Armenian-Lebanese restaurant Zareh in Melbourne named restaurant of the year

Zareh, a Melbourne restaurant combining Armenian, Egyptian and Lebanese cuisine, has been named restaurant of the year by the Australian magazine Gourmet Traveller, The Guardian reports.

The restaurant's co-owners are Tom Sarafian and Jinane Bou-Assi. It opened in August 2025 and is named after Sarafian's paternal grandfather.

The menu includes Egyptian aish baladi flatbread made with local flour, kafta nayyeh of raw lamb and hummus topped with crab meat. The magazine notes that the category has traditionally been won by European and fine-dining establishments.

Previous winners include such well-known restaurants as Saint Peter, Attica and Quay.