Breakfast they say, is the most important meal of the day, it gives you energy, gives you clarity to get through the day, it sets the tone. So finding the perfect breakfast, well let's face it, is reality easy in a city such as Melbourne. So many cafes and restaurants offering their take on poached eggs, smashed avocado sprinkled with the latest super food grain and freshly juiced kale and ginger juice makes it a smorgasbord of choices for today's customer. Hotel restaurants around the world have been offering up a breakfast buffet since the dawn of time, with a large degree of failure. The biggest challenge being keeping the offering hot and serving up a variety that keeps them a step a head of their competition. Collins Kitchen in the Grand Hyatt Melbourne offers up this time honoured tradition and where others have missed the mark the Hyatt have not only exceeded the mark but have set the barre to new heights. Firstly this is a grand restaurant overlooking the plain trees of Russell Street, with warm and inviting furniture that lets you know you're in a five star dining room in a world renowned hotel, a perfect place for the perfect breakfast. The major difference here is how they offer you the food, there is not a trestle table or Bain marie in sight, instead they have four show kitchens, each with a dedicated chef, either cooking to order your choice of eggs, be it poached or a wonderful fluffy omelette, or continually cooking crispy bacon, sauté mushrooms or an array of dim sum. Fresh fruit, an assortment of freshly baked bread and a chef offering to squeeze you a super juice, is awaiting you in another kitchen. There's a deli with smoked salmon, turkey and ham on offer with a great selection of cheese and crackers. If that doesn't fill you up then you'll need to head over to what one can only describe as heavens kitchen. Freshly made waffles and pancakes with fruit compotes and cream. Pastries and cakes galore will give anyone with a slight sugar addiction the fix they need. The only way to make this experience better would be to offer ice cream for the waffles, but that's just me being slightly greedy. This is not a place for a quick breakfast, to get the full experience you need to spend a couple of hours here and for $42 is certainly value for money. read more

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High Tea at Hyatt So I just came back from the Hyatt high tea and I had a lovely time. The three of us were given two stands that displayed 9 sandwiches and 8 cakes. We were also given 10 scones and more than enough cream and jam (raspberry & fig) to accompany. The setting here at the Hyatt is beautifully laid out, the table settings are good quality and room oozes of class and style. The service was fantastic, the waiter for our table was extremely polite and professional. I found the servings to be very generous here, we had so many left over cakes-unfortunately they do not offer take away services, and so it's a bit of a waste if you don't finish it. The sandwiches included an egg salad, aged waygu beef and smoked salmon. The cakes included a chocolate mud, chocolate opera, pistachio sponge, cheesecake and strawberry mousse. I was also surprised by how many scones they gave us, did they really except us to eat that many? Overall this was a very pleasant afternoon, the ambience of the place was quite and relaxing and the prices were around $30ish per person. I will definitely head back here soon, perfect place for afternoon tea. read more

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A work friend and fellow foody recommended Collins Kitchen, and as I had Friday off I made a reservation for lunch. The restaurant is in the foyer of the Hyatt and offers both a la carte and a buffet. I opted for the buffet which costs $75 per head. I started with a little plate from the grill - baby calamari, salmon, sausage and a side of pasta bake. All good. This was followed by a little bowl of green pea soup which was so tasty I had to restrain myself from going back for seconds. There was, after all, so much more to try and squeeze in. Moved onto the seafood selection next which included king prawns stacked on a mountain of ice with a bowl of fresh lime wedges, smoked salmon and a little dish of caviar. Nice. Only complaint, the red onion I piled on the side had been sitting there a little to long and had started to sour. Next stop - charcuterie board. Not a huge selection; sopressa, ham, rare roast beef, turkey and a terrine - but good. I added some little gherkins, pickled onions and a slab of fresh crusty rye bread to the plate as well. I noticed on the way back to my table that they'd topped up the caviar dish so took a slight detour to avail myself of another helping. What meal is complete without cheese, I say, and yes, they had this as well of course; a creamy Stilton, an even creamier Jindi Brie, and some rather tasty provolone. My bourbon ginger cocktail finished, I ordered a Pimms No 1 to see me through to the home stretch. I was pretty much reaching capacity by now and I hadn't even sampled the Asian buffet. But there's always room for dessert, right? Right. Strawberry flan, caramel macadamia slice and peach Pavlova all piled on the same plate (subtlety and restraint have never been my strong suits). Thank God there wasn't a bowl of whipped cream on the sideboard or they'd have carried me out in a bag. Great lunch in a great venue. Service is friendly and the atmosphere elegant yet relaxed, and if you're hungry (and I always am) this place is really good value for money as well. If you're a grazer, this is a must try. read more

What. A. Breakfast. My wife and I stayed at the Grand Hyatt during our honeymoon and had heard rumors that they had the best breakfast in Melbourne. Since we are big breakfast fans we were excited to make our way down to what we assumed would be a better than average breakfast buffet. It's not just better than average; this breakfast is breath taking. You're sure to find something you like in the main room wether you're enjoying an 8am cheese plate, trying the freshest lox I've tasted, or basking in the wide selection of bread to go with your eggs, mushrooms, and hash browns. The only issue I had with the savory selections was that they were so good they distracted me from the pastry center. The pastry chefs are artists here. The almond croissants are incredibly well done and the desserts would inspire Mary Berry herself. The coffee, which is included in the buffet, was my favorite part. The cappuccino I had was smooth with perfectly textured foam. So were the next four I ordered. I'm not kidding when I say that it was the best coffee I've ever had. This wasn't just a breakfast, it was an event. I'm not going to go so far as to say it was the highlight of my honeymoon, but it was pretty close. read more

Having stayed at and experienced the wonder that is the Straits Kitchen at the Grand Hyatt in Singapore, I wasn't sure what to expect when it came to this variation. Wow. My wife and I have been there about half a dozen times now - for cocktails, desserts, and even full meals. We also just experienced the buffet for the first time. Set price, $75 per person, including dessert -- drinks extra. Spectacular array of options. The sushi was extremely fresh and for the first time in Melbourne, I found *fresh* wasabi. The sushi chef was happy to prepare whatever you wanted sushi/sashimi-wise and was VERY proud of his wasabi and homemade soy sauce. Not to be missed. You will never want that other green stuff you get out of a packet again in your life. The buffet area is separated into various zones. Meats, some vegetables, various asian dishes (including some great dumplings), cheeses and salumi, and a great selection of seafood. The smoked salmon with dill is definitely worth trying. Everything was fresh, and the chefs were standing right before you and happy to make adjustments and take requests with the ingredients you could see out. The waitress, whom we have had twice before, even said "welcome back" when she saw us - so, yep, typical fantastic Hyatt service. Not the sort of meal or experience that you can do every day, but if you're up for a special experience, give this a shot. Oh, and try the CK1 martini. Again: WOW. read more

The Grand Hyatt is a very swish and swanky place. I went there recently for High Tea as part of a 21st celebration. We were greeted by a very helpful and friendly doorman who gave us detailed instructions on where to go to find the Collins Kitchen (where Tea is served). So beautiful. Opulent. Exclusive. Everything about it screams riches. This is a hotel for those who have clearly figured out the delicate horticultural art that is cultivating an orchard of money trees. The High Tea itself was amazing. I don't think I've ever eaten so much cake and mousse and chocolate in one sitting, and that includes the time I had a cupcake party. This could be all in the perception, though, because the food is so rich and delicious it only takes a bite of whichever cake you're eating to be satisfied. First sandwiches are served (proper ones, with the crusts cut off and everything). Then a glass of some very nice sparkling wine. Then the cake. And then the buffet of more cake. The buffet is a sight to behold - plates and plates of cakes, mousses (try the mango), ice-cream, pancakes, croissants, macaroons, truffles, chocolates, meringues, and even a chocolate fountain. Lots of the food is gluten-free, too, and they even have gluten-free pancakes available on request. Unlimited hot chocolate, tea, and pretty good coffee as well. The staff are very friendly. It feels a little forced (who is THAT nice), but who cares? We're being spoiled and that's the important thing. read more

Collins Kitchen - Buffets Near Me - Melbourne, VIC

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We attended Collins kitchen for a bridal shower. Booked three months in advance and dietary requirements were given when booked. Big group that had, diary free, vegans, vegetarians and gluten free. Our waitress came around the table and marked the dietary requirements we had. And assured us it would be fine, "they're used to it." Entree would be brought to the table and main/dessert would be at the buffets. Instructed to ask the chefs at the main buffet what was vegan, if they had nothing they would make something and educate us on this. Entree comes over, and those with dietary requirements waited another 20 minutes for their own plates. Vegans went over to the buffet for main and asked the chefs what we could have. We were instructed to sit back down at the table as they had nothing available and would bring it over. Chef came over to the table not long after and asked if vegans could eat bread. We said yes as long as it had no dairy or egg in it. He proceeded to say "it has a little bit of butter milk in it, is that okay?" Which made us all want to eat nothing because how can anyone trust a kitchen if the chef asks this. Everyone at the table was on dessert when the first vegan option came at. The waitress came over and asked why one of us wasn't eating it (because they had mushrooms in it, and there was other food coming) She then said "oh theres been a miscommunication with the kitchen and they didn't know you weren't eating mushrooms, the kitchen closes in 20 minutes so we can't make you more dumplings" no miscommunication, no one had any idea what food we were actually going to be given. Proceeded to say that's fine, if there's mushrooms in it one of the other vegans can have it, it's not a big deal, nor did we ask for more dumplings?? Waitress then asked "well are you allergic to mushrooms or just don't like them?" Chips can over, ate one and tasted like straight sea food. Serious cross contamination, which usually I just bite the bullet on because some times it can't be helped, but these were inedible due to the oil they used. Everyone at the table had finished there dessert by this time. Plates came over for the vegans that were a baby pizza base, with tomato paste and rocket on it. The rocket was dressed in olive oil and salt only. So salty that no one could eat it, I swear my lips are still dry. A sandwich that tasted like stale bread (hopefully not the one with buttermilk in it) and just roasted Vegetables. The tiny side salad with Italian dressing was the only thing we ate, while everyone at our table had finished their whole 3 course meal. We were assured the dietary requirements were absolutely fine, but they clearly had no idea what was going on and grabbed any vegan ingredient they could to make a inedible and disgusting meal. Also when they say there is vegan desserts, they mean fruit and sorbet. We paid $75 each to eat some tiny entree pieces and a side salad as we had no idea what we were really being served and frankly didn't trust it at that point. If it was not a bridal shower I would have stopped eating and refused to pay after the entree (which was not amazing either, stale bread and hummus in dry pastry) Absolutely the most ridiculous place I have ever eaten food at. read more

I was there with a couple of friends for lunch today, and while the buffet was generally nice (somewhat lacking taste), I was a bit disappointed with the waiting service and the booth that we sat in. I had to sit in one of them, and in a very uncomfortable condition too, the table was too high and I had to sit with my back arched up and not leaning against anything. Not bad overall but not overly good either... read more

Excellent buffet breakfast. Poached eggs with Hollandaise, carved baked ham, smoked salmon, Green juice. Great selection of quality cheeses and crackers. Cale was delightfully engaging and friendly as well as making a great pancake to order. I eat gluten , but the gluten free baked goods were the best: coconut pineapple cake, raspberry mango cake, raspberry macadamia nut bars. Capuccino very good. read more

Wow, if this is the standard for service in Australia, the bar is pretty low. The food was fabulous but I have not encountered such a pompous disinterested waiter in a very long time. He could not be bothered and was very rude. The supporting wait staff helped saved the day but this rude waiter continued to show his face at my table. read more