The Top 6 Places to Eat Near Caretaker's Cottage
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Rank 1. Meatmaiden
Steakhouse
A basement steakhouse on Little Collins that feels like Melbourne decided to take meat seriously without taking itself too seriously. The kitchen runs an ironbark-fired smoker and a custom grill, working through Australian cuts aged with real patience before anything hits the flame. The room is dark and industrial, full of people who came hungry and ordered accordingly. Cool without trying, which is honestly the hardest thing to pull off.
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Rank 2. Grill Americano
Grill Italian
Marble, leather, brass, and an open fire that means business: Grill Americano is a proper grill restaurant where Italian hospitality meets Australian beef cooked over wood, and the room feels like a special occasion even when it isn't. The crowd leans dressed-up and confident, the kind of people who ordered before you sat down. It landed on the World's 101 Best Steak Restaurants list, and that alone tells you the kitchen takes the meat seriously.
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Rank 3. Gimlet
Steakhouse Cocktail Bar
Gimlet is a proper grown-up steakhouse inside a grand old room on Russell Street, and it pulls off the trick of feeling genuinely glamorous without making you feel underdressed. The open fire grill drives the kitchen, turning dry-aged Australian beef into something quietly serious. Andrew McConnell runs the show, so expect a wine list that earns its length and service that's warm without hovering. The crowd dresses up a little, and it shows.
- World's 101 Best #62 · World's Best Steak Restaurants
- Spirited Awards 2026 · Regional Top 10 Honoree · Best International Restaurant Bar – APAC
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South Yarra's answer to the question of what Australian cooking actually is, Matilda is a serious fire-led restaurant where open coals do the heavy lifting and the kitchen mostly gets out of the way. Dry-aged beef cooked over flame is the main event, and it earns it. The room is warm timbers and quiet confidence, filled with people who dress well and mean business. It landed on the World's Best Steak Restaurants list, so the stakes are not low.
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Rank 5. Steer Dining Room
Steakhouse
South Yarra's most serious steakhouse is one for the people who think a wagyu A5 is a reason to dress up and make a reservation. The room is sleek and warmly lit, the kind of place that suits a celebration without demanding one. The wagyu program is the real reason you're here, sourced and aged with a dedication that borders on obsessive. The crowd tends to know exactly what they ordered and how they wanted it cooked.
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Rank 6. Victor Churchill
Steakhouse
Part butcher shop, part restaurant, Victor Churchill in Armadale is one of the more theatrical places to eat meat in Australia, ranking among the world's best steak restaurants. The glass-walled dry-ageing chambers display hanging cuts like gallery pieces, and the timber-and-bronze room pulls a well-dressed crowd who know their breeds. The wine list is genuinely serious. Consistency has wobbled lately, but the raw materials are exceptional.