Meat in Melbourne

Cured meat, smoked meat, dry-aged meat, different cuts and rare breeds of meat – no longer content to simply eat whatever is served up on our plate, carnivores are now keen to understand the how, what, why, when and where of their menu choice. A spate of specialist charcuteries and eateries have opened up to accommodate Melbourne’s latest meaty food obsession.

Two Little Pigs Charcuterie and Grind On Brunswick’s multicultural Sydney Road, this café offers any combination of charcuterie platter (as long as it’s from the pig) with house-made bread and quality specialty coffee. The pork-biased café was one of the first to embrace the meat trend, but with items such as hot jam doughcakes with bacon ice-cream on the menu, it’s still on the must-do and then do-again breakfast/brunch list. 146 Sydney Road, Brunswick, ph: +613 9939 4042

The French Milkbar An elegant French-style charcuterie that offers classic French fare such as duck á l’orange and french onion soup as well as platters packed with flavours of France. Páté, rilletes, terrine, black pudding, it’s all here. Owner, chef and cured meat specialist Anthony Humphries, previously from Seamstress in the city, has set up his new enterprise in the heart of increasingly thriving East Brunswick. Special events will be a regular on the menu. 153 Weston Street, East Brunswick, ph: +613 9079 6496

Backstreet Eating Down one of Fitzroy’s side streets, Backstreet has the feel of a neighbourhood café with a menu that features house-cured meats like bresaola (air-dried beef) and kassler (cured pork) which hang decoratively in the downstairs drying / function room. The menu is a combination of delicious seasonal dishes and irresistible breakfast and brunch options.  The provedore store specialises in housemade charcuterie with workshops available for amateur cooks. All the butchery is done in house using the ‘nose to tail’ idealogy. 152 Kerr Street,  Fitzroy, ph: +61 3 9417 1212

Meatmaiden Descending into the dark basement of Meatmaiden in the middle of  glorious Melbourne day may feel wrong somehow at first, but pull up a booth and embrace the slightly Gothic nature of this cool laneway restaurant and be treated to brisket dry-aged for 40 days for ‘maximum flavour’ and Gippsland pasture-fed beef short-rib from the custom built smokers. There is also a mouthwatering selection of accompaniments like lobster mac ‘n’ cheese and spring onion mash and gravy, plus specialty bourbon and craft beer matching. The Basement, 195 Little Collins Street, Melbourne, ph: 03 9078 7747

Meatmother is the sister restaurant to Meatmaiden but located in the increasingly exciting Richmond hotspot, Swan Street. Meatmother has a focus on smoked meat with meat smoked fresh every day over the 12 hours required to get it just right. It features a similar sort of menu to its city centre counterpart, but will a few additions such as hot link (spicy sausages) and desserts – peanut butter cheesecake! 167 Swan Street, Richmond, +613 9041 5393

Boilermaker House Set to open in the first week of June, this new venture from Melbourne’s speakeasy style bar, Eau De Vie will have blues vibe with a four metre long marble bar featuring 25 cured meats and 30 cheeses to try. A city centre bar with benefits, Boilermaker is also offering 12 rotating tap beers and 700 malt whiskeys. The focus will be on the service and style that the owners have become known for. 209–211 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne

Meatsmith Prolific Melbourne restaurateur Andrew McConnell has cut out the middle man, so to speak, and is in the process of setting up his own specialist butchery and wine shop, Meatsmith, in Smith Street, Fitzroy, with Troy Wheeler – formerly of respected Toorak butchery Peter Bouchier. 273 Smith Street, Fitzroy, ph: +613 9419 4888

Other outlets for home chefs wanting to cook up their own meaty meal include Largo Butchers in Fitzroy, Jonathan’s in Collingwood, and specialist butchers in Prahran Market, South Melbourne Market and Queen Victoria Market.