Restaurant in Melbourne, Australia
Book it for fire-cooked Australian produce.
Scott Pickett's South Yarra restaurant makes the case for open-fire cooking as a serious fine-dining proposition, not just a technique. With a Josper oven, rotisserie, and wood-fired grill all visible from the dining room, and seasonal botanical installations that shift the room with the calendar, Matilda 159 Domain is the right choice when you want produce-led Australian cooking with atmosphere that earns its price point.
If you are choosing between Matilda 159 Domain and Melbourne's other fire-focused restaurants, Matilda wins on atmosphere and produce provenance. It is not as cerebrally challenging as Attica, and it is less formal than Vue de Monde, but that is precisely its advantage: Scott Pickett's South Yarra room delivers serious cooking in a space that feels accessible rather than intimidating. Book here when you want the food to do the talking without the ceremony.
Matilda 159 Domain sits at 159 Domain Road in South Yarra, a location that puts it within easy reach of the Botanic Gardens precinct and a short drive or tram ride from the CBD. The address is well-serviced by public transport on the Domain Road corridor, making it a practical choice whether you are staying centrally or visiting from across the city. For a full picture of where to eat, drink, and stay nearby, see our full Melbourne restaurants guide, our Melbourne hotels guide, and our Melbourne bars guide.
The room was designed by Projects of Imagination, and the brief clearly prioritised warmth over drama. Tables are made from Otway Blackwood timber, and botanical installations rotate with the seasons, which means the space looks and feels different depending on when you visit. The open kitchen is the spatial anchor: a Josper oven, rotisserie, and wood-fired grill are all visible from the dining room, and the fire itself provides a low, ambient heat that shifts the atmosphere as the evening progresses. For a restaurant built around a cooking philosophy, that transparency is a genuine asset. You are not just eating the result of the fire; you are watching it happen.
The seasonal dimension matters here more than at most Melbourne restaurants. Because the botanical installations change and the kitchen's sourcing is tied to Australian produce cycles, the menu you encounter in June (citrus, root vegetables, colder-weather proteins) will be meaningfully different from what arrives in December (stone fruits, lighter preparations, summer seafood). The leading reason to visit in late spring and summer is that Australian produce hits a particular peak at that time of year, and a kitchen built around open-fire cooking tends to show those ingredients at their most direct. That said, winter visits reward anyone who wants to see what the Josper does to longer-cooked, heavier cuts. The seasonality is not a marketing construct here; it is baked into both the room and the kitchen's sourcing logic.
Chef Scott Pickett has built a recognisable presence in Melbourne's dining scene, and Matilda is the most personal of his venues, named after his daughter and drawing on his South Australian background. The kitchen works with wet and dry-aged beef alongside open-fire techniques, which positions Matilda firmly in the territory of serious meat cookery without being exclusively a steakhouse. The beverage program covers local and international wines with an emphasis on guiding diners through pairings, and the floor staff are noted for their knowledge in this area. If wine pairing matters to your experience, this is worth factoring into your decision. For a comparable approach to produce-driven cooking with fire in a different register, Brae in Birregurra is the logical regional alternative if you are willing to travel. In the CBD, Aru Melbourne operates in adjacent territory with its own open-fire focus.
For food and wine enthusiasts who follow what is happening in Australian fine dining, Matilda is worth comparing against Rockpool in Sydney, which occupies a similar position in its city: chef-driven, fire-adjacent, produce-focused, and pitched at a serious but not exclusively formal audience. The two kitchens approach the question of Australian ingredients from different angles, and visiting both across a trip gives you a useful read on how the country's leading end is thinking about sourcing and technique right now.
Other Melbourne options worth knowing: Bottarga for seafood-led modern cooking, Amaru in Armadale for a tasting-menu alternative in the same south-of-river precinct, and Flower Drum if you want Melbourne's most celebrated Cantonese room as a contrast. For a completely different price point, 48h Pizza e Gnocchi Bar covers casual Italian with genuine rigour. See also our Melbourne wineries guide and our Melbourne experiences guide if you are planning a longer trip.
Address: 159 Domain Rd, South Yarra VIC 3141. Reservations: Booking is rated Easy — you should be able to secure a table with a week or two of lead time, though weekend evenings and peak summer months may require more notice. Dress: No dress code is specified, but the room and price tier suggest smart-casual is the right call. Leading time to visit: Late spring through summer (October to February) when Australian produce is at its seasonal peak and the botanical installations are at their most lush; winter visits work well if your focus is on aged beef and heavier fire-cooked preparations. Bookings: Reserve directly through the restaurant's website or by phone. Nearby: The South Yarra location puts you close to the Royal Botanic Gardens and Chapel Street, making it a natural fit for a longer afternoon-into-evening in the precinct.
| Venue | Cuisine | Price | Booking Difficulty |
|---|---|---|---|
| Matilda 159 Domain | Easy | ||
| Attica | Australian Modern | Unknown | |
| Flower Drum | Cantonese | Unknown | |
| Vue de Monde | Australian Fine Dining | Unknown | |
| Florentino | Modern Italian | Unknown | |
| 48h Pizza e Gnocchi Bar | Unknown |
Comparing your options in Melbourne for this tier.
The open kitchen at Matilda 159 Domain is a design feature, not a counter-dining setup in the traditional sense. Your best approach is to check the venue's official channels to ask about bar or counter seating options, as the setup centres on table dining in a room designed around a Josper oven, rotisserie, and wood-fired grill. If counter-style fire-kitchen viewing is your priority, confirm availability when booking.
Booking is rated Easy at Matilda 159 Domain, so one to two weeks of lead time should be enough for most nights. For Friday and Saturday dinner, or if you have a specific group size or occasion in mind, two weeks out gives you more flexibility on timing and table placement. Last-minute tables do turn up, but there is no reason to leave it to chance.
The interior, designed by Projects of Imagination with Otway Blackwood tables and botanical installations, signals a polished but grounded dining room rather than a formal one. Dress in a way that matches the setting: neat and considered, but not black-tie. Think dinner-out clothes rather than a suit.
Yes. The combination of Scott Pickett's profile, the theatrical open kitchen with Josper oven and rotisserie, and the designed interior makes Matilda 159 Domain a strong choice for birthdays, anniversaries, or a meaningful dinner out. It works better for occasions where you want atmosphere and cooking craft front and centre, rather than a quiet, formal room.
Vue de Monde is the choice if you want maximum formality and a view to match; Attica is the call for tasting-menu-led native Australian produce at a higher price point. Florentino suits a classic CBD institution feel, while Flower Drum remains the benchmark for Cantonese in Melbourne. For a lower-spend night, 48h Pizza e Gnocchi Bar covers craft and produce without the fire-kitchen occasion framing.
The open kitchen at Matilda makes solo dining more engaging than a standard restaurant, since the fire-cooking theatrics give you something to watch. Confirm bar or counter seating availability when booking, as that tends to be the most comfortable solo format. The South Yarra location at 159 Domain Road is easy to reach without needing a group to justify the trip.
A menu built around open-fire cooking, wet and dry aged beef, and Australian produce can accommodate some dietary needs but may be limited for those avoiding meat or animal products. Contact the restaurant ahead of your visit to confirm what the kitchen can adapt. Dietary requests are always better flagged at booking rather than on arrival.
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