Rockpool Bar & Grill Melbourne

01What to order

• Cape Grim rib eye on the bone, 400 g / 14 ozBlack Angus, 36 months on grass, dry-aged 42 days, A$105 on the October 2026 menu. The Cape Grim fillet, 250 g / 9 oz, is A$89.
• Pure Black F1 Wagyu rib eye on the bone, 800 g / 28 ozBarley-fed, marble score 8+, 45 days, A$360. The same beef comes as a 500 g / 18 oz sirloin on the bone (A$165) or a 240 g / 8.5 oz rump (A$85).
• Blackmore's Rohnes sirloin, 400 g / 14 ozDavid Blackmore's grass-fed line, MS 7+, 21 days, A$195; the same beef sells as eye of chuck, blade, skirt or topside, 240 g / 8.5 oz, A$65–72.
• Rangers Valley rib eye on the bone, 800 g / 28 ozGrain-fed Black Angus, MS 5+, 32 days, A$260.
• Coppertree Farms rib eye on the bone, 400 g / 14 ozHereford, 36 months on grass, 14 days, A$105.
• Chuleta, 1 kg / 2.2 lb, for sharingPure Black F1 Wagyu with beef garum and bay leaf, A$420; 45 minutes to cook, like the 1 kg / 2.2 lb Pure Black T-bone (A$380) and the 1 kg / 2.2 lb Cape Grim chateaubriand (A$380).

02The beef

Six producers on the October 2026 menu. Blackmore's Rohnes: grass-fed, MS 7+, 21 days. Westholme: F1 Wagyu, grain-fed, MS 9+, days not stated. Pure Black: F1 Wagyu, barley-fed, MS 8+, 45 days. Rangers Valley: Black Angus, grain-fed, MS 5+, 32 days. Coppertree Farms: Hereford, 36 months on grass, 14 days. Cape Grim: Black Angus, 36 months on grass, 42 days. The menu states that all beef is dry-aged in house and that fillets are best without ageing. In 2007 the house sold a 350 g / 12 oz grass-fed rib eye aged 44 days for A$60, and a 200 g / 7 oz Wagyu rib eye aged 24 days for A$110.

03The fire

Ironbark logs in a custom grill. The house says so. The menu says wood fire. Charcoal appears only for the prawns, the baby carrots and the pumpkin. Large cuts take 45 minutes; the Sommerlad chicken, 50. Order it bone-in.

04The story

Neil Perry opened Rockpool in Sydney in 1989. The Melbourne Bar & Grill followed at Crown in 2006, by the house's own count and Man of Many's; Time Out and Wikipedia give 2007, and Gourmet Traveller reviewed it in its September 2007 issue, in its 'frantic opening months', before naming it New Restaurant of the Year 2008. In November 2016 Perry sold the Rockpool Group, its three Bar & Grills included, to the Urban Purveyor Group, which became Rockpool Dining Group; in May 2021 that group split, and the Bar & Grills, Spice Temple, Rosetta and Saké went to Hunter St. Hospitality under CEO Thomas Pash, with Perry as a shareholder. The Sydney sibling was No. 38 in the World's 101 Best Steak Restaurants 2026; Melbourne was not on the list.

05The practical

Crown Melbourne, 8 Whiteman Street, Southbank. Lunch daily 12 to 2:30 pm. Dinner Monday to Thursday and Sunday 6 to 9 pm, Friday and Saturday 5:30 to 10 pm. Bar menu daily 12 to 5 pm; a burger and a glass for members, walk-in only, 12 to 3 pm. Phone +61 3 9081 0532. Surcharges: 10 per cent on Sundays, 15 per cent on public holidays. Bookings through SevenRooms on the Hunter St. site.

Address

Crown Melbourne, 8 Whiteman Street, Southbank VIC 3006

Phone

+61 3 9081 0532

Website

hunterstreethospitality.com.au

Directions

Google Maps ↗

06In Melbourne’s selections