Australia's Culinary Engine Room
1. London chef Gordon Ramsay described Melbourne’s restaurants as Australia’s “culinary engine room”. (Source: The Australian Financial Review, July 2005) The International Herald Tribune described Melbourne as offering a “culinary feast in which fresh local ingredients are prepared in many different ways”. (Source: The International Herald Tribune)
2. Melbourne is a microcosm of international cuisine and its more than 3,000 restaurants prepare traditional and exotic dishes from around the world. (Source: www.law.unimelb.edu.au/)
3. The Queen Victoria Market is famous as the largest and oldest market in the Southern Hemisphere. Opened in 1878, its historic buildings are a natural heritage site and many of the shops from which the traders operate today, are unchanged from days gone by. The Dairy Hall is perhaps the best known with its distinctive shop fronts and its multicultural offerings in the 38 delicatessens that lie within its walls. (Source: www3.visitvictoria.com)
4. Melbourne has a number of distinct cultural and culinary precincts in and around the CBD. There is a Greek precinct at the top end of Lonsdale Street where there are restaurants and cake shops specialising in Greek specialties. An even bigger precinct is the Italian one in Lygon Street Carlton with Italian restaurants, delicatessens and shops selling Italian wines. Victoria Street, Richmond, is home to the Vietnamese precinct and Little Bourke Street is home to Chinatown which has a wonderful collection of Chinese restaurants. (Source: www.newcomersnetwork.com)
5. More than 7 million domestic food and wine visitors come to Victoria each year and winery tourism brings in around $390 million a year into the state. (Source: Tourism Victoria)
6. Melbourne's surrounds are unique: five winegrowing regions and over 100 wineries within 90 minutes of the city. (Source: www.australia.com)  |
