Readers’ Choice 2025: 5 of Australia’s Best Pub Food, Mediterranean, Steak, Café & Italian Winners

Readers’ Choice 2025 celebrates the venues Australians return to when cravings hit and good company calls. From heritage pubs by the river to beachside Mediterranean terraces, from hushed CBD steakhouses to regional cafés that slide into wine-bar twilight, these winners share a knack for making guests feel instantly at home.

Expect generous plates, confident cooking and spaces tuned for lingering - whether you’re chasing a pre-game parma, a sunset seafood spread, or pasta worth the drive. It’s a snapshot of flavours and atmospheres that defined dining this year, nationwide. Pull up a chair, follow our trail and meet the crowd favourites now.

Anchoring Hare Street a short stroll from Echuca’s port, the Caledonian Hotel - the Cal to locals - blends heritage pub soul with modern comfort. High ceilings and timber tones echo its story. Inside, a warm bar with Winter fires invites lingering yarns, while out back a shaded beer garden catches the river-town breeze.

 

The bistro serves generous Australian fare from lunch to late and the sports bar keeps every game in sight on big screens. For overnighters, upstairs motel suites are bright and practical, with kitchenettes and easy parking. It’s a friendly base for Moama-Echuca weekends, equal parts local hangout and traveller haven.

Set on the edge of Bulcock Beach, Acqua Restaurant & Bar feels like Caloundra on holiday mode. Breezy, light-washed interiors open to a terrace with glassy views over Pumicestone Passage and Bribie Island. The menu leans Mediterranean with a Sunshine Coast accent: just-shucked seafood, premium steaks, bright salads and share plates made for sunset grazing.

 

Cocktails are crisp and citrusy, wines well chosen and coffee mornings roll into long lunches. Service stays relaxed but switched-on, so dates, families and groups all linger happily. After dark, lights turn every table cinematic, truly.

A Hereford Beefstouw in Melbourne’s CBD feels like a calm, wood-toned refuge from the city’s rush. Low lighting glows over polished tables and the room hums with quiet confidence. The menu leans into Danish steakhouse tradition: carefully aged beef, char-kissed and sliced to show off its marbling, with buttery potatoes, crisp salads and classic sauces.

 

Service is attentive and unhurried, stepping in when needed and fading back when not. You leave with smoky aromas on your coat and the sense you’ve dined somewhere quietly assured. Tucked below street level, it invites lingering conversations and celebrates steak as a simple ritual.

Bitter Suite Cafe and Wine Bar in Gunnedah is a bright, eclectic hideaway where colour, art and fresh aromas spill onto Conadilly Street. By day it’s a wholefoods café, humming with locals over silky coffee, wholesome breakfasts and produce-driven plates that feel straight from the paddock.

 

As the afternoon rolls in, the room shifts into wine-bar mode: shared dishes, playful tapas and easy conversation under warm lights and mismatched couches. Staff greet you like a regular, even on your first visit and the relaxed vibe makes it a natural place to linger for live music nights and slow, smiling catch-ups.

Borchelli Ristorante in Bendigo is a cosy, brick-walled Italian retreat that balances old-school warmth with a polished edge. Candlelight bounces off red and white checked tablecloths and the room fills with the comforting scent of garlic, wine and slow-simmered sauces.

 

The kitchen leans classic: silky pasta with seafood, rich ragus and crisp-edged pizzas from a fierce oven, all finished with a restrained, confident hand. Dishes arrive generous but composed, made for sharing and lingering. Staff greet you like locals, guiding courses smoothly, while a small bar glints near the entrance and laughter rises gently, making every visit feel unhurried.