The magical festival, RISING, is returning to Melbourne in June. And while you’re out there exploring the city and engaging in art, culture and music, you might get hungry. Thankfully, RISING is celebrating Melbourne’s thriving culinary scene with a mouth-watering line-up of food and drink. Think Negroni tanks, oysters, boozy hot chocolate and more. The festival will run from June 7 to 18.
Here’s just some of the exciting food and drink waiting for you at RISING:
Night Trade
Visit this vibrant hub across the grounds of St Paul’s Cathedral. This buzzing space will feature plenty of pop-up performances, and most importantly, plenty of food and drink. Whether you want to stick around and absorb the action around you, or you need to grab something quick on the way to a show, you’ll be sure to find something that suits.
Expect items like hot pies from social enterprise Free to Feed, and flame-cooked BBQ skewers from Filipino street food icons Hoy Pinoy.
As for drinks, you can’t miss the giant Archie Rose Negroni Tank, which will hold 11,000 cocktails. You’ll also find Bodriggy tinnies, and a sci-fi wine wall that will pour tap wines curated by Glou Sustainable Wine Bar.
At the centre of Night Trade, you’ll find Up Bar, which will house a fully-stocked hand-pinked selection of Archie Rose pre-mixes, Victorian wines, beer from Bodriggy Brewing Company and a spicy ginger beer brewed just for the festival. Up customers can also get $5 off their first order at the bar.
The Rink at RISING
Embrace the winter nights by ice-skating on the banks of the Birrarung. After that, warm up with a selection of food and drink. Hot Dog Deli will serve up a range of buttered popcorn, hot dogs and loaded fries. You’ll also find wood-fired pizza from Fugazi, pies from Pie Thief, chips and dips by Chappy’s and Free to Feed, and crepes from Crepes for Change. For dessert, there’s Manny’s Doughnuts and ice cream.
Stay toasty with boozy hot chocolate from Mörk and an Archie Rose cocktail.
Moon Bites
Premium restaurants around the city, including Cumulus, Nomad, Hazel, Hero, Bar 133 at QT Melbourne and more, have created an exclusive menu for RISING. Enjoy drinks and small bites every night of the festival, from 5pm to 6pm.
Dine at Dusk
For something more formal, indulge in conceptual set menus as various restaurants around Melbourne. Created just for RISING, these will be unique dining experiences. Get excited for Indigenous dining at Mabu Mabu, a dinner celebrating sustainable, low-waste cooking in Hazel Atrium and a farm-to-plate experience at Victoria by Farmer’s Daughters. Kisume will join in on the action, with a special edition of their Chef’s Table experience. This event will focus on nose to tail butchery and preparation.
To find out more about the food and drink at RISING this year, click here.