50. Victor Churchill, Armadale

Victor Churchill

The Victor Churchill door handle is a link of sausages, cast in bronze. It’s the first clue this is no ordinary butcher.

Inside lies a space that could as easily be a diamond showroom as a meat market. Gleaming vitrines of pies, parfaits and terrines flank the walls. Slabs of premium beef hang like artworks in the curing room, purpose-built with backlit Himalayan salt blocks.

It’s worth recalling that when Anthony Puharich opened his first butchery in Sydney in 2009, it was christened “the most beautiful butcher shop in the world” by the late Anthony Bourdain.

The capstone of the lavish fit-out is the horseshoe bar, where diners assemble at 12 coveted leather stools. The menu echoes the decadence of the surrounds. Surrender to it. A “cigar” of wagyu bresaola wrapped over Parmigiano Reggiano is slicked with olive oil, thyme and shallot. Tiny but tremendously satisfying. As is the grill-charred arrow squid on a creamy smudge of ajo blanco (garlic and almond sauce).

Steaks, such as the charry Rangers Valley Black Market flank, are cherry-red inside and sauced with cafe de Paris butter. Have it with fries and Paris mash, because there’s no such thing as excess here. 

Victor Churchill exterior Source: Supplied

To read our full list of reviews for Victoria, head here.

953 High St Armadale VIC 3143

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