Bringing thousands of new seats to Melbourne, on sale now.
New Year Street Feasts, presented by the City of Melbourne, the Victorian Government and Melbourne Food & Wine Festival, is a New Year celebration that will bring the city’s streets to life with open-air dining unlike anything Australia has seen before, with tickets on sale now.
Eleven outdoor dining precincts created by the City of Melbourne and Melbourne Food & Wine Festival will set the stage for thousands of people to ring in the New Year at their favourite restaurants with friends and family across two days.
From the Paris end of Little Collins Street right through to Hardware Lane and beyond, each precinct will bring together restaurants and bars from the surrounding streets and lanes, offering diners more than 50 premium venues to enjoy on 31 December and 1 January. The precincts are:
• Little Bourke Street
• Little Collins Street
• AC/DC Lane
• Hardware Lane
• Russell Street
• Spring Street
• Flinders Lane
• Lonsdale Street
• Market Lane
• Domain Road
• Docklands
Some of Melbourne’s best-loved venues are involved, including Bar Margaux, Bar Saracen, Flower Drum, Hazel, Izakaya Den, Lee Ho Fook and Tipo 00. The program has something for everyone: Japanese hot dogs, beers and cocktails at Hihou; a family-friendly menu of lasagne and tiramisu at Pellegrini’s; a suckling pig bo ssäm at Supernormal; and a $1,000 all-inclusive menu with premium wine and flowers to take home at Cecconi’s.
The New Year Street Feasts initiative takes some of its cues from the piazzas and squares of Europe, opening up precincts all over the City of Melbourne, including some of the city’s most popular eat streets, such as Flinders Lane and Little Bourke Street.
“Melburnians eat and drink like nowhere else in the world,” said Anthea Loucas Bosha, CEO of Food + Wine Victoria, the not-for-profit organisation behind Melbourne Food & Wine Festival.
“We’re encouraging revellers to book a table and come into the city to visit a favourite restaurant or try somewhere new. We have a long history of working with the city’s talented operators, and we’ve loved every minute of putting this extraordinary program together. With the City of Melbourne, we’ve been able to add thousands of extra restaurant seats across the city for the two-day event.”
“This has been an incredibly tough year and it’s important that we can say goodbye to 2020 and look forward to a more positive 2021,” the Lord Mayor said.
“We are encouraging everyone to support Melbourne’s wonderful cafés, bars and restaurants by taking part in the Street Feasts program, which will help keep cash registers ringing and Melburnians in jobs.
“Bring your friends and family and book into your favourite city venue to celebrate New Year’s Eve in a COVID-safe way that supports local businesses.”
New Year Street Feasts is being delivered by the Victorian Government and the City of Melbourne through the $100 million Melbourne City Recovery Fund.
Bookings for restaurants are now open, with seats available via mfwf.com.au. Booking New Year Street Feasts in advance is essential to keep the celebrations running smoothly and safely. More details on travel to and from the city will be released in the coming weeks.
The full program is available at mfwf.com.au; follow MFWF on Instagram at @melbfoodandwine for daily updates.