New Openings in Melbourne — March 2026
Melbourne opens restaurants the way other cities open envelopes — constantly, obsessively, and with no sign of slowing down. In early 2026 alone, we’ve seen an Andrew McConnell European grill announced, Con Christopoulos take over half of Collins Street, a Lune mega-venue in the works, and a Carnation Canteen alum convert a legendary Rathdowne Street bar into something entirely new.
This isn’t a comprehensive list of every restaurant that’s opened in the last three months. It’s the ones that are actually worth your time, your money, and the reservation effort. We’ve been to most of them. The ones we haven’t, we’ve checked through people we trust — because Melburnians talk, and the hospo grapevine is faster than any food journalist.
Last updated: 17 March 2026 | Melbourne Vibe Score: 81/100 🟢
1. Roma and Sergio’s — CBD
The vibe: Con Christopoulos (Siglo, Kafeneion, Angel Music Bar) goes full Italian with two venues at 120 Collins Street — a trattoria and a bar-record store hybrid. This is the opening Melbourne’s been waiting for.
Con Christopoulos is responsible for some of Melbourne’s most iconic venues, and his new double-header at 120 Collins Street might be his most ambitious move yet. Roma is the trattoria — traditional Italian food executed with the same attention to detail that makes Siglo Melbourne’s best bar snack experience. Matt Wilkinson (Pope Joan co-founder) joins as chef and co-owner, which means the kitchen has serious pedigree. Sergio’s next door is a bar and record store named for Sergio Leone, with the vinyl side run by Greg Molinaro of Abbotsford’s Hub 301. Two venues, one address, and the kind of dual-purpose concept that makes a Saturday night feel like an event.
Where: 120 Collins Street, CBD Expected opening: Mid-2026 Budget estimate: $40–$70 per person (based on Christopoulos’s other venues) Insider tip: Collins Street between Bourke and Spring is undergoing a hospitality renaissance right now. Between this, Gimlet, and the other high-end openings, it’s becoming the strip to watch.
2. Cote Basque — CBD
The vibe: Andrew McConnell’s first new Melbourne restaurant since Gimlet. A European grill inspired by the Basque coast, designed by the team behind Apollo Inn. This is the big one.
Andrew McConnell doesn’t open restaurants often, and when he does, they tend to reshape their category. Gimlet at Cavendish House reinvented the CBD brasserie. Now, with partner Jo McGann, he’s opening Cote Basque at 25 Crossley Street — a European grill drawing on Basque Coast flavours. The design is by Vince Alafaci and Caroline Choker of Acme (the same firm behind Gimlet and Apollo Inn), so expect the same attention to atmosphere that makes McConnell’s venues feel effortless despite being meticulously planned. This is expected to open in winter 2026, which means it’ll be one of the year’s biggest launches.
Where: 25 Crossley Street, CBD Expected opening: Winter 2026 Budget estimate: $80–$150 per person (McConnell venues don’t come cheap, but they deliver) Insider tip: Crossley Street is a tiny laneway behind Bourke Street that’s quietly becoming Melbourne’s most exciting dining address. McConnell clearly knows something the rest of the city is about to find out.
3. Bar Carnation — Carlton North
The vibe: Audrey Shaw (Carnation Canteen) takes over the original Geralds Bar space on Rathdowne Street. Aperitivo snacks, pasta, steak frites, and a bottle shop in the back room.
This one’s personal for Carlton North locals. Geralds Bar at 386 Rathdowne Street was an institution — the kind of neighbourhood bar where the owner knew your name and the wine list was written on a chalkboard. When Gerald Diffey offered the space to Audrey Shaw, chef-patron of Carnation Canteen (one of Carlton North’s best restaurants), she couldn’t say no. Bar Carnation keeps the footprint of the original bar largely intact, which means the same welcoming room with a new menu that leans into aperitivo-style snacks, seasonal pasta, and steak frites. The big change: the back room becomes a bottle shop with a marble tasting bench and a six-door fridge. This means you can eat at the bar, drink a glass of something you liked, and buy the bottle to take home. Smart.
Where: 386 Rathdowne Street, Carlton North Expected opening: Early 2026 (possibly open already) Budget estimate: $30–$60 per person for food and a couple of drinks Insider tip: The daily specials blackboard will mirror Carnation Canteen’s commitment to seasonality. Check it every time — Shaw’s seasonal specials are often the best thing on the menu.
4. Daybaker — Abbotsford
The vibe: A Tivoli Road Bakery alum and former Small Batch pastry chef opens a dedicated bakery-café in Abbotsford. Sourdough, laminated pastries, and the kind of morning light that makes everything taste better.
Charlie Duffy has quietly built one of Melbourne’s most respected pastry CVs — Tivoli Road Bakery in South Melbourne, then overseeing pastries at Small Batch in Collingwood. Now she’s going solo with Daybaker in Abbotsford. The concept is focused: proper sourdough bread, laminated croissants and danishes, seasonal tarts, and a tight café menu built around the bread. This is not a “bread is life” Instagram concept. It’s a genuine baker opening a genuine bakery. The location in Abbotsford puts it close enough to the CBD for a lunch-break pastry run but deep enough in the inner east to attract locals who’ve been waiting for a proper bakery in the area.
Where: Abbotsford Expected opening: Early 2026 Budget estimate: $5–$18 (pastries and coffee) Insider tip: Arrive before 9am on weekends. Melbourne bakeries with this level of pedigree sell out of croissants by mid-morning, and you don’t want to be the person asking “do you have any plain ones left?” at 10:30. You already know the answer.
5. Florentino Dining Room (Relaunch) — CBD
The vibe: Grossi’s Florentino enters a new era at 80 Bourke Street with a restructured three-part precinct: the Dining Room, the Cellar Bar, and a new Café Florentino.
Grossi’s Florentino has been one of Melbourne’s most revered Italian restaurants for decades, and the 2026 relaunch keeps the heritage while refreshing the format. The 80 Bourke Street address is now a three-venue precinct. The Florentino Dining Room offers three-, five-, and seven-course menus with house-made pastas, seasonal Italian interpretations, and longstanding desserts like chocolate soufflé and tiramisu made with Melbourne-based Cuvée Chocolate. Next door, Café Florentino (formerly Grossi Grill) has returned to its original name and now serves a Tuscan-inspired à la carte menu from a wood-fired grill and Josper oven. The centrepiece? A bistecca alla Fiorentina that’s been a Melbourne institution for longer than some of its diners have been alive. The Cellar Bar remains the Cellar Bar — a cocktail-and-wine institution below street level.
Where: 80 Bourke Street, CBD Status: Now open Budget estimate: $60–$120 per person (Dining Room), $35–$55 (Café Florentino) Insider tip: Café Florentino is the play for a long lunch that doesn’t require a second mortgage. The wood-fired grill menu at lunch prices is one of the CBD’s best-kept secrets. Go on a weekday and you’ll likely get a table without a booking.
6. The Gilson Team’s New Venue — CBD/Prahran
The vibe: James McBride and Marc Gurman (the Gilson) are opening another venue in 2026. Details are still emerging, but if it’s anything like the Gilson, expect excellent cocktails and a room designed for lingering.
The Gilson on Greville Street in Prahran has become one of Melbourne’s most consistently good bars — the kind of place where the cocktails are inventive, the staff are competent, and the room feels special without trying too hard. McBride and Gurman are keeping the details of their new venue close to their chests, but early reports suggest it’s somewhere in the CBD or Prahran orbit. When the Gilson team opens something, Melbourne’s bar community pays attention. We’ll update this when the venue and location are confirmed.
Where: TBC (likely CBD or Prahran) Expected opening: 2026 Budget estimate: $20–$40 per person for drinks and snacks Insider tip: Follow the Gilson’s Instagram for hints. The team tends to drop venue details on social media weeks before the official press release.
7. Con Christopoulos’s Collins Street Courtyard — CBD
The vibe: The man behind Siglo, Kafeneion, and now Roma and Sergio’s is transforming a Collins Street courtyard into a little slice of Italy. Because apparently one new Italian venue per year isn’t enough for Con.
Details are still emerging, but Con Christopoulos — the hospitality force behind some of Melbourne’s most beloved venues — is taking over a courtyard space on Collins Street. Given his track record (Siglo is Melbourne’s best rooftop bar, Kafeneion is its most authentic Greek taverna, and Le Pub is the French bar that actually feels French), expectations are high. Early descriptions suggest an Italian-inspired outdoor space that bridges the gap between the formal dining rooms of Collins Street and the relaxed courtyard culture of southern Europe.
Where: Collins Street courtyard, CBD Expected opening: 2026 Budget estimate: Based on Christopoulos’s other venues, expect $30–$60 per person Insider tip: Christopoulos’s venues always have one thing in common — the service makes the experience. His staff are trained to read a room, not just take orders. That alone puts his venues a cut above.
What We Skipped and Why
Lune’s mega-venue: Lune Croissanterie is expanding into a new, larger venue, and while the croissants are world-class, we’re holding off until it actually opens. Lune’s existing locations in Fitzroy and the CBD are still operating and excellent, so there’s no urgency to cover something that’s still in the fit-out stage.
Every pop-up and food truck: Melbourne has approximately 400 pop-ups at any given time. We don’t cover them unless they’ve announced plans to become permanent. A two-week dumpling pop-up in a South Melbourne warehouse isn’t a “new opening” — it’s a weekend stall with good marketing.
Hotel restaurant openings: Several hotels are opening new restaurants this year. Most of them exist to serve hotel guests and conferences, not Melbourne diners. If one is genuinely good (and some are — think the dining rooms at the big Marriott and Crown hotels), we’ll cover it separately.
South Yarra boutiques: South Yarra has seen a wave of new retail and café openings along Chapel Street and Commercial Road. We’ll cover those in our South Yarra suburb guide rather than cluttering this list.
The Bottom Line
Melbourne’s 2026 opening season is shaping up to be dominated by Italian food (Roma and Sergio’s, Café Florentino, Christopoulos’s courtyard) and pastry (Daybaker, Lune’s expansion). If you love pasta and croissants, you’re eating well this year. The two big-ticket openings — Cote Basque from Andrew McConnell and Roma and Sergio’s from Con Christopoulos — are the ones that’ll define Melbourne’s dining conversation for the rest of 2026. Get your reservations in early.
Your Melbourne Vibe Score this week: 81/100 — New openings are a sign of a city that’s still investing in food culture, even when rent is through the roof and the hospitality workforce is stretched thin. Melbourne’s not slowing down.
Opening dates change constantly in hospitality. If a venue says “opening March 2026,” assume April. If they say “opening soon,” assume nobody knows. We’ll update this guide as venues confirm their doors are actually open.
Know a new opening we’ve missed? Let us know.
MELBZ — We Know Your Suburb Better Than You Do.
📊 Quick Widgets
→ Things To Do This Weekend in Melbourne — because new openings are better experienced in context → Cheap Eats in Melbourne Under $20 — for when you’ve blown the budget on a degustation → Date Night in Melbourne — Where to Actually Take Someone — some of these new openings are perfect date-night material → Carlton Guide 2026 — Bar Carnation’s neighbourhood, Lygon Street’s full scene, and Carlton’s best-kept secrets
Explore more suburbs: South Melbourne · South Yarra · Carlton
