A seat at the Mornington Peninsula’s two-hatted Osteria Tedesca is notoriously hard to snag, almost always requiring a game of waitlist roulette. So, expect demand to be just as high when the regional restaurant storms into town for next year’s Australian Open. But there are more affordable options, too, at Garden Square, and Grand Slam options within the venue itself. Here’s what to hit up when the tournament takes over Melbourne in January.

Game, set, splurge

Making her debut in the grand slam’s exclusive Glasshouse restaurant situated directly opposite Melbourne Park, venerated Tedesca Osteria chef and co-owner Brigitte Hafner will give tennis-goers a three-course taste of her heart-filled but expertly honed cooking. Powered both by fire and the seasons, Brigitte’s set menus draw from the biodynamic kitchen garden alongside her Red Hill diner.

Tedesca will take the reins of the Glasshouse throughout finals week as part of the inaugural AO Reserve program, a premium ticket option starting at $1200 (including a seat to the men’s semi-final session) for guests wanting to splurge on some of the tournament’s best seats and best hospitality experiences, rolled into one.

“We wanted to feature a notable regional restaurant and female talent in our new AO Reserve line-up – and who better fits this brief than Brigitte and Tedesca Osteria ?” Fern Barrett, Tennis Australia’s head of product growth and innovation, tells Good Food.

“The difference of service scale between our AO offering and that of Tedesca Osteria is significant, so developing a menu that was reflective and representative of the flavours Brigitte is known for took some creative development work.”

Casual dining options

In Melbourne Park’s more casual (and accessible) Garden Square, there’s a bunch of new, noteworthy names bringing their culinary prowess to the tennis for the first time. “Following the overwhelming success of this year’s new Garden Square food precinct, we’ve evolved from Italian to European classics [and beyond] with an AO twist,” says Barrett.

Chief among them? Julia Busuttil Nishimura, adored Melbourne cookbook author – and Good Food and Good Weekend columnist – whose recipes will jump off the page and into your hands pre- or post-match.

“This will be the first time Julia’s food will be served in a retail environment under the Ostro brand,” Barrett says. Think Maltese ricotta pastizzi and a vibrant Mediterranean-inspired marinated-chicken salad with flatbread.

Joining Julia on the roster will be legendary Lebanese bakery A1, with its famous
halloumi pies, spinach-and-feta triangles, chicken tawouk wraps and more in tow.

There’ll also be Prahran’s French brasserie Entrecote, serving up its signature steak-frites baguettes and decadent cheeseburgers. And loyally followed Hawthorn newcomer Piccolo Panini Bar will be piling cotoletta and meatballs into hulking focaccia sangers.

A lob away at at Grand Slam Oval, find Victor Liong’s new fast-casual spot Silk Spoon, Mexico City-inspired taqueria CDMX and cult Lebanese charcoal-chicken joint El Jannah.

Vietnamese diner Good Days is taking to the Western Courts, while social-enterprise cafe All Things Equal, staffed by an all-abilities workforce, is popping up at the Ballpark.

The Australian Open 2025 runs from January 6-26 at Melbourne Park. Tickets on sale at ausopen.com