A hit-list of best places to eat in Hobart

With a handful of strong new players arriving on the Hobart scene to mix things up and champion all things Tasmanian, there’s never been a better time to eat and drink your way around Australia’s southernmost capital.

It’s a no-brainer that Hobart’s eating and drinking should be so good; there are few other places in Australia with such an onslaught of insanely fresh, super seasonal, hyper-local everything on its doorstep. Forget food miles; from whiskey to wagyu, saffron to sparkling wine, it’s all made here – and ridiculously well, too. Hobart’s market offering is another great example of the city’s produce on show.

While the pace of life elsewhere on the Apple Isle might (mercifully) still be as sleepy as it’s ever been, the Hobart bar and dining scene have majorly kicked things up a gear in recent times. Gone are the days when “Slowbart” only had a sprinkling of decent places to eat; today you’ll be struggling to tick off your culinary to-do list in just one weekend.

So, organise your flights and get ready to savour the good stuff. Tassie’s capital will have you dreaming of open fires, harbour views, briny oysters and cosy whiskey bars until you plot your return. Here are our picks of the best places to eat in Hobart.

Hobart’s best restaurants

Once eschewed as Australia’s weird island cousin at the end of the earth, Tasmania has come a long way. And nowhere is that more apparent than Hobart’s restaurant scene. Now a hub for creative culinary minds and stylish dining spaces, with gourmet menus to match, Tassie’s capital has become a worthy rival to its mainland counterparts.

Whether you’re hunting for stellar views from one of Hobart’s waterfront restaurants, seeking out the latest establishment in bohemian NoHo (North Hobart), or in the mood for fine dining, this charming little city delivers. Read on for an introduction to some of the best restaurants in Hobart.

Dier Makr

Atmospheric newcomer Dier Makr (run by Melbourne expats Kobi Ruzicka and Sarah Fitzsimmons) is winning fans for its serious cocktails, low-intervention wine list, and boundary-pushing, produce-driven seasonal tasting menu. The Hobart restaurant’s vintage tunes and lo-fi fit-out win points too.

Atmospheric Dier Makr wins fans with its produce-driven seasonal tasting menu. (Image: Osborne Images)

Fico

Another welcome new addition is Fico, the likeable Italian-accented bistro headed up by ex-Vue de Monde chef Oskar Rossi and his Italian partner Frederica Andrisani. You’ll find exemplary pasta and contemporary takes on old Italian ideas, with outstanding Tassie produce starring at every turn.

Exemplary pasta and a contemporary take on old Italian ideas can be found at Fico. (Image: Osborne Images)

The Agrarian Kitchen Eatery & Store

While not strictly within Hobart’s confines, Rodney Dunn’s The Agrarian Kitchen Eatery & Store is only a short drive out of town in New Norfolk, and well worth the detour. Allowing his lovingly raised produce to speak for itself, simplicity rules here. Everything is done in-house, from growing to curing, fermenting and smoking, which means you’ll get a true taste of Tassie terroir.

The Agrarian Kitchen Eatery & Store is well worth the short drive from Hobart. (Image: Adam Gibson)

Frank

Fancy a Latin American meat fix? Say hola to buzzy waterside hotspot Frank, where you can snack on pork and chipotle empanadas or fresh Tassie oysters topped with chorizo and salsa dressing before moving on to a charry skirt steak from the charcoal grill.

Get your Latin American meat fix at Frank. (Image: Osborne Images)

Aloft

A little further along Franklin Wharf you’ll find Aloft, a minimal and sophisticated attic space where local produce gets a deft mod-Asian touch. Equally suited for drinks and snacks as it is for a long slow dinner, Aloft’s uninterrupted harbour-side views offer a fine excuse to switch your operating speed to ‘slow’.

Aloft puts a mod-Asian touch on local produce. (Image: Aloft)

The Source Restaurant, Mona

This ritzy lunch-only Hobart restaurant has some curious touches befitting of its museum home (think ‘living’ tables made of moss), but its seasonal menu is anything but gimmicky. There’s definite seafood lean at The Source although fresh produce plays the starring role.

Grab lunch in the ritzy interiors of The Source. (Image: Mona and Jesse Hunniford)

Templo

A surefire selection of housemade pasta is always on offer at this humble 20-seat establishment, which has quietly become one of Hobart’s best Italian restaurants. Don’t miss chef Matt Breen’s gnocchetti, which has become something of a signature. And beyond its consistently delicious plates of pasta, at Templo you can also expect an expertly curated wine list that heroes all things lo-fi.

Templo has quietly become one of Hobart’s best Italian restaurants. (Image: Osborne Images)

Landscape Restaurant and Grill

The defining feature of this Hobart restaurant apart is not the ‘what’ but the ‘how’. Many of Landscape’s dishes are imbued with the heady smokiness of its wood-fired asado grill, though its Cape Grim steaks are arguably the belles of the ball. Part of the Henry Jones Art Hotel, this thoroughly upscale eatery is ground zero for fancy dinners in the city.

Landscape is ground zero for fancy dinners in the city. (Image: Adam Gibson)

Peacock and Jones

Landscape’s more casual sister restaurant, Peacock and Jones has an open-plan kitchen that gives your senses access to the entire process. Highlights include beef tartare and anything with seafood. And don’t leave without trying the parmesan chips.

Landscape’s more casual sister, Peacock and Jones. (Image: The Henry Jones Art Hotel)

The best cafes in Hobart

Home to perhaps Australia’s highest concentration of bakeries per capita, Hobartians know a thing or two about buttery carbs. From breakfast through to brunch and lunch you won’t struggle to sate an appetite piqued by Tassie’s famously cool clean air given the glut of great patisseries and cafes.

Whether you’re after wholesome paddock-to-plate fare, inventively reimagined brekkie classics, the city’s finest almond croissant, or espresso for the road, these Hobart cafes should be added to your itinerary.

Pigeon Hole Café

Local carb lovers know to make a beeline for Pigeon Hole, which has long been recognised as one of the best places to eat in Hobart. This quaint and homely fave does solid coffee, wholesome comfort food and delicious pastries. Much of the Hobart cafe’s produce (from award-winning smoked paprika to apricot jam) comes from owners Richard and Belinda Weston’s farm in Saltwater River, a 100-kilometre drive away.

Pigeon Hole is a quaint and charming cafe. (Image: Tourism Tasmania and Adam Gibson)

Born In Brunswick

If it’s cold, order the porridge, and always get a pastry to go. At fresh-faced North Hobart cafe Born in Brunswick you can forget the fatty fry-up; here you’ll brunch on the likes of koji marinated pork shoulder with soba noodles and a ginger shiitake broth, or house-smoked Huon salmon with black sesame and Tasmanian wasabi.

Dine inside the Asian-influenced interiors of Born in Brunswick. (Image: Natalie Mendham)

Sweet Envy

Up on the hill in NoHo (North Hobart), Alastair Wise’s Sweet Envy is like all your sugar-laced childhood fantasies made a reality. Wise, a classically trained pastry chef, churns out next-level cookies, cake, ice-cream and pies. Our tip? Don’t get paralysed by choice, just order more (you can always eat it on the flight home).

Sweet Envy is like all your sugar-laced childhood fantasies come true. (Image: Sweet Envy)

Queens Pastry

Sweet-toothed Queens Pastry keeps the brief tight: just pastries and specialty coffee. If Instagram pics aren’t reasoning enough to get you there, you should probably check your pulse.

Savour the pastries and specialty coffee at Queens Pastry. (Image: Queens Pastry)

Straight Up Coffee and Food

When all that sugar is making your teeth ache, there’s Straight Up Coffee and Food, where #cleaneats are the order of the day. Think miso marinated pumpkin with cauliflower ‘couscous’ and tahini yoghurt along with house-roasted coffee and fresh juices.

#Cleaneats are the order of the day at Straight Up Coffee and Food. (Image: Straight Up Coffee and Food)

Pigeon Whole Bakers

You’re not wrong for thinking that the name of this CBD bakery sounds strangely familiar… Chef Jay Patey co-founded the aforementioned Pigeon Hole Cafe with partner Emma Choraziak before devoting himself to the craft of sourdough and opening this cult favourite joint. Don’t leave without bagging one of the Hobart bakery’s famed croissants at Pigeon Whole Bakers.

Pigeon Whole Bakers are famed for their croissants. (Image: Pigeon Whole Bakers)

Little Missy Patisserie

Unlike the city’s many other temples to pastry, the selection at Little Missy Patisserie gives equal billing to savoury, and it does the job oh so well. There’s a deliciously rustic air to this Hobart cafe, which has a provincial French influence and specialises in vegetarian baked goods.

Little Missy Patisserie has a deliciously rustic air thanks to its provincial French influence. (Image: Osborne Images)

Looking at other things to do and see in Hobart? We’ve got you covered with our ultimate travel guide to the city.