The best new bars and restaurants in Hobart (and beyond) for winter

Tasmania’s food fans eagerly anticipate the official launch of former Quay chef Analiese Gregory’s new “anti-restaurant”, to cap big months for hospitality in Hobart and its surrounds. Australia’s southernmost capital is rich with a flurry of new eateries, just in time for winter and the 12-day Dark Mofo festival from June 11. These are the best restaurants, bars and cafes to open since Dark Mofo last took over the town, plus a couple further afield if you’re hitting the Apple Isle’s scenic roads.

In Good Company

The team behind beloved South Hobart cafe Bear With Me, a slick haunt that was once a servo, have opened an eatery that spills into the evening, serving South-East Asian-style share plates and sub-$23 cocktails. Just down from the corn cob-shaped Wrest Point Casino, In Good Company staff (decked out in bright blue bowling shirts that match the cobalt chopsticks) speedily dispatch plates stacked high with crisp school prawns, zesty kingfish sashimi in nahm jim dressing, and a vibrant red curry with duck and lychees. For cooler nights or crisp Hobart mornings, the outside concrete bench seat is, blissfully, heated.

479 Sandy Bay Road, Sandy Bay, ingoodcompanytas.com.au

Brine

Closer to the airport than the city (coordination required), this coastal gem is frequented by locals and the travelling culinary curious alike, partly in pursuit of the generous, friendly hospitality and partly in pilgrimage to the ocean-centric dishes celebrating hyper-locally sourced produce and house-preserved treats. Befitting its name and seaside location, dishes thoughtfully incorporate some element of salt – the made-fresh-each-day sea salt focaccia, for example, or the kingfish ceviche with confit tomatoes – and all the pickles, tinctures and jams are made on site to minimise waste and maximise seasonal flavour.

1/10A Bangalee Street, Lauderdale, instagram.com/@b_r_i_n_e_

Bird in Hand

South Australia’s Bird in Hand has reimagined the restaurant, event space and kiosk at the Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens, cementing the family-owned winery’s expansion into Tasmania in 2020 (on the east coast) and 2024 (in the Tamar Valley). The light, bright atrium-like dining room is shouldered by a wide deck; during the day, an oversized chair out here is the prime spot to soak up midday sun with a thick-cut slice of sourdough topped with chicken liver parfait, or a hunk of succulent wood-fired pork belly that’s been lightly kissed with a torch – sparkling wine in hand.

Royal Botanical Gardens, Hobart, birdinhand.com.au/royal-tasmanian-botanic-gardens

Smith Street

In a corner shopfront a few blocks south of beloved North Hobart eatery Trophy Room, Smith Street, the brainchild of two mates, has popped up with a menu blasting snackable Asian-inspired treats. Curls of puffy crackle! Salty fried pinkeye potatoes! Fat triangles of crisped-up onigiri and fire-licked skwers of hanger steak with homegrown wasabi! Food matches a similarly influenced cocktail menu and it’s walk-ins only.

325 Argyle Street, North Hobart, onsmithstreet.com.au

Gotham at The Still

Australian whisky pioneer Lark Distillery has just relaunched its flagship bar with a new creative concept, Gotham, promising a “darker pulse” for the drinking den. New dishes include wagyu tartare and white anchovy gildas punctuated by goat’s curd-stuffed olives; live jazz will pump on Wednesday nights; and the happy hour line-up features martinis and oysters beneath the pristine sounds of custom, locally made Pitt & Giblin speakers that mimic colours and textures of the famed whisky barrels.

30 Argyle Street, Hobart, larkdistillery.com

Don Frico

It’s all about the slice at this pizzeria in Salamanca, which turns out thin, wide wedges of New York-style pizza from 3pm beneath a glittering disco ball. Speakers hang over the bar and that’s because music plays a big part here – DJs spin vinyl until the late hours – and so do the cocktails, from dirty martinis stuffed with olives to passionfruit margaritas with jalapeno-infused tequila. Party on with the pizza: say a slice of pepperoni or spicy sausage with whipped ricotta, delivered with slick, smooth service.

22 Montpelier Retreat, Battery Point, donfrico.com

Le Gulch

This waterfront drinks-and-nibbles spot – once a seafood processor – is the latest addition to Bicheno, a two-hour-and-twenty-minute drive up the east coast. It joins the likes of Le Coq and Governors to meet the beach town’s culinary-minded eaters where they’re best found: by the ocean. A seat on the pebbled patio or a picnic table overlooking wildlife refuge Governors Island and “the gulch” deliver glittering waterfront views and peachy sunsets. There are equally gorgeous local oysters from Melshell, cheese boards and wine by Apsley Gorge Vineyard. You’re steps from Waubs Harbour Distillery and Bicheno’s famed Lobster Shack, so get your fill.

54 Waubs Esplanade, Bicheno, legulch.com

The Kiln Collective

In Raneleagh, a 35-minute drive from Hobart in the Huon Valley, this restored timber hops kiln now sports afternoon platters featuring Tasmanian producers (especially Bruny Island Cheese & Beer Co., vinegar professional Wild Mother and winemakers Haddow & Dineen), buttered cheese toasties, scones, pickles, salts, spirits and chocolates. Enjoy in the “round” room of the hexagonal structure or, if the sunshine plays ball, among established trees in the surrounding garden.

2 Louisa Street, Ranelagh, kilntasmania.com.au