Best food and cosy atmosphere.
So many good wines to choose from, an outstanding menu' and a superior design makes this place one of the best in Melbourne.
Well done!
Really loved it here. Great food and drinks but most importantly really great staff that made the night fantastic. Thanks guys! Will definitely come back!
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The Moat is a lovely hidden restaurant that is below street level. This makes it a little dark and moody, so it's a great atmosphere for a date night. Staff are lovely and instantly make you feel welcome and I found the service to be really good.
We decided to pop in for some drinks and a few tapas style dishes. The charcuterie board was a generous helping of a delicious assortment of deli goods. Olives, mushroom pate, chutney, dried fruit, nuts and cheese all accompanied by some yummy Turkish bread. Just the sort of thing to enjoy with several glasses of excellent wine.
We also chose some Mexican chicken wings and also a bowl of crispy potatoes. The chicken had a nice spicy sauce, and the chicken was still moist. The potatoes were delightful, with lots of salt, and totally addictive.
The Moat is a really nice venue with delicious food, a great drinks menu and fabulous service. If you are walking past, and see the steps leading down to this hidden treasure, you really should venture in to try it.
Such a lovely small hidden gem!
The food was well seasoned, great portion and you pay for what you get!
Would definitely recommend for duos wanting to go for an adventure
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J’s score 3.5 stars. J caught up with her sister here (early in the week) for dinner quite a while ago. Chosen by little Sis - not the sort of place that J (or I) would normally go to foodwise.
A nice relaxed space - the corner table they were at had heaps of room. Service was very friendly & helpful – really impressive according to J 👍 😁.
A good place to meet up & have a drink with friends/family. Apparently the bubbles had were just average, but the Pinot Grigio was quite nice.
J had: Pan fried barrumundi w asparagus > Tasty, fish nicely cooked, but serve was quite small. Little Sis had: Chicken & feta meatballs w slaw > She said it was nice – a reasonable sized serve too.
There was also a Cauli gratin > Which was ok, but tiny & not very cheesy (came off second best compared to their mom’s version I would say 🤣)!
Little Sis also managed to fit in: Choc tart w choc soil > She liked it (J tasted the soil which she said was nice).
Overall food was ok, but not amazing – only fair to middling value. Best part of the evening was the company & the service…
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Penang Duck Curry
I am so glad we chose the Penang duck curry, it’s a little pricey but trust me it’s SO GOOD. We were kind of worried that it was going to be really spicy but it wasn’t. I could actually enjoy eating curry without chugging a full glass of water every bite. The taste was creamy and light taste very good with the eggplant despite my hatred for eggplant. I don’t know what peanut samba is but it tastes bloody good! It is like melted peanut brittle sauce, and it tasted amazing mixed with the duck leg. Now the duck leg, the meat just fell clean off the bone when we cut it up. It didn’t taste fatty which was good, mixing it in with the curry and peanut samba, perfect. Overall, get.this.dish. its so worth the money!!!!
Pork Belly with Salad
The special dish sounded very interesting as I’ve never tried Hawaiian food before. I’ve got to say the overall dish tasted very different then I expected because there were a lot of different mixes of textures and tastes. The crispy pork belly was the best of course, not too salty but still full of flavor kind of hard to cut though. I was actually very surprised with how soft and creamy the avocado was, I’ve never eaten an avocado that ripe in my life, it was literally soft enough to mix into the salad. The different veggies mixed with the rice was nice but tasted kind of plain, we might of not mixed the salad properly but I felt healthy asf after eating that. If you’re looking for something light and healthy to eat you should try the special if it available but to me the dish was filling but not satisfying.
3.7
A cold Monday night in Melbourne but it was lovely and warm inside The Moat. The decor was warm and inviting too. It’s predominantly a sharing menu here. We had the beef ribs then roast chat potatoes with rosemary and aioli. Then we had a serve of chicken and feta meatballs served on a crunchy coleslaw. All dishes were tasty and exactly as described on the menu. Nice wine list too. I had a Chain of Ponds rose which went down well. While the restaurant wasn’t well patronized on a Monday night, the staff remained impressively upbeat. Our server was both pleasant and stylish.
This is a lovely warm space for a meal before or after seeing a movie as we did at Melbourne Central. It’s a nice restaurant.
Cute hidden bar on the busy Lonsdale Street. I love their outdoor seating especially at night (beautiful strings of lights). Instagramable. Lol.
$12 craft beer on 1L erlenmeyer flask for happy hour!
Their waiters were really friendly.
Could not recommend this place enough. My friends and I recently threw a surprise birthday dinner here. The staff were so beautiful and accommodating, not to mention knowledgeable. The food was exceptional, and the cosy and warm atmosphere makes you feel like home. A little hidden gem amongst the sometimes generic Melbourne cbd
Quiet, sophisticated, classy, with all the mood lighting.
Perfect date casual spot or place to have an initimate catch up over a range of cocktails and drinks.
We'd suggest to get the cheeseboard which is also part of a great happy hour!
Staff were attentive and lovely.
Great little gem on a laneway on Melbourne (always where the good ones are hidden).
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Great service, underground restaurant with olden day European vibes. Must get the deboned lamb entree. Braised beef was pretty good too, tasted like Mexican tacos. Panang curry was a disappoint - would be better if it wasn’t vegetarian. Ice cream slider was good! Tapioca pudding ok
I love the Moat. Having been a customer for over three years and an employer for 1 year (2016), I can vouch for the high quality food, drinks and service, and great management. I love hanging out in the sunny courtyard with a beer after work. Love my chats with the friendly staff and owners, as do many other Melbourne CBD locals. Stay for dinner, the menu is delicious!
Can’t fault my experience here; great food, excellent vibe on a cold winter night, top service and delicious food & drinks. The old fashioned that I had was done and presented well. Every aspect was just done really well. I generally don’t eat gnocchi often but the one I had was tasty and had great consistency.
Great little discovery this one. The restaurant bar is located down stairs in a basement under the state library. Awesome eclectic relaxed vibe, staff are super friendly. We went for drinks, Awesome drinks selection. They know how to make cocktails. We must try for dinner.
Wonderful restaurant with a quiet but nice atmosphere. Friendly and attentive service.
The food was delicious and they have an excellent cocktail menu.
This place would be excellent for date night or celebrating a special occasion.
So good to have Melbourne open again!! We hadn't been to The Moat for about six months but as usual it didn't disappoint. For all you plant lovers, the menu has mouthwatering vegan options for entrée, mains and desert. The vegan lasagna is GOOD! The staff were friendly, courteous and lovely and the venue is amazing and romantic as ever. Thanks for a great night out. Rob n Tiff x
Great service. Waitress very engaging and helpful.
Happy hour menu from 4 to 6 pm. Felt like a Harry Potter film set. Very eclectic decor.
Nice place to sit and chat with friends. The outdoor was covered with big umbrellas (from the rain) and heater was provided to keep warm. Convenient ordering via QR code. No smoking even for outdoor seating.
EXCELLENT !
what an awesome find !
beautiful food and amazing staff - nothing was too much trouble, we were made to feel genuinely welcome, and just passing by the table later to check everything was okay.
wonderful atmosphere and nice range of food and drinks.
located under the state library off Lt Collins street.
SOOOO please we found this place
highly recommended ! wish i could give more than 5 stars :)
The go to place for winter soul food. Had the lamb shoulder with some mash; prawn papardelle and a few glasses of mulled wine tonight. So yum!
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