A Guide to the Most Unique Dining Experiences in Australia

Enjoying some fine dining is one thing — enjoying it alongside spectacular scenery is quite another. A breathtaking backdrop can help turn your typical dining affair into a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

Australia is spoilt with beautiful outlooks, playing host to countless restaurants and delicious gourmet events.

Need help deciding where to start? We’ve tasted our way across the country to bring you our pick of the most unique dining experiences in Australia to add to your foodie bucket list. Read on for the most unique dining experiences in Australia…

Unique Dining Experiences: Victoria

Eat, Drink, Stay & Play at Brae, Victoria

The very definition of farm-to-plate, this hatted restaurant sits on 30 acres with vegetable plots and an established grove of over 100 trees. Brae uses fresh produce from its farm as well as that of local producers and growers, to shape its ever-changing menu.

As well as crafting life-changing farm-fresh cuisine, Brae offers six luxury guest suites that are a lesson in effortless, modern chic. Recycled red brick, corrugated iron and pale timber create a setting that’s arrestingly beautiful in its simplicity.

Your stay will have you waking up to the fresh scent of wood-fired sourdough and fresh orange juice, and leave you with time to explore the very gardens and farm that your dinner came from.

4285 Cape Otway Road, Birregurra, Victoria

Unique Dining Experiences: Northern Territory

Wine and Dine Aboard The Ghan

Step aboard The Ghan and be transported back to the golden age of travel, when service was impeccable, and life was as much about the journey as the destination.

A quintessentially Australian experience that combines luxury travel with exquisite food and awe-inspiring landscapes, this renowned expedition promises access to parts of the country that remain unspoiled.

Taking you deep into the heart of Australia from Darwin to Adelaide, guests will be equally as inspired by what’s coming out of the kitchen. Rivalling the country’s best restaurants, indulge in sumptuous, regionally inspired cuisine, fine wines, and local delicacies.

Passengers can also look forward to dinner beneath the stars at Alice Springs’ historic Telegraph Station. Sit back, sip chilled sparkling and savour every bite while the stunning landscapes pass you by.

Departures from Darwin and Adelaide

3 Salloo Street, East Arm, Northern Territory

Sounds of Silence, Uluru

Forming part of the Australian Tourism Hall of Fame, the Uluru ‘Sounds of Silence’ will transport you into the outback for a magical four-hour dining experience underneath the stars.

Start the evening with bubbles and canapés, followed by a three-course bush tucker-inspired buffet, all of which will be accompanied by a live Didgeridoo soundtrack playing softly in the background.

Sit back and listen to the signs of the zodiac with a guided tour of the southern night sky, whilst the iconic sight of Uluru sets the scene as your breathtaking backdrop.

Ayers Rock Resort, 170 Yulara Drive, Yulara, Northern Territory

Unique Dining Experiences: Sydney

Dine Within the Opera House Sails at Bennelong

Bennelong’s two hats and prime position under one of the iconic Sydney Opera House sails offer you the chance to soak up this iconic building, alongside the opportunity to sample hyper-local produce and native ingredients. Aged meats, wild-caught fish and specialty cuts dot the menu, whilst an incredible wine list enhances the already superb offering.

Unique Dining Experiences: Western Australia

Gourmet Camp Oven Experience

The outback of Kununurra, within the East Kimberly, is the backdrop to this memorable meal, which takes place in a secret location hemmed by boab trees and towering red cliffs. Each dish is made over a camp stove and cooked upon coals using sandalwood off-cuts. Locally-sourced ingredients and bush tucker are the heroes of each dish in the four-course spread.

The menu shifts and changes, but you can look forward to the likes of Top End crocodile with lemon myrtle and hibiscus jam and potato rosti with wild-caught Barramundi.

The dinner operates seasonally, allowing the space to regenerate and breathe.

Unique Dining Experiences: Queensland

Private Helicopter over the Great Barrier Reef

Take date night up to The Bachelor level by booking a private helicopter tour to a secluded sandy beach on the Great Barrier Reef. Setting off from Cairns, couples will be treated to postcard-worthy views over the iconic Great Barrier Reef, before landing on Vlasoff Cay — a private and pristine sand cay in the middle of the reef.

You’ll be left for two hours where you can relax with a gourmet picnic hamper, picnic blanket and cushions, along with sparkling wine or beer. This package also comes with snorkelling gear and a beach umbrella, so everything is covered for your full enjoyment.

Departures from Cairns

Unique Dining Experiences: Tasmania

Fresh Oysters, Saffire Freycinet

There’s enjoying fresh oysters, and then there’s shucking them straight from the ocean and eating them there. This Tasmanian dining experience is offered exclusively to guests staying at the luxury hotel, Saffire Freycinet.

Located in the calm waters of the Freycinet Peninsula, visitors will dine in a private table setting floating in the middle of the water, where they’ll learn about the region and how to shuck like a pro, all the while sampling the freshly caught ocean delights — a serving of fresh oysters and delicious steamed mussels.

2532 Coles Bay Road, Coles Bay Tasmania

Filled with wanderlust after reading about the most unique dining experiences in Australia? Why not add a winery or fun road trip itinerary to the bucket list, too?