“What good new restaurants should I try?”
Broadsheet’s editors field this question, or a variation on it, almost every day. While we’d just as soon recommend one of Perth’s straight-up best restaurants or a long-standing institution, the pull of a hot new place is hard to deny.
So here it is: our edit of the best new restaurants in Perth from the past 12 months, updated monthly. Some of these places are redefining the way we eat and will go on to become classics. Others will be shorter lived. Either way, these are the spots we’re enjoying eating and drinking at right now.
Related Pages:
Best Restaurants in Perth
Best Restaurants in Perth’s CBD
Best New Bars in Perth
Best New Cafes in Perth
Wagyu bresaola, handmade pasta, lo-fi wines and the “Freo doctor” make a charming combo at this wine bar, which is from the team behind No Mafia and Balthazar.
Sharp food complements the riotous cocktail menu at this modern Asian restaurant, set in the former Funtastico site on Rokeby Road. Go for cured kingfish spring rolls, a prawn toast spinoff and plump Abrolhos Island scallops.
Where “eats meet art”, this beachside restaurant and gallery space serves it all up. Featuring a monthly rotation art gallery supporting emerging local artists, the venue is also a fully-licensed restaurant open for all-day dining.
A cosy neighbourhood wine bar bringing beautiful wines and Italian flavours to leafy south-east Perth. Whether you perch in the al fresco area or inside the cosy dining room, you’re in for house-made pastas and wine-friendly snacks by an ex-Pogo head chef.
Terrines, tartines and afternoons on the terrace: La Lune is East Freo’s answer to the casual neighbourhood bistros of Paris and Manhattan. The all-day menu sticks to familiar Gallic cooking, served from morning till late in a fun dining room with plenty of yesteryear flourishes.
Created by a veteran publican, this sprawling bar, kitchen and micro-distillery perched atop Karrinyup Shopping Centre has an Asian-inspired menu, ocean views and a knack for bringing the outdoors in.
Imagined by two hospitality pros and designed by one of WA’s most polished architects, this sleek 120-person coastal destination is a summer hotspot. Its venue brings sharp design, big-flavoured small plates and thoughtful drinks to Leighton Beach.
Act fast to snap up one of the restaurant’s 16 seats and enjoy golden prawn-and-pork fritters, electrifying green papaya salad, unctuous massaman curry and other Thai classics.
Nab a seat in the sleekly designed bar, or out on the footpath, and tuck into left-field wines, snappy cocktails and small plates licked with smoke and char.
This pitch-perfect homage to Japanese kissatens (coffee shops) serves homely curries, soups, hotpot and okonomiyaki, plus matcha cheesecakes, hojicha crème caramels, and – best of all – Japanese-style breakfasts.
The menu at this clandestine restaurant draws on ingredients and ideas from “anytime, anywhere, anything”. Book in at the intimate chef’s counter for an exclusive degustation, or choose the cosy dining room for familiar flavours remixed with smarts and attention to detail.
At this versatile spot, you can sit at the bar and pick from the tome-like wine list or book in for a full dinner of generously portioned European plates.
An intimate 55-seater neighbourhood wine bar serving up Mediterranean small plates, teamed with an artfully designed drinks menu that includes plenty of non-alcoholic options.
French wines dominate the cellar at this Parisian-inspired bar. The kitchen bangs out sharp bistro-style plates and charcuterie, which are best enjoyed in the breezy courtyard planted with olive trees.
Enjoy outstanding Middle Eastern flavours in an unlikely location. The falafels are fried to order based on a recipe from the founder’s Yemeni grandmother and made in-house, just like the hummus and tahini.
Find one of Perth’s best Indonesian eateries in a major shopping centre. Tuck into their high-definition Indonesian curries, handmade noodles, vegan and vegetarian plates, and spread of Indonesian sweets.
A pretty good (read: great) pizza bar next to Northbridge’s Ruin Bar. Get your pizza hit by the pie or slice and wash it down with an impressive array of tap and packaged beers. The resident beer vending machine is a novelty you won’t tire of.
This unpretentious dining room and bar is full of colour, imaginative Italian cooking, wallet-friendly glasses of “fancy goon” and Sunday sessions that are all about bringing people together.
A buzzing Greek-style diner from the team behind Vinotto. Sit in the olive tree-lined courtyard and start off with a shot of ouzo, either neat or diluted. Then, order share-friendly plates of sour cherry dolmades, lamb meatballs and charcoal-grilled meats.
From comfort food to big-night-out thrills, these are the city’s best places to eat.
The cafes, restaurants and bars staying open for the Easter long weekend.
Here's where we're going for brunch right now.