Melbourne Food & Wine Festival 2025: Everything You Need to Know

Melbourne’s culinary calendar just found its headline act. From 21st to 30th March, the Melbourne Food & Wine Festival 2025 is set to sweep food lovers off their feet, serving up ten days of unforgettable eats, sips, and stories. With a program featuring over 200 events, it’s not just a festival—it’s Melbourne in edible form, with a side of world-class flair.

This year’s festival, presented by La Trobe Financial and supported by Visit Victoria, isn’t just about the food on your plate. It’s about the passion in the kitchens, the creativity of chefs and producers, and the vibrant dining culture that has firmly placed Melbourne on the world’s culinary radar.

Opening the festival with serious star power, Melbourne’s own Curtis Stone returns from his LA empire to headline the World’s Longest Lunch at Kings Domain. Imagine 600 meters of shared tables, a meticulously crafted three-course feast, and perfectly paired wines—all framed by the city skyline. It’s a homecoming that promises both nostalgia and innovation.

For brunch lovers, Sunday morning in the Royal Botanic Gardens offers a dreamy start with the World’s Longest Brunch, reimagined by beloved food personality Julia Busuttil Nishimura. Think gorgeous cinnamon buns, smoked salmon pancakes, and a roaming cake station—all enjoyed in one of the most picturesque corners of the city.

The Global Dining Series is the festival’s pièce de résistance, with international culinary powerhouses teaming up with Melbourne’s finest chefs. Among the unmissable collaborations:

• Fergus Henderson’s St John Restaurant brings its celebrated British nose-to-tail cooking to Melbourne for the first time, transforming French Saloon into a week-long homage to bold, sustainable cuisine.
• London’s Brat, under the fire-driven genius of Tomos Parry, takes over Cutler, serving wood-fired dishes guaranteed to redefine your idea of flavour.
• Daniel Calvert from Sézanne, crowned Asia’s #1 restaurant, joins forces with Dan Hunter at Brae for two intimate evenings of culinary magic.

Whether it’s Singapore’s Michael Wilson cooking alongside Beaconsfield’s O.MY or Vaughan Mabee of New Zealand’s Amisfield bringing his game-driven artistry to Marmelo, these collaborations are a rare chance to experience the fusion of global expertise with Melbourne’s cutting-edge food scene.

A MFWF favourite, these community-led Special Events transform Melbourne’s most iconic venues into playgrounds of creativity, featuring everything from dining and dancing to tattooing and hat-making. From a progressive dinner at the MCG to a “Hats and Wine” workshop where sipping, stitching, and styling collide in fabulous harmony, there are over 160 mouthwatering experiences for you to choose from. 

For something truly extraordinary, Navi in Yarraville fuses chef Julian Hills’ culinary artistry with Ed Sloane’s evocative surf photography, delivering a sensory experience that blurs the line between food and art.

There’s nothing quite like country hospitality. From Kyneton to Rutherglen, Meredith to Mornington, Wodonga to Warburton and just about everywhere in between, Melbourne Food & Wine Festival hits the road this March, with over 40 regional events coming to a town near you.

Whether you’re eating Southern Indian food from a banana leaf by the Yarra in Warburton, foraging saltbush in Queenscliff with one of Victoria’s most resourceful chefs, scrubbing up for a moonlit degustation in the forecourt of a Milawa mansion, or hitting a do-si-do and a baked spud in a hay shed in Jindivick, there’s something for everyone when MFWF goes regional. 

The festival concludes with a bigger and butterier bang at the Baker’s Dozen in Fed Square. More than a dozen of Melbourne’s baking elite—including Lune, Tarts Anon, The Flour, To Be Frank, All Are Welcome, Madeleine de Proust, and Raya—will come together to celebrate everything from flaky croissants to inventive confections. Special guest AP Bakery from Sydney will join forces with Melbourne's own Iris the bakery for a collaboration you won’t want to miss.

The Hot Cross Bun Bar is sure to be a crowd favourite, while international guest Richard Hart of Copenhagen’s renowned Hart Bageri is set to steal hearts—and appetites.

Plus, if you’ve ever debated who bakes Melbourne’s best scone, now’s your chance to sample your way to the answer.

In the words of festival creative director Pat Nourse, “This is the richest, broadest, deepest, and flat-out tastiest food festival Australia has seen in years.” That’s not just hype. Whether it’s the bold reimagining of a dim sim at Dim City, the blending of Southern Italian pasta traditions with Melbourne flair at Something Saucy, or the quiet moments spent sipping wine in a vineyard, the festival is a love letter to the creativity, collaboration, and culture that food brings to life.

So, clear your calendar. Melbourne Food & Wine Festival 2025 isn’t just an event—it’s a story waiting to be tasted, and you’re invited to every chapter.

Melbourne Food & Wine Festival 2025 offers something for everyone, whether you're a fan of high-end dining, street food, or unique culinary collaborations. From regional dining experiences to global culinary talent, this year’s festival celebrates Melbourne’s position as Australia’s culinary capital and promises to make March 2025 the best time to eat, drink, and experience food culture in the world. Don’t miss the chance to indulge in this world-class festival, where every meal tells a story, and every event is a celebration of food.