Restaurant in Melbourne, Australia
Wine-led share plates, CBD easy access.
Embla is Melbourne's most wine-serious share-plate room, backed by Star Wine List recognition in 2021, 2022, and 2026. At 122 Russell Street, it works best for date nights and celebrations where the bottle matters as much as the food. Easier to book than Attica or Vue de Monde, and priced below the full fine-dining tier.
If you have been to Embla before, the question on a return visit is whether the wine program still justifies the trip on its own terms. The answer is yes. Three consecutive Star Wine List awards (2021, 2022, and 2026) are not a coincidence — they signal a wine-first operation that has maintained its focus over time, which is rarer than it sounds in Melbourne's CBD. For a special occasion dinner where the bottle matters as much as the plate, Embla at 122 Russell Street is one of the more credible choices in the city.
Embla sits in Melbourne's CBD, a short walk from the theatre district and the broader Russell Street dining corridor. The atmosphere is intimate without being hushed , the kind of room where conversation carries but the energy of a busy service night doesn't make it difficult. For a date or a celebration dinner, that calibration works well. You are not fighting the room to talk, but it does not feel like a library either. If noise level is a dealbreaker for you, Embla is a safer bet than some of the louder small-plate venues that dominate this part of the city.
The wine program is the architecture around which everything else is built. Star Wine List recognition in three separate years, including the most recent 2026 cycle, tells you this is not a list assembled for appearance. Natural and low-intervention wines feature prominently, with a depth of Australian and European producers that rewards guests who want to work through something specific rather than defaulting to the predictable. For a special occasion, that depth gives you options at multiple price points rather than forcing you toward the obvious prestige pour.
On the food side, the format at Embla is designed for grazing and progression rather than a rigid tasting menu structure. Dishes arrive in sequence and are meant to be shared, which makes it a better format for two than for larger groups where coordination becomes work. The kitchen's approach suits the wine-led philosophy: food that enhances the glass rather than competing with it. For guests arriving for a celebration, the open-ended format means the evening can run as long or as briefly as you want it to , there is no set pacing imposed on you.
Booking is easy relative to some of Melbourne's harder-to-access restaurants. You do not need to plan weeks in advance the way you would for Attica or some of the tasting-menu-only rooms. That accessibility is a practical advantage for occasion dining, where flexibility around the date matters. Walk-in availability exists, though booking ahead is the smarter call for a Friday or Saturday night when you want a specific table.
On price, Embla sits in a mid-to-upper range for Melbourne dining without reaching the full fine-dining tier of Vue de Monde. The exact spend will vary depending on how deep you go into the wine list, which is where bills can climb quickly if you are not watching. Factor that in when budgeting for a celebration , the food alone is manageable, but a serious wine night here will add up.
For broader Melbourne dining context, see our full Melbourne restaurants guide. If you are planning a full evening around the area, our Melbourne bars guide and hotels guide cover the rest of the night. Wine-focused travellers will also find our Melbourne wineries guide useful for extending the trip. Elsewhere in Australia, Brae in Birregurra and Botanic in Adelaide operate at a comparable level of seriousness for wine and produce-driven cooking.
122 Russell St, Melbourne CBD. Star Wine List: 2021, 2022, 2026. Booking: easy, online recommended for weekends. Format: share plates, wine-led. Good for: dates, celebrations, wine-focused dinners, second visits.
Against Melbourne's broader dining field, Embla occupies a specific and useful position: serious wine credentials, a relaxed format, and a price point that sits below the full fine-dining tier. If your priority is the most technically ambitious food in the city, Attica is the benchmark, but it requires forward planning and a higher spend. Embla is the better call when the wine matters as much as the food and you want an evening that feels considered without the formality of a full tasting menu progression.
Vue de Monde is the direct comparison for occasion dining in Melbourne, and it wins on spectacle and service depth , the Rialto Tower setting is hard to match for sheer impact. But Embla is less expensive and easier to book, which makes it the more practical choice for diners who want quality without the full ceremony. For a date night where the wine list is the draw, Embla has the edge. Flower Drum is the right choice if you want a long, celebratory dinner in a classic room with polished service and Cantonese cooking at a high level, but it is a different format and a different experience entirely.
48h Pizza e Gnocchi Bar and Florentino sit at different points on the casual-to-formal spectrum but neither competes directly with Embla's wine program. If budget is the primary concern and you want something lighter and more casual, Bottarga and Aru Melbourne are worth considering as alternatives in the same neighbourhood range. For a first-time visitor to Melbourne who wants one dinner that covers both food quality and wine depth in a single sitting, Embla is the more efficient choice than splitting those priorities across two venues.
| Venue | Cuisine | Awards | Booking Difficulty | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Embla | Star Wine List (2026); Star Wine List (2022); Star Wine List (2021) | Easy | — | |
| Attica | Australian Modern | World's 50 Best | Unknown | — |
| Flower Drum | Cantonese | World's 50 Best | Unknown | — |
| Vue de Monde | Australian Fine Dining | Unknown | — | |
| Florentino | Modern Italian | Unknown | — | |
| 48h Pizza e Gnocchi Bar | Unknown | — |
A quick look at how Embla measures up.
Aim for neat, relaxed clothing — the kind you would wear to a serious wine bar rather than a formal restaurant. Embla sits in the CBD on Russell Street and draws a crowd that leans polished but not dressed up. Avoid beach casual, but there is no need for a jacket or tie.
For a more formal, occasion-driven meal, Vue de Monde or Flower Drum are the logical upgrades. If you want a comparable wine-forward, share-plate format with a looser atmosphere, Embla is harder to replace directly in the CBD. 48h Pizza e Gnocchi Bar covers the relaxed end of the spectrum if the wine depth is not your priority.
The wine program is the reason to come — Embla has earned Star Wine List recognition in 2021, 2022, and 2026, which is a verifiable signal that the list is worth working through with staff. Let the team guide your pairings rather than anchoring on a specific bottle. For food, the format is share plates, so order across a few dishes rather than treating it as a main-course meal.
Specific dietary accommodation details are not confirmed in available data. For anything beyond standard requests, call ahead or flag requirements at the time of booking — a share-plate format can be harder to adapt than a set menu, so the earlier you communicate, the better.
Yes, with the right expectations. Embla suits occasions where the wine experience is central to the celebration — its three Star Wine List awards give it real credibility as a destination for that. It is not a grand-dining room with white tablecloths, so if the occasion calls for formal theatre, Vue de Monde is the stronger fit. For a wine-focused birthday, anniversary, or industry dinner in the CBD, Embla is a practical and well-credentialed choice.
Embla is wine-led first, food second — come with that framing and the experience lands well. The format is share plates at 122 Russell Street, close to Melbourne's theatre district, so it works as a pre- or post-show dinner. Book online for weekends; weekday walk-ins are more achievable. The three Star Wine List recognitions (2021, 2022, 2026) are the most useful signal that the list is substantive, not just long.
Keep this venue in your Pearl passport, rate it after you visit, and track it alongside every other place you collect.
