As the entree to Melbourne Now, the NGV is hosting Melbourne’s Most Liveable Lunch, an iconic Melburnian culinary experience from 11–22 Nov. Chef Shane Delia has curated an incredible food experience.
What makes Melbourne the World’s Most Liveable City for the third year running? I suppose you would get a different answer from every person you asked. Some would say the eclectic arts scene, or the plethora of sporting events we hold, from our very own AFL and A-League to world stage events, like the Spring Racing Carnival, Australian Open, F1 and Moto GP. It continues; the fashion, architecture, the quality of life. Not many would say the weather but I’m pretty sure the one experience that everyone can agree on is the abundance of exciting and top quality food offerings this amazing city has to offer.
As Melbournians, we live through our bellies. We connect through food, through the experience of sharing a meal and connecting over the table. We don’t eat to live in Melbourne, we live to eat!
But it is not so cut and dry. We are not a one-stop shop, get in and get out food fix state, where all we want to hear is, “would you like fries with that?” We want and need more. We are a Pho on a Monday, a bowl of pasta on a Tuesday, a pub meal on a Wednesday, a cheeky pie in the arvo on a Thursday, our favourite lunch venue for a Friday lunch and then a hatted venue experience with mates in the evening. A bag of doughnuts at the station on the way to the game on a Saturday, and a big Yum Cha session on a Sunday arvo.
The Melbourne appetite is what has made our city, not just one of the best foodie cities in the world, but it has driven Melbourne to achieve the highest recognition on a global stage for the past three years. The world’s most liveable city.
It’s the only city I will ever live in and the place I am proud to call home. So when I was asked to take over Persimmon for two weeks, I really wanted to share with my fellow Melbournians the one thing that unites us all, our bellies! To do this, I needed to call on the people, in my opinion, who have helped shape the Melbourne dinning scene. So join us for Week One of our two week food exploration of Melbourne.
MENU : November 11 through 16
Stroll through China Town
A homage to the Dim Sim; soy jelly, lup chong, miso mayo
Chef : Shane Delia
Melbourne’s Street Art & Laneways
MoVida’s anchovy with smoked tomato sorbet
Chef : Frank Camorra
Melbourne’s Famous Gastropub Scene
The Station Hotel’s rabbit ‘pie’ with cider, aged Cheddar and tarragon
Chef : Sean Donovan
Melbourne’s Basement Hideaways
Maha Restaurant’s 12 hour roasted lamb shoulder, pistachio and green olive tabouleh
Chef : Shane Delia
A tribute to Luna Park
Burch & Purchese’s explosive raspberry dessert
Chef : Darren Purchese
Famous For Our Coffee
A touch of coffee theatre from World Barista Champion, Matthew Perger
The menu’s I have curated for these two weeks, I believe will not only taste great but resonate with everyone who comes to dine with us. I hope to see you at Persimmon, use me as your guide to remind you why Melbourne has been voted as the most liveable city in the world three years running!
You can grab tickets here