Melbourne sets the pace in hunt for food that's fun and fantastic
What's hot? When it comes to restaurants, Melbourne seems to have the answer. Three of the five restaurants leading The Australian's People's Choice Award to find Australia's hottest restaurant are from the Victorian capital: Hare & Grace in Melbourne's CBD, run by the charismatic Scottish expat Raymond Capaldi; Dandelion, the mod-Vietnamese diner in affluent Elwood; and Vue de Monde, the outrageously indulgent, sinfully expensive, fine diner at the top of the city's Rialto Towers, talisman of chef Shannon Bennett's mini-empire.
The People's Choice Award is part of The Weekend Australian Magazine's annual presentation of Australia's 50 Hottest Restaurants, to be published on July 28.
More than 10,000 votes have been registered for more than 5000 restaurants across the country, with one week of voting to go.
No 4 on the list is the ever-popular modern Sri-Lankan Flying Fish in Sydney's Pyrmont, run by SBS star chef Peter Kuruvita, while fifth place on the list is held by Adelaide's Bistro Dom, a city favourite and home to chef Duncan Welgemoed.
"The People's Choice Award is our tilt at democracy," says food editor Necia Wilden. "It's a great bit of reader engagement and has proven to have a lot of traction on Twitter. But the rest of the award categories are about critical opinion, not popular."
Wilden, myself as The Australian's restaurant critic, and The Daily Telegraph's Simon Thomsen are behind the decisions.
Among the pronouncements accompanying this year's list are Australia's Hottest Chef, Hottest Restaurant nationally and by state, Hottest Classic, Hottest Design, Hottest Dish, Hottest Value, Hottest Service and Hottest Wine Experience.
"Our list and our awards are very much targeted at people who go out to restaurants because they love eating out," Wilden says. "We're not trying to rate the 50 'best' restaurants in the country. We see that as a relatively futile, meaningless pursuit."
Wilden defines "hot" as a must-visit experience for food lovers who get a kick out of the whole restaurant experience, "that list we all pass around to each other about what are the great, defining, eating-out experiences".
These were "the ones with great culinary integrity, and often innovation, but also a sense of fun and genuine hospitality too".
To make it on to the list restaurants have to be outstanding in two areas: food and fun.
"It's not just about novelty," Wilden says. "Older, established restaurants that we feel keep things fresh and never sit on their laurels are definitely included.
"Not everyone wants loud, Gen Y restaurants, and we get that."
Source: The Australian, 16 June 2012
