Nine Greek restaurants have made the cut in The Age Good Food Guide 2016, Victoria’s premier dining guide.
The Annual Good Food Guide Awards were announced at a glamorous black-tie gathering of Melbourne’s leading chefs, restaurateurs and industry figures at the Plaza Ballroom on Monday night.
As Melbourne’s increasingly sophisticated and competitive restaurant scene continues to raise the bar, this year saw newcomers scooping the awards and many top restaurants and industry stalwarts slip in the rankings.
Greek entries were dominated once again by George Calombaris and the Made Establishment restaurant stable, whose flagship restaurant, The Press Club, was the top-scoring Greek (or Greek-influenced) restaurant.
The celebrity chef’s Flinders St fine diner won a coveted second hat after receiving a score of 16.5/20 (up from 15.5/20 last year), cementing its place as one of the city’s top gastronomic experiences.
Its humbler, noisier next-door neighbour, Gazi, slipped to 13.5/20, while Hellenic Republic in Brunswick and Kew both scored 14/20.
The new Greek player in this year’s guide was Elyros, Camberwell’s upscale Cretan-themed restaurant, which made an impressive debut with 14/20 in its first year.
It’s no surprise given the pedigree of the team behind Elyros, where Angie Giannakodakis has joined forces with Guy Holder, her partner at Carlton’s one-hat Epocha and former Epocha manager Disa Dimitrakakis.
Piraeus Blues in Fitzroy and Philhellene in Moonee Ponds continue to fly the flag for inner-city Greek eateries, while the veteran Tahlimanidis brothers Kosta and Chris maintain a tight hold on their hats for popular coastal restaurants A La Greque (Aireys Inlet) and Chris’s Beacon Point (Apollo Bay).
“Greek restaurants seemed to go through a slump for a few years, but the signs are looking much more positive now, with places like Elyros focusing on a specific Greek cuisine and restaurants paying more attention to the quality of the ingredients,” says Good Food Guide editor Roslyn Grundy.
This year’s biggest winner was Richmond Japanese Minamishima, which in its first year picked up two hats and won Restaurant of the Year and the Service Excellence Award. Best New Restaurant went to another newcomer, city pasta bar Tipo 00, co-owned by ex-Vue de Monde chef Andreas Papadakis.
The Age Good Food Guide 2016 will be available for $10 with The Saturday Age on Saturday 26 September from participating newsagents and supermarkets while stocks last or at selected bookshops and online at theageshop.com.au/agegfg2016 for $24.99. #goodfoodguide
The Age Good Food Guide Top Greek Restaurants 2016
The Press Club 16.5/20
A La Grecque 15/20
Chris’s Beacon Point 15/20
Elyros 14/20
Hellenic Republic (Kew and Brunswick East) 14/20
Gazi 13.5/20
Piraeus Blues 13/20
Philhellene 12.5/20
