Melbourne’s top five must-try dishes of 2022

The cacio and pepe toastie from The Hardware Club was not just the most popular must-try dish of 2022, but also our favourite. If you mix pecorino cheese, taleggio and black pepper, put it between bread, crumb the sandwich in panko, deep fry it and shower with pecorino Romano – you’ve got a must-try dish not just for 2022, but for all time!

Where to get it: The Hardware Club, Upstairs 43 Hardware Lane, Melbourne VIC 3000 Book it here
Read the full story: Must-try dish: One for the cheese lovers

We’re all about the delicious here at Dish Cult, sometimes at the expense of, well, health, but every so often the stars align and you get a dish that is both. Enter the salmon salad soba from Shimbashi. At its heart is the most beautiful soba made in-house daily from freshly-ground Tasmanian buckwheat. Add perfectly seared salmon, a yuzu dressing, crisp lotus root chips and a poached egg and this is a dish that will have you feeling all zen, in the best way.

Where to get it: Shimbashi Northcote, 257 High St, Northcote VIC 3070
Read the full story: Must-try dish: Noodles that give you life

Travel is a pain in the backside these days but if you are missing the hawker centres of Singapore, there’s a much easier way to taste the flavours of that renowned foodie city. Just order the singa pura laksa with soft shell crab at Singa Pura King of Hawkers. Made with an optimum blend of spices, the taste and texture will transport you to Singapore without leaving inner city Abbotsford. Much cheaper than a flight too!

Where to get it: Singa Pura King of Hawkers, 3/409 Victoria St, Abbotsford VIC 3067
Read the full story: Must-try dish: A spicy trip to Singapore

Our favourite lobster roll in Melbourne can be bought from a little fishing boat moored at Williamstown’s Gem Pier. Gently steamed and hand picked Southern rock lobster is stuffed into a freshly baked roll with crisp lettuce and topped with a deliciously tangy seafood sauce. With a crack of black pepper, this is a bargain of a lobster roll and well worth the trip to picturesque Williamstown.

Where to get it: Gem Pier Seafood, 1 Syme St, Williamstown VIC 3016
Read the full story: Must-try dish: Roll with it

We called the jamon croqueta at Bar Lourinhã the “perfect mouthful” when we originally declared them a must-try dish back in March. We 100 per cent stand by that assessment. Whichever croqueta is on the menu at this Melbourne institution – it changes regularly – we guarantee you will not want your money back. You will just want more croqueta!

Where to get it: Bar Lourinhã, 37 Little Collins Street, Melbourne VIC 3000
Read the full story: Must-try dish: A snack full of Spanish flair