Melbourne Good Food Month 2014: 25 reasons to stay in town (and 10 to skip town)

25 Reasons to stay in town

Good Food Month returns in November with a packed program for everyone from degustation die-hards to breakfast bargain hunters and families looking to outsource Sunday lunch.

In 2013 more than half a million Melburnians and visitors took part in 300-plus events across the city and regional Victoria, with the inaugural Night Noodle Markets proving a huge drawcard alongside deluxe dinners by hatted restaurants and guest chefs, "instant expert" masterclasses and themed afternoons from favourite restaurants, bars and pubs.

New this year is Barbecue Madness, a sizzling category featuring grilled and wood-fired goodness: there's Argentinian asado, smoky Texan barbecue, a food truck cook-off, Thai beach-style barbie and more. Check it all out in the official program or at melbourne.goodfoodmonth.com

1. Brunch with Yotam and some Melbourne mates Be among the fortunate few (OK, the fortunate 400) when Yotam Ottolenghi joins home-grown culinary heroes Karen Martini and Shane Delia to dish up a shared-table Mediterranean spread at spanking-new Aerial, South Wharf, on Sunday, November 2; the $180 price includes Ottolenghi's new book.

2. Meet a skinny Italian chef and rub shoulders with some stellar Aussie talent; Michelin-starred Italian Massimo Bottura is spending the evening of November 26 at Pei Modern in the city with Mark Best, Ben Shewry and Dan Hunter et al, and an array of cocktails and spuntini inspired by Bottura's book Never Trust a Skinny Italian Chef. It's $155, including a copy.

3. Noodle on up to Birrarung Marr for this year's new-look Night Noodle Markets every evening from November 14-30. New location, same spicy stalls and food trucks, plus some fun newcomers – look out for the likes of Kong and Charlie Dumpling alongside favourites from last year including Chin Chin, Mamak, Longrain and Izakaya Den.

4. Play chicken in Richmond on November 1 when the crew at Meatmother holds an afternoon hot-chicken barbecue party. Free-range chicken from the smoker and trimmings include a range of house-made, heat-packing sauces; $50.

5. Eat your vegies at Carlton's Town Mouse, which is dishing up a one-off multi-course Saturday lunch on November 15 based on vegetables; $60 includes a glass of wine.

6. Hear Alice Waters, whose ground-breaking Californian restaurant Chez Panisse nudged America into new understanding of local, seasonal eating; she's talking at the Wheeler Centre on November 17. The session is $35 ($20 concession).

7. Be thrifty and check out the under-$30 two-course bargains all month from a range of excellent eateries such as the smart and sparkling new Araliya St Kilda (Sri Lankan) or Brunswick East's sake-savvy Kumo Izakaya (Japanese).

8. Witness the lords of the ring Benjamin Cooper of Chin Chin and Shane Delia of Maha duke it out again on November 25 at Maha in a spice smackdown – expect a punchy $95 dinner of sweet, salty, sour and spicy hits.

9. Go the pies From the "Only In Brunswick" department we bring you the Cornish Arms Hotel's "slow-braised vegan mutton in a house-made vegan pastry pie with vegan mash and peas". The Merrywell Upstairs at Southbank has guinea-fowl pie in duck-fat crust; plus fish pies and shepherd's pies at pubs all over town under the Good Pub Food banner, with a pie and pot of Coopers Pale for $25.

10. Kid around with George If you're aged 6 to 14, you're invited to join George Calombaris at his glamorous Press Club flagship restaurant for a five-course degustation lunch with matched drinks on November 8. It's $90 a head for children – sorry parents, strictly no adults. Grown-ups have to wait until November 27, when Calombaris stages a $295 (including drinks) degustation with English guest Sat Bains.

11. Duck into the Drum on November 22, when the Flower Drum kitchen stages a $95 five-course lunch banquet of celebrated dishes from China's north, including the restaurant's renowned Peking duck.

12. Be an Iron Chef judge, Iberian-style. Frank Camorra does battle with the head chefs of his various MoVida kitchens. Does the boss's cuisine still reign supreme? November 10, $135 at MoVida Aqui.

13. Meet perfect matches at restaurants taking part in the Drink & Dine series. At Collingwood's Saint Crispin on November 13 there's a $150, five-course dinner combining Flinders Island foods with spring-themed cocktails.

14. Go fishing with the kids on any Sunday afternoon in November at the Wharf Hotel - $25 for grown-ups and $13 for kids buys fish and hand-cut chips, plus there's a pond where the little folk can "fish" for fun.

15. Dig deep and find $300 - $150 for a gala fundraising dinner at Peninsula (on Harbour Esplanade) by top chefs including Adam D'Sylva, Scott Pickett, Oliver Gould and Daniel Wilson, plus a $150 donation to Anglicare. Proceeds to vulnerable children – it's on November 12.

16. Take a trip to Vietnam via Springvale on a Saturday morning (November 8, 15, 22) for brunch at Tan Lac Vien - $15 includes diced beef or chicken fillet with egg on a sizzling plate, plus Vietnamese iced coffee.

17. Join the breakfast club and treat yourself to a $20 weekday nosh-up at cafes in the city and suburbs – the month-long deal includes tea or coffee and set dishes. Hard-core carnivores may start the day with pig's head croquettes, ox tongue and deep-fried brains at St Ali South Melbourne.

18. Pig out at Bomba in the city on a family-style lunch of tapas and porky charcuterie, progressing to shareable joints of whole roast suckling pig; every Sunday in November, $65.

19. Embrace your inner Calabrian at Bar Idda's $110 six-course World Food dinner exploring 25 centuries of Sicilian cuisine, influenced by everyone from the Greeks, Romans, Arabs, Normans, Spanish and French. History classes are rarely this palatable; the date to memorise is November 12.

20. Meet a new meat The alpaca is known for its wool but in its native South America it's also known as dinner. On November 17 at pumping Peruvian Pastuso, chef Alejandro Saravia cooks head-to-tail alpaca as part of the festival's World Food program. Six courses $85; $125 with matched wine.

21. Raise a glass with Andrew McConnell and Josh Murphy at the Builders Arms Hotel – a November 23 lunch features new Australian and international wines from favourite makers, with food to match at $140.

22. Keep up with the Reymonds Patriarch Jacques is busier than ever since selling his eponymous restaurant – catch him on November 22 or 29 at Bistro Gitan and L'Hotel Gitan respectively, where he will cook French-themed Surprise Saturday lunches (five courses, $95).

23. Master puff pastry with Phillippa Grogan and Richard Cornish (November 17, $99); make dumplings at Oriental Tea House (November 11, $55); learn the secrets of nut milk (at Green Press, various dates, $80) – these masterclasses and more under the Instant Expert section of the program.

24. Here come the Brides – a preview of Heide gallery's new Arthur Boyd exhibition focused on his fabled "Brides" series precedes a three-course dinner on-site at Cafe Vue on November 21; $120 includes matching wines.

25. Cider and slider – this marriage made in hipster heaven gets official recognition throughout November at six venues around town where a snacky slider (maybe crunchy buttermilk chicken at The Common Man or adobo pulled pork at Lamaros) comes with a glass of Thatchers cider for $10.

And 10 reasons to skip town (in order of dates)

1. Book a designated driver for November 1-2 and make tracks for the wineries around Geelong. A $40 "passport" gives access to tastings at more than 30 wineries opening their doors for the Toast to the Coast festival.

2. Head to Mount Eliza, Mornington or Merricks North on the Mornington Peninsula, where Bistro Maison & Larder Bar, Counting House and Salix Restaurant are coming to the Let's Do Lunch party with keenly priced deals all month. In Ballarat, at Craig's Royal Hotel, the menu might include Tuki smoked trout tart or a fruity nougat glace.

3. Barbecue madness sweeps Bendigo on November 8: head to Food Fossickers Central in Sidney Myer Place to sample dishes from Masons of Bendigo, The Woodhouse, Rocks on Rosalind and other local heroes.

4. The Garden of St Erth at Blackwood holds composting, companion planting and crop rotation classes followed by a two-course seasonal lunch – with a glass of wine it's $55. Various dates, starting November 7.

5. It's a long way to Dunkeld but the reward is a tour of the Royal Mail kitchen garden and five-course lunch by Robin Wickens including smoked freekeh risotto and Murray cod, pancetta, duck tongue and consomme. November 9 or 30; $120.

6. Join "ethicurean" pig farmer Tammi Jonas at her Eganstown property Jonai on November 15 for a sausage-making workshop; then lunch on snags, organic local vegetables and Captain's Creek wines; all up, $100.

7. Take your dog on a food-lovers' day trip to the Yarra Valley. On November 16 and 30, Gourmet Pawprints departs Port Melbourne for wine-tasting and lunching with some off-leash time. A full day is $200.

8. A French revolution in Red Hill South? Paringa Estate chef Julian Hills goes head-to-head with maestro Philippe Mouchel on November 22: a $160 six-course dinner features Mouchel's classics and Hills' hat-winning cuisine with French and Paringa wines.

9. On the same night, down the road at Flinders, one-hatted Terminus restaurant is serving a Morocco-meets-Mexico dinner – five courses with matched wines for $130.

10. Fruit fiends and families, head to Bacchus Marsh on November 22-23 for the Strawberries & Cherries weekend. Growers celebrate the new season's crops and stage child-friendly activities. www.visitbacchusmarsh.com.au

The Age Good Food Month runs from November 1-30, see melbourne.goodfoodmonth.com