High above Melbourne, Langlands Restaurant & Bar is back. The 25th-floor restaurant has reopened with a new menu and a new look.
Inside Hyatt Centric Melbourne, the reimagined restaurant has been transformed by NUMI Collective into a warmer, more open dining room, while Head Chef Richard Abella has put charcoal, smoke and Australian produce at the centre of the kitchen.
Here, you’ll find an Australian grill with an Asian-leaning perspective, shaped by Abella’s Filipino heritage and Melbourne’s famously multicultural food culture.
A restaurant built around flame
For Abella, cooking over flame stretches well beyond technique. It takes him back to childhood evenings in the Philippines, when charcoal fires, freshly caught fish and outdoor family meals marked the end of the day.
Finally, he’s bringing those memories to Langlands, cooking Victorian and Australian produce over hibachi grills fired with Australian hardwood charcoal.
“We’re not trying to tell the story of Australian cuisine, we’re telling ours,” says Abella. “My cooking has always started with fire, and now I’m taking techniques I’ve known my whole life and applying them to incredible Australian produce with flavours from the land around my heritage.”
Moreover, that mission carries through the menu, where Australian produce meets flavours inspired by Abella’s Filipino heritage. The cooking is kept simple and centred around the fire, allowing the quality of the ingredients to shine.
“Every dish celebrates the ingredients we’re lucky to work with, and the way people love to eat today,” says Abella.
A new look, 25 floors up
NUMI Collective has reworked the 137-seat dining room, building on the original design by Hecker Guthrie while opening the space up to the stunning view.
The team removed internal walls and oversized banquettes, opening up the dining room to create a lighter, more spacious setting with sweeping views across Melbourne’s CBD, Port Phillip Bay and the Dandenong Ranges.
Rich timber, textured upholstery, custom lighting and soft metal drapery bring warmth to the space, while artworks add a distinctly Melbourne edge. Among them is a sculptural work inspired by the city from artist Suzie Stanford.
To keep things casual, Langlands is introducing a rotating line-up of weekly specials. Tuesday is Date Night, with a sharing menu designed for an affordable midweek dinner at $54 per person.
Wednesday brings Steak Night, serving a 300g porterhouse with fries, salad and a glass of house wine or beer for $38. Also, for two, diners can upgrade to a 600g Black Angus ribeye with kipfler potatoes and garden greens for $128. Then there’s the Weekend Roast, available for Saturday and Sunday lunch for $42.
Wine & dine with a Melbournian spin
Among the standout dishes are Abrolhos Island scallops with burnt butter, sambal and green mango; sirloin pincho with tamarind, shallot and chilli; and Spencer Gulf king prawns with crab fat and calamansi. There’s also Hiramasa kingfish collar with nam jim, fried garlic and lime, alongside Western Plains pork belly served with nam jim jaew.
Beverage Manager Rosie Kim has developed a drinks list that puts local wine alongside classic cocktails and seasonal pours. Langlands has also teamed up with Brunswick Aces to create its own Allie Lane Gin, which features in the cocktail program.
Another popular sip is the Tokyoside, a smoked billy tea-infused cocktail designed to echo the flavours and fire-driven character of the food.
Langlands’ reopening represents a deliberate attempt to establish a stronger identity for a restaurant that has one of Melbourne’s more dramatic dining room settings. Now, Hyatt puts its own spin on Australian dining, pairing exceptional local produce with open-fire cooking and the cultural influences that shape its kitchen.
Langlands Restaurant & Bar is now open on Level 25 of Hyatt Centric Melbourne at 25 Downie Street.
