The ultimate guide to Chinatown

Take the queues snaking out the door as a sign that Shanghai Street is the real deal. Fried pork mini buns or fried chicken and prawn dumplings are on hand for the hungry. Steamed snacks await if you want a warming meal with a pillowy texture, and vegetarians have some un-bao-lievable options too.

You've slurped your way through spicy Sichuan, kimchi stew and meaty beef broths. Now it's time to go luxe with Fishpot, a dazzling new hotpot restaurant serving silky smooth fish-based broth. Order luxurious ingredients like lobster, sashimi and premium wagyu to cook at your expert-designed hotpot station. Ready to eat? With the tap of a button the cooking basket automatically lifts up, no effort required.

A far cry from the old movie theatre claw machines, the ‘UFO Catchers’ at Million Life in Kmart Centre are cute as can be. Test precision and coordination skills to win everything from anime plushies to Pokémon keychains. Keep the quirky fun times coming with a wander upstairs in MidCity Centre, where secret sushi train, robot dessert machines and Chinese theatre awaits.

Melburnians are no strangers to bubble tea. But the Taiwanese tea masters at BlackBall have given the beloved drink an icy edge in the form of their ‘snow ice’. Just picture a mountain of creamy shaved ice, drowned in dessert fixings. Almost caramel in colour, the milk tea flavoured treat served with sticky boba is too sweet to pass up. 

Hidden underneath Chinatown, Bar Clara is a gorgeous basement bar with an expertly curated cocktail list. Skip dessert and order the banoffee pie cocktail, made with clarified banana whisky. Topped with toasted meringue for extra decadence.

The self-guided Heart of the City walk leads you through all the Chinatown highlights. Follow the glowing lanterns to see the winding Chinese dragons at the Chinese Museum. Stop for a lunchtime yum cha feast and seek out hidden bars.