The Melbourne Food and Wine Festival returns for its 2026 edition with a stacked lineup that spans everything from a 1,600-person Greek feast to free Korean fried chicken and a prison speakeasy.
Here’s your essential guide to what’s happening 20-29 March across Melbourne and regional Victoria.
Melbourne’s annual celebration of all things edible kicks off on Friday 20 March with one of its most anticipated events yet—a Greek-themed World’s Longest Lunch stretching 600 metres through Kings Domain. But that’s just the beginning. With over 200 events scattered across the city and regional Victoria, MFWF 2026 has something for everyone, whether you’ve got $285 burning a hole in your pocket or you’re strictly here for the freebies.
Melbourne Food and Wine Festival
- When: 20-29 March
- Where: Various locations across Melbourne and regional Victoria
Stay up to date with what’s happening in and around Melbourne here.
International heavy-hitters descend on Melbourne’s best restaurants
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The Global Dining Series (presented by Polestar) brings an impressive roster of international chefs to collaborate with Melbourne’s finest venues.
The collaboration between Australian-born, Paris-based James Henry of Le Doyenné and Dan Hunter’s Brae in Birregurra (26–29 March) brings together two farm-to-table philosophies. Henry’s Michelin Green Star-awarded restaurant grows 100% of its own produce during warmer months—a kindred spirit to Brae’s regional Victorian approach.
London chef James Lowe, founder of acclaimed restaurant Lyle’s, brings his cult-favourite pizza to Figlia for one night only at Brunswick. Inspired by Lowe’s much-loved ASAP Pizza project born during lockdown, the evening celebrates simple ingredients and great produce with a tight menu of signature pizzas.
Sam Lawrence and Friends at Gerald’s Bar (28 March) offers another chance to experience the chef and co-owner behind New York’s acclaimed restaurant Bridges. After selling out quickly at Cutler earlier in the festival, Lawrence returns for a more intimate collaboration with the team at Gerald’s Bar on Lygon Street, honouring his long-standing friendship with Melbourne hospitality legend Gerald Diffey.
2024 MasterChef Australia winner Nat Thaipun teams up New Zealand’s Andy Hearnden (aka Andy Cooks) for Smoke, Skewers and Som Tum at the historic Abbotsford Convent. Fire has no borders—from Thai street-side grills to Australian backyards and New Zealand hāngī, cooking over flame is a universal language. Thaipun and Hearnden will cook side by side over charcoal with the team from Cam’s Kiosk, serving up skewers, som tum and smoke in equal measure.
Acclaimed Sydney sushi master Toshihiko Oe brings an exclusive festival pop-up to Ishizuka. Known for serving just six diners per sitting in Sydney, Oe’s appearances are among the most sought-after reservations in the country, making this collaboration a rare opportunity for Melbourne diners.
Restaurant Botanic x Amaru (23-24 March) brings two of Australia’s most polished fine-dining restaurants together for the first time. Adelaide’s celebrated Restaurant Botanic joins forces with three-hat Armadale restaurant Amaru, with chefs Jamie Musgrove and Clinton McIver collaborating on a one-off menu designed dish by dish.
Meanwhile, Sydney charcoal grill sensation Firepop pops up at Lee Ho Fook for two nights of produce-driven open-fire cooking (20–21 March, $269).
Bundjalung woman Mindy Woods of Karkalla brings her native-inspired cuisine from the Northern Rivers to Residence at the Potter (25–28 March, $94). Fresh off winning the World’s 50 Best Restaurants Champions of Change award in 2025, Woods is on a mission to elevate undervalued native Australian ingredients while sharing the food culture of Bundjalung Country.
Over at Fable Melbourne, Mesa Filipino: A Supper Club (23 March, $99) transforms the sky-high venue into a stage for five of the Philippines’ leading culinary voices. Expect miso-tamarind kebabs, reimagined halo-halo, and plenty of street-food grit served with theatrical flair across five courses.
Colour takes centre stage when Hiakai chef Monique Fiso flies in from Aotearoa to cook alongside Alejandro Saravia at Farmer’s Daughters. Land in Colour (28 March, $150) pairs the two chefs for a five-course tasting menu where each dish follows a distinct colour theme using Victorian produce from Gippsland.
Acclaimed pastry chef Phil Khoury joins Kate Reid at Lune for a two-night-only vegan collaboration. For the first time ever, and just for MFWF, the world-famous Lune goes vegan as an olive oil-powered croissant takes centre stage in a ticketed Lune Lab-style evening on Lonsdale Street, offering a fresh, thoughtful take on one of Melbourne’s most beloved pastries.
Other events worth clearing your calendar for
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A Night at Caregiver’s Place transforms the heritage-listed School House at Wesley Place for one night only. Caretaker’s Cottage (ranked the 19th best bar in the world by World’s 50 Best Bars list 2025) teams up with renowned chefs including Rosheen Kaul (Bistro Marigold), Junda Khoo (Ho Jiak), Mark Hannell (Reed House) and Dessert Masters champion John Demetrios (Butter Days) for an evening hosted by food writer and MasterChef Australia judge Sofia Levin.
Some of MFWF’s most beloved events return in 2026. Adrian Richardson’s Suckling Pig Feast has been selling out for over 20 years, and 2026 will be no different. The nose-to-tail celebration at Bouvier Bar in Brunswick East features everything from house-cured meats to chocolate brownies made with pig fat—plus the theatrical parade of the whole suckling pig before carving. Richardson’s philosophy is to “over-deliver,” and his multi-course feast certainly does.
The MCG Progressive Dining Experience (25-26 March, $220) takes you through normally off-limits areas of the Melbourne Cricket Ground—the members’ reserve, players’ change rooms, and culinary centre—culminating in a rooftop chocolate garden presented by Ryan Stevenson, Australia’s only Belgian chocolate master.
For something with a bit more edge, Cell Block Speakeasy at Old Melbourne Gaol (28 March, $200) transforms the historic prison’s forgotten cell blocks into a roaring 1920s speakeasy for one night only. Armed with a stamp card, you’ll explore four unique spaces, each serving a signature cocktail inspired by the era, complete with moody jazz and period styling. Yes, you’ll be drinking cocktails where Ned Kelly was executed.
The Lucas Loop (24-25 March, $200) offers a progressive dining crawl across multiple Lucas Group venues, while Little Bourke, Big Bites (25-26 March, $120) takes you through Daughter In Law, Ho Chi Mama, and Longrain—three distinct takes on Asian cuisine along one famous street.
Whisky lovers should beeline for Can You Spot a 30-Year-Old Scotch? at Whisky and Alement—a blind tasting featuring rare drams including a bottle worth over a grand. Good luck.
Get ready for Lunch with Helen Goh (29 March, $200) at Zinc; a three-course meal from her new solo cookbook “Baking and the Meaning of Life,” plus a conversation with MasterChef winner Emelia Jackson.
Regional Victoria gets 26 events of its own
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The Regional Roadtrip program spreads across the state. Chin Chin’s Weekend Takeover at Pt. Leo Estate (28-29 March) brings Southeast Asian flavours to the Mornington Peninsula with three distinct experiences: a four-hands luxe menu at two-hatted Laura, a vibrant shared feast at Pt. Leo Restaurant, and a Wine Terrace Fiesta with cocktails and sunset vibes.
Three of Victoria’s finest chefs—Annie Smithers (Du Fermier), Thi Le (Anchovy), and Aaron Turner (Igni)—collaborate for the first time at Lunch on the Farm (28 March, $250), a six-course celebration of free-range Great Ocean duck at Great Ocean Road Ducks near Port Campbell.
Elsewhere, Echuca’s Longest Lunch on the Wharf (20 March) brings long-table dining to the historic Murray River setting. Aperitivo Afloat runs all festival on the Queenscliff-Sorrento ferry. And the Yarra Valley offers everything from a pizza party at Trapeze Wines’ new cellar door to a cosmic-inspired wine gathering at Jayden Ong Winery.
Three days of free food (yes, really)
MFWF 2026 introduces three new free activations. The Festival of Korean Fried Chicken (24 March, 11am-2pm) gives away 1,000 serves in Park Street’s Koreatown. Something Saucy: The Pizza Party (26 March) sees Super Norma’s Marco Salzano and Luca Muscato flip the script from pasta to pizza, handing out 1,000 slices at Leonardo’s Pizza Palace in Carlton. And The Spicy Side of Collins Street (25-26 March) brings a two-day spice celebration to Melbourne Quarter.
Baker’s Dozen returns bigger than ever
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Baker’s Dozen (presented by McKenzie’s) takes over Fed Square for its fourth year on the final weekend (28-29 March, 10am-3pm), and it’s free to attend. The “supersized” 2026 edition brings together more than 20 bakeries including Lune, Tarts Anon, Masses Bagels, and Sydney’s AP Bakery.
The headline acts? Helen Goh—Yotam Ottolenghi’s longtime sweets collaborator—teams up with local bakery Mietta by Rosemary. New York’s Filipina baking star Abi Balingit (The Dusky Kitchen) joins forces with Bayswater’s Dröm Bakery for some “Pinay pastry moves.” A Hot Cross Bun Bar featuring Baker Bleu, Bread Club, Loafer, and Wild Life Bakery rounds out the carb-heavy proceedings.
Check out the program and grab your tickets now at mfwf.com.au.
This article was made in partnership with Melbourne Food & Wine Festival.
