Minamishima Named Restaurant Of The Year At Good Food Guide Awards

In its first year of opening, Japanese restaurant Minamishima has been named Restaurant of the Year at The Age Good Food Guide Awards.

The accolades didn’t end there for Minamishima, with manager and sommelier Randolph Cheung winning the Citi Service Excellence award, along with the restaurant taking home two chef’s hats.

Owner-chef Koichi Minamishima opened his eponymous restaurant in late 2014 offering omakase (chef’s choice) dining with one simple goal: “To fill each customer with joy through the art of sushi”.

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Coupled with Cheung’s seamless service and expert sake and wine matching, Minamishima has found the recipe for success.

Also winning two major awards was Birregurra restaurant Brae - the Regional Restaurant of the Year and Citi Chef of the Year for owner-chef Dan Hunter.

The restaurant, almost two hour’s drive from Melbourne, retained three hats, the Guide’s highest accolade.

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Attica was the only Melbourne restaurant awarded three hats in the 2016 Guide.

However, the two hat category increased from 16 to 20 restaurants in the past 12 months, with Minamishima, Circa, Moon Under Water, The Press Club and Woodland House all joining the two-hat ranks.

A total of 15 awards were presented on the night:

Vittoria Coffee Restaurant of the Year: Minamishima, Richmond
Best New Restaurant: Tipo 00, Melbourne
People’s Choice Award: Red Spice Road, Melbourne
Citi Chef of the Year: Dan Hunter
Brae Young Chef of the Year: George Tomlin, The Town Mouse
Santa Vittoria Regional Restaurant of the Year: Brae, Birregurra
Food For Good Award: ASRC Catering
Best Cheap Eat: Delhi Streets, Melbourne
Citi Service Excellence: Randolph Cheung, Minamishima
Vittoria Coffee Legend (for an outstanding long-term contribution to the industry): Gail and Kevin Donovan, Donovans
Best Bar: Romeo Lane, Melbourne
Donlevy Fitzpatrick Award (honouring restaurant-quality food in a bar setting): Bar Clarine, Fitzroy
Champagne Pol Roger Sommelier of the Year: Meira Harel, Lake House
Wine List of the Year: Woodland House, Prahran
Regional Wine List of the Year: Ten Minutes by Tractor, Main Ridge

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