6 Restaurants in Ballarat

Visitors to Ballarat are spoilt for choice with a wide variety of restaurants to choose from. Cafes and casual diners make good use of local ingredients and serve up tasty favourites in an informal atmosphere, while gastropubs combine excellent products from the local breweries and wineries with imaginative menus that feature simple dishes executed to the highest standards. If your tastes run towards a more refined culinary experience, Ballarat has its share of fine dining restaurants that match anything you can find in Australia's major cities to feed your fancy.

Ballarat restaurants also offer a good choice of international cuisines. You can find great pizzas and pasta in the city's Italian ristorantes, while Asian restaurants in Ballarat run the gamut of quality Vietnamese, Chinese, Thai and Japanese eateries. French and Spanish cuisines have also influenced local chefs, while food from the Americas includes excellent Mexican cantinas and U.S.-style diners with hefty burgers. Although you're in the heartland of Australia, the chefs at Ballarat’s restaurants can take you on a culinary voyage around the globe.

One of the particular strengths of Ballarat restaurants is their focus on modern Australian food. These eateries take great Australian produce, such as excellent seafood and world-class beef, and use these ingredients to create subtle, skilled and flavourful dishes. Linguine with Crystal Bay prawns, scallops, capers and tomatoes from is one such dish, while vegetarians take delight in Newlyn potato caramelised gnocchi with sage and Meredith goats cheese. There are many new taste sensations waiting to be discovered among the dishes at Ballarat’s restaurants, and some of them are already becoming firm local favourites.

Wine lists in Ballarat’s restaurants feature great wines from the many excellent local vineyards in the area. There is something truly special about enjoying a lovely glass right in the region where it was produced, and this pleasure only gets better when the wine is paired with expertly prepared food. Ask your server to recommend the best local wines to go with your menu choices. If you're more of a beer drinker, Ballarat also has some top-notch local brews.