Melba launches season’s harvest – a celebration of fresh, local produce

“We’re thrilled to announce that 70% of produce served at Melba Restaurant is from Victoria. From basil from a farm in Bendigo to tuna that swum off the shores of Portland to honey from Beechworth to cheese made just 45 minutes away in the Yarra Valley, Melba Restaurant is sharing with guests the provenance of the restaurant’s hero ingredients,” explains The Langham, Melbourne’s Director of Food & Beverage, Anthony Ross.

“Our guests are astute diners from around the globe. The Langham, Melbourne hosted over 25 000 guests from overseas in 2018. Season’s Harvest is the perfect platform to showcase Victoria’s local produce and sensational beef, fish and fruit from interstate,” adds The Langham, Melbourne’s Managing Director, Andrew Jessop.

“In 2018, Melba Restaurant served over 200 000 meals. We felt that it’s time to share with our guests where our ingredients come from. Our chefs have enjoyed meeting with local farmers, fishermen, cheese-makers and bakers and finding ways we can work together,” explains Jessop.

“Diners will be able to see where many of the ingredients come from by reading the labels at Melba’s open kitchen and all of Melba’s team members have learned where ingredients are grown or reared and are able to talk to diners about different areas of Victoria,” adds Jessop.

“We hope local and international diners enjoy learning more about how Melba Restaurant is committed to a “fresh is best” and “local wherever possible” commitment,” echoes Ross.

For instance, B&B Basil, located 133 km away from The Langham, Melbourne supplies the hotel with basil and fresh edible flowers.

Meanwhile, Hawkes Farm, located an hour and twenty minute drive, (67km away) from the hotel, supplies Melba Restaurant with potatoes, Dutch carrots, beetroot, spring onions, parsley and strawberries and corn when in season.

Hawkes Farm is not only a supplier to five star hotels. It is also open to the public (7 days a week, 8am to 5pm) and hosts farm tours where visitors can pick their own produce. More information is available at hawkesfarm.com.au.

Melba Restaurant’s antipasto table is a magnet for those who love cured meats and cheese.

Most of the cheese served at Melba Restaurant is from just 64kim away from L’Artisan Cheese who make organic French-style cheese or from the Yarra Valley Dairy, which is just a quick helicopter flight from the Yarra River heliport or just over an hour’s drive (64km) from the hotel.

Yarra Valley Dairy is famous for its Persian-style fetta and a visit is popular with children and adults alike largely due to the easy access to watch the dairy’s goats play.

Melba Restaurant serves a lot of tomatoes. From Caprese salads to roasted ones at breakfast, it’s a local farm from Bacchus Marsh called Flavorite Farm (1 hour, 40 minutes/108 km) that keeps up with the hotel’s ongoing demand for the best tomatoes.

All of the hotel’s charcuterie, including prosciutto, mortadella and salami comes from a local supplier in Daylesford (89km from hotel).

Melba Restaurant is renowned for its five-spice duck pancakes. The restaurant manager has witnessed some diners waiting patiently for a third helping. And it’s not unheard of to over-hear diners plotting what to have next, “should I have the Indian goat curry, the roast or maybe a steak?” they ask aloud.

When diners do decide what to order to next, they’ll be enjoying meat and poultry from around Australia including premium rye and clover-fed Angus beef from O’Connors Farms Pakenham (96km). Free-range pasture-fed lamb from the Wimmera region of Victoria (73km) is processed by senior butchers before arriving at the hotel while goats come from South Gippsland (132km).

Birchley free-range pork belly and pork Scotch fillets travel from the outskirts of Victoria near Mt Mercer (157km). The large white, Duroc breed of pigs live in eco-shelters in the open air with a covered roof and eat straw, wheat and barley.

Victorian diners are also blessed with plenty of choice when it comes to seafood. Port Phillip Bay provides an abundance of mussels, snapper and scallops throughout the season while blue swimmer crab comes from Westernport Bay (80km), bluefin tuna from Portland (356km), pippies from Venus Bay (169km) and Hiramasa kingfish from Port Fairy (247km).

Oysters are a popular mollusc at Melba Restaurant – the restaurant serves over 600 dozen per week. That’s a whopping 374 000 oysters each year. To meet demand, Melba Restaurant sources oysters from around Australia from leading seafood providers.

Prawns are almost as sought-after and over 10 tonnes of the crustaceans are served annually. For some, smoked salmon is synonymous with a visit to Melba Restaurant be it for breakfast, lunch or dinner. As a result, over five tonnes of smoked salmon is enjoyed each year.

Is it possible that Melba Restaurant serves more free-range chicken and free-range eggs than any other five star hotel in Melbourne. It’s hard to say but with over 10 tonnes of free-range chicken consumed each year, it’s a genuine possibility.

No less than 2400 free-range eggs from Devon Meadows (50km) are used each week to make omelettes and other made-to-order egg dishes.

During the summer months, Melba Restaurant uses a massive 25 000 punnets of Victorian strawberries.

It’s not just edible produce that has a Victorian focus at Melba Restaurant. The popular dining venue’s wine list shines a light on local Victorian wine and local mineral water from Hepburn Springs (1 hour 40 minutes/121 km).

Melba Restaurant is open every day for breakfast (from $49.00 per person), lunch (from $67.00 per person) and dinner (from $97.00 per person).

Children under the age of three dine for free, seniors enjoy a discount and children aged between four and 12 dine for half the price making Melba Restaurant an ideal choice for families.

Breakfast includes juices-made-to-order, eggs made-to-order, fruit, pastries, Asian dishes, yogurt, waffles and more.

Lunch and dinner includes a crustacean bar, a sushi and sashimi station, an antipasto table, roast dishes, Indian curries, dumplings for days, stir-fries, steaks and pasta dishes all made to order from Melba Restaurant’s grill and wok section plus incredible Indian dishes and more.

And there’s a chocolate fountain, dessert showcase, ice cream and plenty of Victorian cheese.

Melba is ideal for groups and can cater for up to 240 guests at a time.

The restaurant is popular for families as there is always something for everyone, even the fussiest of eaters.

Bookings can be made by visiting melbarestaurant.com.au, contacting rest.res@langhamhotels.com or by calling 1800 641 107.