A bolt of design and hospitality synergy enlivens a 19th-century former power station in central Melbourne. With its 15-metre ceiling, Higher Ground, an all-day dining destination, soars to lofty heights with tiered levels wrapping around the perimeter of the original brick building to deliver a multitude of spaces to drink, dine, lounge and work in, akin to a hotel lobby.
Commissioned by the team behind the city’s successful Top Paddock and The Kettle Black cafés, Melbourne-based DesignOffice invigorate the cavernous space with planes of geometric abstraction. Deep ocean blue steel walls and staircases abut the soaring concrete columns whilst a solid stone bar and raised platforms supporting communal and individual dining settings on the ground floor anchor the site.
Subtle marine colours (from softly upholstered seaweed green banquette-like couches and teal blue stools to eel grey and pale coral pink sofas) together with solid timber table and bench tops usher a clean yet warm Scandinavian appeal. Natural light flooding in via skylights and enormous arched windows together with bursts of potted greenery add the final sheen.
The Nordic theme carries through to chef Nate Wilkins' menu via a stopover in Japan. Foraged ingredients and textural trimmings including seeds and grains plus exotic elements feature prominently. Semolina porridge with preserved summer cherries, dried plums, shiso and sesame entices the brunch crowd whilst roasted wild mushrooms on soft polenta with pecorino and hazelnuts satisfies at night.
INFORMATION
ADDRESS
650 Little Bourke Street
-
Year in review: the shape of mobility to come in our list of the top 10 concept cars of 2025Concept cars remain hugely popular ways to stoke interest in innovation and future forms. Here are our ten best conceptual visions from 2025
-
These Guadalajara architects mix modernism with traditional local materials and craftGuadalajara architects Laura Barba and Luis Aurelio of Barbapiña Arquitectos design drawing on the past to imagine the future
-
Robert Therrien's largest-ever museum show in Los Angeles is enduringly appealing'This is a Story' at The Broad unites 120 of Robert Therrien's sculptures, paintings and works on paper
-
Lose track of time at a retro-futuristic listening bar in MelbourneLB’s Record Bar is a cinematic sanctuary designed for lingering and listening
-
Has the ice cream parlour come of age?A global wave of architecture studios is treating the scoop as spectacle, turning parlours into immersive social spaces
-
The Calile Hotel is an urban resort reframing BrisbaneA seven-storey refuge in Fortitude Valley, The Calile Hotel bridges tropical retro with urban polish, elevating Brisbane’s hospitality landscape
-
Mondrian makes waves at Burleigh Heads with a striking Australian debutMondrian Gold Coast emerges as a sculptural new anchor for Burleigh Heads, pairing surf-side glamour with global polish
-
Rediscover a classic midcentury hotel in SydneyFK leads a major renovation of the landmark Sofitel Sydney Wentworth hotel, pairing 1960s modernism with an elevated, Australian-minded reset
-
Wallpaper* checks in at The Grand National Hotel by Saint Peter: ‘a lush restaurant with rooms’In Sydney’s Paddington, chef Josh Niland opens the 14-bedroom luxury hotel alongside his pioneering restaurant
-
Book a brutalist one-room wonder Down Under, the Vipp Tunnel in TasmaniaThe Danish design brand's bookable showcases arrive in the southern hemisphere, thanks to the vision of Tasmanian architectural firm Room 11
-
Wallpaper* checks in at The Eve Hotel Sydney: a lush urban escapeA new Sydney hotel makes a bold and biophilic addition to a buzzing neighbourhood that’s on the up
