The Broadsheet Melbourne Cookbook
by Broadsheet Media
I recently reviewed The Broadsheet Sydney Cookbook, and it impressed me so much that I knew I had to track down its counterpart, The Broadsheet Melbourne Cookbook.
What I hadn't realised at the time was that these two books are twins, both originally published in November 2015. Releasing them side by side suggests they were designed to complement each other, sharing the same format and style while celebrating the distinct food cultures of two very different cities. I couldn't wait to dive in and see if Melbourne’s edition delivered the same restaurant-worthy experience at home, especially as my friends consider Melbourne the food capital of Australia.
The Look, the Feel, the Flow
The Broadsheet Melbourne Cookbook makes a strong first impression with its simple, elegant cover. A bold white and grey title spans most of the page against a black backdrop, while the back cover continues the theme with a clean list of every eatery featured inside. If you know the Melbourne food scene, this is a clever way to spot your favourites at a glance. The only image is a narrow strip down the left edge showing the bustle of a restaurant kitchen, setting the tone for what is to come.
Inside, the book opens with that same list of restaurants before moving into a detailed table of contents. I especially appreciated how each recipe is clearly listed with its page number, title, and contributing venue, making it easy to navigate.
Before the recipes begin, there is a foreword and an introduction. The foreword caught my attention with one line in particular: “In my experience good recipes have long life cycles and will be just as accepted in ten years as they are today...” Reviewing the book almost a decade later, I can say that sentiment holds true. The introduction takes a broader view, reflecting on Melbourne’s food culture, how innovation feeds innovation, and the value of fresh, seasonal produce. None of it is essential, but for the kind of person who buys a book like this, it is an enjoyable read.
The structure is refreshingly straightforward, divided into the classic four chapters of breakfast, lunch, dinner, and dessert. Each section opens with its own mini table of contents, again listing page numbers, dish names, and venues for quick reference. There are no added introductions, keeping the focus firmly on the recipes themselves.
Each recipe follows a consistent format: a title, a short introduction from the contributing venue, an ingredient list, and a method. Some are compact and fit neatly onto one page, while others run longer. Almost all are paired with a full-page photo of the finished dish.
Between the recipes, you will find plenty of full-page photography capturing Melbourne’s dining culture. Chefs at work, diners mid-meal, and glimpses of kitchens in action bring the book to life. There are also step-by-step guides for skills like poaching eggs or making filter coffee, complete with instructional photos.
Rounding out the collection, the back of the book includes a food supplier directory tailored to Melburnians, highlighting trusted greengrocers, fishmongers, and delis that provide the kind of fresh produce Melbourne’s best kitchens rely on.
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A copy of The Broadsheet Melbourne Cookbook surrounded by fresh ingredients for one of the recipes.
What You'll be Cooking
The first thing that stands out when flipping through The Broadsheet Melbourne Cookbook is the sheer diversity of cuisines. Melbourne is a melting pot of cultures, and the recipes reflect that vibrancy with a mix of flavours, influences, and styles that make the city’s dining scene so exciting.
There is also great variety in the type of dishes on offer. Some are showstoppers best saved for special occasions, while others lean more casual. What they all share is the flair and polish you’d expect from top restaurants, cafés, and bars.
The breakfast section alone ranges from pecan and cranberry granola to brioche French toast, chicken soboro bowls, and almond croissants. It also includes step-by-step guides for café staples like filter coffee, poached eggs, and sourdough, which are both practical and inspiring.
Lunch spans everything from bright, flavour-packed salads and stuffed sandwiches to plates that could easily belong in the dinner section, like Sichuan lamb spare ribs, tuna with salted watermelon and sriracha tartare, and braised pork belly with egg claypot.
Dinner takes things up a notch, opening with five pre-dinner cocktails before diving into mains that are pure restaurant theatre. Expect dishes like paneer zucchini flowers, whole slow-roasted lamb shoulder, and quail with radicchio, golden raisins, and grapes. Alongside these are more comforting but no less impressive options like pizzas, pasta, and noodles. The section also features step-by-step instructions for cooking steak, as well as a guide to choosing wine pairings that elevates the home dining experience even further.
Finally, dessert feels more focused than in the Sydney counterpart. Here, the recipes lean firmly into restaurant-style sweets: housemade ice creams, layered creations, and plated desserts that would not look out of place on a fine dining menu. It is a finale that delivers exactly what you would hope from a book that sets out to capture Melbourne’s food culture.
The four recipes tested from The Broadsheet Melbourne Cookbook.
Tried & Tasted
I cooked four recipes from The Broadsheet Melbourne Cookbook, each one capturing the mix of Melbourne’s café flair and comforting home-style cooking.
The Bagels and Schmears (pg. 34) from 5 & Dime delivered golden, chewy bagels and a smoky bacon jam cream cheese that turned simple carbs into something special.
Rockwell and Sons’ Home-Style Fried Chicken (pg. 135) was pure comfort food perfection. Juicy, crisp, and full of flavour, it rivalled the best I’ve had in restaurants.
Kaprica’s Gnocchi Sorrentina (pg. 168) was the undeniable standout. Pillowy gnocchi baked in a deeply flavoured sugo under molten mozzarella made this the best gnocchi dish I’ve ever eaten.
Finally, Cobb Lane’s Jam and Custard Doughnuts (pg. 231) were indulgent and nostalgic, though a touch dense. Doubling the filling would take them from good to unforgettable.
Vibrant sugo from the Gnocchi Sorrentina by Kaprica.
Price Check
It should come as no surprise that the recipes in this book are generally on the expensive side. These aren’t everyday meals. What sets them apart are the premium ingredients and often longer ingredient lists that create the complex flavours and stunning plates you usually only see in restaurants, cafés, or bars.
That said, as with The Broadsheet Sydney Cookbook, if you consider how much a single serve of these dishes would cost if ordered out, the book actually offers great value. You get the elevated, flavour-packed experience at a fraction of the price, plus the joy of creating it yourself at home.
You'll Love This If...
This is an excellent cookbook for confident home cooks who want to push themselves beyond the everyday, and for those who are already comfortable with advanced recipes but crave fresh inspiration.
These are the exact recipes served in some of Melbourne’s best cafés, restaurants, and bars, so the expectation is that you come in with confidence and curiosity. You’ll find plenty of inspiration in the bold flavour pairings, refined plating, and little professional tricks that make each dish feel special.
If The Broadsheet Sydney Cookbook already has a place on your shelf, this is the perfect companion. It delivers the same calibre of recipes but through a distinctly Melbourne lens, highlighting a different slice of Australia’s food culture.
Where it Shines
If you’ve read my Tried & Tasted article, you’ll already know that Kaprica’s Gnocchi Sorrentina recipe was the best gnocchi dish I’ve ever eaten. I’d happily pay good money for the privilege of ordering it at Kaprica, and yes, I checked, it’s still on the menu for $30 a serve. What struck me, though, was the value of cooking it at home. I spent just under $35 on ingredients and ended up with six servings, which works out to $5.84 per plate. That’s not to say dining out is a rip-off, far from it. If anything, it highlights what an incredible opportunity this book offers: the chance to bring restaurant-quality food into your own kitchen at a fraction of the cost. For anyone picking up a book like this, the effort of cooking is part of the delight.
This book was a joy to cook from, plain and simple. Not a single one of the four dishes I tested fell flat. Each plate felt like something I could have ordered at the venue itself, carrying the same finesse, care, and depth of flavour. It’s rare to find a cookbook that operates at such an advanced level yet still feels truly accessible to the home cook.
Two thoughtful features, mirrored from The Broadsheet Sydney Cookbook, add even more shine. First is the wine pairing section, which I consider the cherry on top. Some of the best meals of my life have been memorable not just for the food but for the wine that accompanied it. The guidance here helps you recreate that elevated experience at home, adding an extra layer of polish. Then there’s the food supplier directory, pointing you toward Melbourne’s best produce and specialty ingredients, often from the very suppliers used by the featured venues. I don’t live in Melbourne, but for locals this section would be an absolute treasure.
Finally, this book doubles as a time capsule. Published in 2015, it includes recipes from venues that have since closed, like Rockwell and Sons, whose fried chicken I had the chance to make (and devour). You can’t walk into the restaurant anymore, but through this book, you can still experience its food. For me, that’s not a drawback, it’s one of the most exciting things about the collection. Without these pages, some of these dishes would have been lost to you and I forever.
A Few Caveats
As an advanced cookbook it should be no surprise that some recipes require specific tools or specialist equipment. While many acknowledge this upfront in the introduction, or the first sentence of the method, in others you may not realise until half way through. It pays to read each recipe before diving in so you’re not caught off guard.
Because this is a compilation, the experience shifts from recipe to recipe. Each chef and venue brings their own voice, which means you’ll notice variation in tone, pacing, and the amount of detail provided. Some recipes lay everything out in clear steps, while others assume you can fill in the gaps.
That’s part of the charm but also the challenge. These aren’t recipes written with home cooks in mind from the ground up, they’re straight from Melbourne’s restaurants, cafés, and bars. Professional chefs know these dishes so well that the instructions can lean on instinct. To cook from this book, you need to feel comfortable trusting your judgement and making adjustments when things aren’t spelled out.
Bagels shaped and ready to prove.
The Verdict
The Broadsheet Melbourne Cookbook is a rare find for anyone who loves food, values quality, and wants to bring restaurant-level dishes into their own kitchen. It manages to hit a sweet spot between sophistication and accessibility. The recipes are advanced, often requiring confidence and a bit of intuition, yet they are genuinely doable at home for confident cooks willing to invest the time and care.
From breakfast to dessert, each dish showcases the creativity, precision, and passion of Melbourne’s cafés, bars, and restaurants. The recipes I tested, from the chewy bagels with smoky bacon jam to the show-stopping gnocchi, proved that this book delivers on the promise of high-calibre, flavour-packed results.
Beyond the recipes themselves, thoughtful features like the wine pairing section and the food supplier directory elevate the experience even further. They remind you that great cooking is not just about ingredients and technique, but about context, sourcing, and presentation. As a bonus, the book acts as a culinary time capsule, preserving dishes from venues that are no longer open, giving home cooks the chance to experience flavors they might otherwise never taste.
This is not a cookbook for shortcuts or casual browsing. It is for those who want to push themselves, or who already have, and still crave inspiration, challenge, and reward in the kitchen. If you are looking to recreate Melbourne’s café and restaurant culture at home, this is an essential addition to your shelf.
4.8/5 Stars
Want to Try It Yourself?
If The Broadsheet Melbourne Cookbook sounds like your kind of book, restaurant-quality dishes, bold flavours, and a true taste of Melbourne, you can pick up a copy below.
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