally friendly and sustainable our industry is,” Lance says. “[Our mussels] would filter 1.4 billion litres of water a day,” he adds, explaining how mussels remove excess nitrogen and phosphorus from the water. “And through biomineralisation, we lock carbon into mussel shells.”

a hand holding a Portarlington mussel — Mussels are a sustainable food.

Despite their glowing list of accolades, these molluscs have long been seen as the oysters’ poorer cousins. “It was a really slow start,” explains Lance, who says that in the early days of his career, “you could not sell mussels in Victoria”.

But word has slowly caught on. Chefs as globally acclaimed as Attica’s Ben Shewry and even René Redzepi of Noma, Denmark, have travelled to these very waters just to try the shellfish at the source, sharing only the highest praise, and using Lance’s mussels in their restaurants.

guests sampling Portarlington mussels onboard — Sampling the goods onboard. (Image: Visit Victoria/Hannyn Shiggins)

According to Lance there’s one obvious reason why the cool depths of Portarlington outshine other locations for mussel farming. “The water quality is second to none,” he says, noting how other regions are frequently rocked by harvest closures due to poor water quality. “We grow, without a doubt, some of the best shellfish in the world.” And with Lance’s bold claims backed up by some of the industry’s greatest names, perhaps it won’t be much longer until more Aussies uncover the appeal of Portarlington’s mussels.

A family guide to where to eat, stay and play in Melbourne

Your go-to guide to Melbourne’s best places to eat, sleep and top things to do with kids.

Where to eat in Melbourne with kids

HERO at ACMI

Lona Misa

400 Gradi