Onzième

Onzième is among Canberra's most recommended restaurants for diners who want to eat something genuinely interesting rather than impeccably safe. The kitchen's nose-to-tail approach shifts entirely with what local farmers, fishers and foragers bring to the restaurant — a commitment to seasonality and producer relationships that produces a menu that is genuinely different each week rather than merely decorated with seasonal garnishes.

The results are sometimes surprising and consistently excellent. A preparation of the less-celebrated parts of a locally raised animal — treated with the technical respect that French classical training provides — reveals complexity that the prime cuts never offer. The vegetable preparations demonstrate the same attention: root vegetables from specific farms, wild plants from the region, fermented preparations developed in the kitchen over weeks.

The Braddon location places Onzième in Canberra's most animated dining strip — accessible on foot from the city centre, surrounded by the independent restaurants and bars that have made the suburb the most interesting neighbourhood in the capital.

The principled kitchen philosophy and shifting seasonal menu make Onzième the ideal solo dining address in Canberra — eat at the bar, ask what's interesting today, let the kitchen decide.