Perth is not a sleepy city. It’s a vibrant city with a thriving dining scene. Perth’s culinary scene is a little but mighty. It includes casual-cool Italian eateries, high-end fine dining, and funky new Greek venues. There are also more restaurants opening in Fremantle and an old winery in Perth Hills that is still a hit on all fronts.
We have scoured Perth and its surrounding areas to find the best restaurants, bars, and cafes. The best restaurants in Perth are listed here, along with a few venues that are worth the drive.
Best Restaurants Perth
CASA
Mi casa, su casa. Suppose your idea of the perfect home is a space with mid-century decor, attentive waitstaff, and refrigerators full of organic wine. In that case, so much better. This wine bar is always buzzing, but it could be the chef’s ideas that are bouncing around in the kitchen. His mind often races to Mexico, as in octopus al Pastor toasts or roasted cabbage with pumpkin-seed sauce. He also revisits French cuisine (such as the millefeuille stuffed with caramelized apples and Chantilly creme). The menu is dominated by Italian cuisine, with dishes like cotechino, a house-made pasta with lentils braised, and pappardelle, a tweaked version of the classic dish topped with pepper and pecorino. Si Paradiso is the place to go for more Bentley’s Midas Touch and some of Perth’s best pizza.
LE REBELLE
Perth chefs love stracciatella. When was the last you ate those curds with roasted white asparagus, pickled mushrooms, and – that’s the genius part – golden fried garlic slivers? Le Rebelle is a maverick restaurant with a flair for classic cooking and the confidence to go beyond Larousse. The house classics like crab toast, duck fries, and cheese made in-house are still available. Still, they’re now joined by bigoli in an exciting cuttlefish ragout and rotating seasonal specials, such as dense wedges of roasted skating wing or a rich lamb hotpot. The story is not complete without the best cooking. The floor staff are great ambassadors and hosts for this fun house. Le Rebelle shares dual citizenship with the cellar, which reflects this. An enchanteur, indeed.
LULU LA DELIZIA
Lulu is a staple of Perth’s dining scene. Out-of-towners, as well as locals, are clamoring for tables in the tiny osteria. They want to be part of one of Perth’s most popular parties. The restaurant’s style remains the same despite the new charcoal-colored room. The kitchen is influenced by the northern Italian food culture, which includes woody herbs and butter. At the same time, the wines are dominated by Franciacorta or Nebbiolo, as well as other regional specialties. Outgoing servers will direct you to the chef’s special menu, which features new dishes and pasta not on the menu. If you follow their suggestions, you will be rewarded with kingfish collars served with crisp pizzelle or dainty curls saffron-gramigna mixed through chunks of pork sausage. It’s one of WA’s best, no doubt.
WILDFLOWER
The rooftop fine-dining restaurant at COMO The Treasury is a classy affair. The elegant marble and glass box is still stunning, as is the dapper waitstaff. Wildflower’s tasting menus showcase WA ingredients in intricate and meticulous arrangements. Roasted beetroot, pepperberry creme fraîche, and a mini-landslide of beetroot and pistachio soil are earthy sweet. A slash of white ajo is used to electrify marron over pureed sweetcorn. Harissa and cinnamon myrtle scent make rosy Dorper Lamb loin anything but boring. The rich chocolate mousse is paired with a mandarin gel, frozen yogurt pebbles, and a creamy chocolate sauce. While the kitchen may have a strict local jurisdiction, the blockbuster basement is a global one. The result is a list that can add pizazz to any event.
WINES OF WHILE
Who said natural wine bars don’t age? Wines of While is celebrating its fifth anniversary, and some HR victories have seen this pioneer at his career’s best. Venue manager Philip Koch tightened up service at the bar without losing its free-spirited spirit. One of the best chef duos in the city is a high-definition European farm cooking. Pissaladiere has the perfect balance of crunchy and salty. Lamb’s brains in lemon butter are a wonderful ode to offal. Esqueixada is the Catalan salad of salt cod, vegetables, and blood oranges. The condo is a great place to grill anything, whether it’s rainbow trout or Berkshire pork, and even simple sweets such as chocolate cake with salted honey ice cream. It’s no wonder that this little gem is still thriving.
YIAMAS PERTH
Team Yiamas looks cool as “the new kids in town.” They are outgoing and have a friendly manner. Their office is a whitewashed, timeless Greco cottage. Grecian spirits, wines, and themed cocktails dominate their drinks list. They’re also the passionate intermediaries between guests and Justin Scarvaci’s brilliantly subtle interpretations of Hellenic food. Pastourmadopitakia, the Greek pie with pastrami, gets a modern twist when filled with fine fillo and minced burghul. The little details are what make Yiamas a place that cares. The salt cod used in the fish cakes, the olives that are smoked over charcoal, and even the rolled goat’s saddle that is transformed into a crisp, succulent delight all come from the same hearth. Finish off with a delicate baklava sandwich and bay-leaf savor: a perfect example of what can happen when tradition and technique are combined.
Best Restaurants Near Perth
MADALENA’S
Adam Rees has mastered the art of cooking seafood in the West. He will slather ruby-colored tiles of bigeye with a supercharged sauce de poisson and then arrange them over a plush ajo blanched along with roasted pepitas. He will dress noodle-like squiggles with a green herb sauce to make them look like noodles. He’ll also use black garlic and Shiitake Jus to convince meaty Bass Grouper that it has been reborn into prime rib. The setting is just as surprising, with its sandstone wall and patio furniture that screams “neighborhood casual.” The relaxed atmosphere is carried over into the service, which is laid-back. There’s also an upstairs bar that offers views of the ocean. The bar is a great place to end the night with chocolate mousse tarts and other sweets. Or, you can take a look at the wine menu, which features all the best lo-fi wines.
MILLBROOK
Millbrook’s lunch is a high-end experience, and the expectations only increase as you drive an hour to the Perth Hills to enjoy this Seachangers dream. The team at Millbrook is more than up to the challenge, from the friendly cellar door crew to the cheerful waitstaff in the upstairs dining room. The kitchen also gets in on the action, using ingredients from the sprawling garden. Italy has a major influence. Scallops are flash-cured with aqua pizza and fermented tomato water. Porchetta slices are grilled and served alongside braised Calabrian beans. Delicious frugality also takes place. The foraged weeds of the Mediterranean are immortalized as flaky, savory spanakopita. Windswept mandarins turn into curd crowned with meringue. Like the buy-in, estate wines are priced to be affordable for all, but beer is becoming more common on the drinks menu. Lunch (and a day trip) is a treat to enjoy.