At the end of the night,
our dessert was whipped up
through an atmospheric cloud
EXPLORE
PhotographsJessica-Belle Greer, Getty Images and Visit VictoriaA TASTE OF HISTORY
Cuisines from 70-plus countries pepper the melting
pot that is Melbourne. With so much on the menu, it
can be hard to commit, but the one place you must
make a reservation at is Dinner by Heston Blumenthal.
Situated in Southbank, with a view of the giant re
throwers atop the Crown Towers casino, the
restaurant has a mythical status among the city’s
foodie community. It’s the celebrity chef’s only
restaurant outside of London and has been centuries
in the making – with every dish based on an ancient
recipe from Britain or Australia.
We started with the Cocktail Flight experience – a
taster of three themed cocktails at the bar reserved
for dinner guests only. We then moved on to a buttery
leather booth and indulged in a three-course culinary
adventure, where we were served salamagundy [a
meat and vegetable salad] inspired by the 1720s, a
cauli ower recipe that rst cropped up in 1660 and a
roast sh dish that’s been served since circa 1400 – all
updated with Heston’s thoroughly modern air.
With several surprises along the way, time seems to
stand still at your table – in fact, my group lost track of
it and stayed for four hours. At the end of the night,
a liquid nitrogen ice-cream cart levitated over to us
and we watched our choice of dessert be whipped up
through an atmospheric cloud. We were told thistreat was rst dreamed up 118 years ago by the
Victorian period’s ‘Queen of Ices’ Agnes Marshall,
who wrote about the potential of serving custard ice
this way for a creamier and more exciting dessert.
As the liquid wasn’t readily available back then,
she wasn’t able to put it into practice, but the staff
at Dinner take great pride in being able to continue
her legacy.SWEET STAY
Walking into the Hotel Lindrum feels as
comfortable as walking into your own (surprisingly
tidy and well-appointed) home after a long day. As
part of the MGallery by So tel boutique
accommodation group, it prides itself on its personal
service. You’re greeted warmly as you come through
the thick wooden front door on central Flinders
Street. The Romanesque-revival building was
commissioned by the Grif ths Brothers tea merchants
in the 1900s and as a nod to this, a welcome tea is
always brewing at the front desk for guests.
More than 80% of people checking into MGallery’s
hotels are women and the group has begun its
Inspired by Her initiative to provide exactly what we
want. Having conducted their own study, it has found
that 86% of female travellers want a hospitality
programme designed speci cally for them, and 73%
realise they’ve forgotten to pack an essential item
when they get to their destination. The result of the
latter nding is a personally curated gift pack lled
with essential self-care products as well
as some indulgences. Mine included organic bath
salts, sleep tea and a jar of artisanal macarons, which
I gured I’d de nitely earned after wandering this
wonderful city dawn till dusk.
*146 NEXT / SEPTEMBER 2019