Neighbourhood: Yarralumla
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One of the best things about Canberra is its multitude of neighbourhoods – each with its own individual charm and attractions. And whether you’re looking to make that suburb your home or just explore its offerings, it’s always good to have an expert guide to show you around.
That’s where our Neighbourhood series comes in. In collaboration with our friends at HIVE, we’ll help you discover the soul of Canberra’s suburbs.
Refined, elegant and one of the only Canberra suburbs which can boast water views, Yarralumla offers shaded streetscapes, a stately home to the city’s Diplomatic Corps, and a shopping enclave with some of the city’s smallest (but most lauded) restaurants and bars.
Sound like your kind of neighbourhood? Check out HIVE’s listings here.
SUBURB SNAPSHOT
Situated on the picturesque shores of Lake Burley Griffin, Yarralumla is one of Canberra’s most prestigious and diplomatically significant suburbs. Located approximately 3.5km south-west of the city centre, this leafy inner south enclave is home to Government House (the Governor-General’s official residence) and nearly half of Australia’s diplomatic missions, making it the beating heart of international diplomacy in the nation’s capital.
With a population of around 3,120 residents and a median age of 50 years, Yarralumla stands as one of Canberra’s most affluent and mature communities. The suburb attracts diplomats, senior public servants, and established professionals who value its sophisticated atmosphere and central location.
While property prices reflect its premium waterfront status, Canberrans are drawn to Yarralumla’s unique blend of international culture, stunning lakeside parks including Weston Park and Lennox Gardens, and its distinction as Australia’s diplomatic quarter where nearly 80 embassies and high commissions showcase architectural styles from around the world.
EAT
Minima
Minima (Shop 3, 29 Bentham Street) is an absolute must-try in Yarralumla, having very recently made its well-deserved way onto Gourmet Traveller’s Best Restaurant list. Brothers Benn and Mork Ratanakosol, who run this tiny but fabulous Thai/Chinese fusion or “Third Culture”restaurant, were recognised in the magazine’s Restaurant Personality of the Year category for their commitment to the industry and continued popularity.
Their food is sophisticated and polished, and you need to get a booking if you want to fill up on their small but inspired menu of delicacies such as pork and shitake dumplings in beef bone broth with pork fat and chilli oil. The lamb shoulder with coconut rice is famous as is the Golden Pomfret with soy milk and parsnip broth and calamansi marmalade. In fact, everything is insane. Order away!
Beess & Co
Beess and Co (Shop 5, 29 Bentham Street) has recently undergone a facelift and continues to deliver some of the city’s best brunch and lunch options. With seating inside or out, this sunny little corner spot is always a vibe. Try the Hot Cakes with Lemon Ricotta Mousse (which come with strawberry syrup, pistachios and fresh berries) or delight in a French-inspired dish like the Speck and Potato Gratin which is cooked in an onion and red wine braise and includes parmesan, cream, nutmeg and Camembert. Could there be more perfect breakfast food?
Coffee is excellent and if you are enjoying the company you can stay for lunch with the menu offering a range of more substantial dishes. If, for some reason, you’re not that hungry, a fresh fruit smoothie and delicate little patisserie cake may be the go – honestly there is something for every appetite.
Turkish Halal Pide House
Turkish Halal Pide House (1/47 Novar Street) is a humble Turkish takeaway that has a truly international clientele. At some point or other, every diplomatic mission in the area puts in an order. Offering excellent fresh pide, dips, meats and fish, this place gets rave reviews for its kebabs and presents some of the best value for money in the city. We can also vouch that if you order a banquet for two, you can legitimately feed four – or more – people and still have leftovers for the next day.
Snapper & Co
If you want to soak up some Yarralumla Bay water views, Snapper & Co (Mariner Place) is a popular haunt, open seven days, offering options to grab fish and chips and sit in the courtyard or on the lakeshore itself.
Alternatively you may choose a table inside for a more substantial meal at The Deck at Snapper & Co. This may include a decadent chilled Australian Seafood Platter (oysters, Queensland prawns bugs, dressed crab salad, Tasmanian smoked salmon served with a tossed salad, champagne mignonette and lemon cheek) and any number of seafood dishes including Lobster Cocktail, or Asian Style Baked Whole Baby Snapper. Upstairs, the Yacht Club Restaurant is open for Friday and weekend lunches.
If seafood isn’t your thing, there is a variety of pizzas, burgers and daily specials. There’s also a comprehensive wine, beer and cocktail list and meals are substantial, as are the views of the lake. While Snapper & Co offers year-round dining, there are possibly few more spectacular places to spend a summer evening than here.
Lamshed’s Food + Wine
Lamshed’s Food + Wine (Shop 2/27 Bentham Street) is the sort of suburban gem that brings Yarralumla some of its serious foodie traffic. Fans from across Canberra come for Jeff Lamshed’s talent and consistent ways in the kitchen, as well as his “surprise” menu ($75 per head for a variety of dishes). The Tempura Eggplant with White Miso and Sesame gets consistently good reviews, as does the Pork Cutlet, with Fennel, Cabbage and Dijon Jus.
This is the sort of place to celebrate something special, or to book for a more intimate catch-up with a partner or friends. The aesthetics of the restaurant are also pretty special once you find it hiding at the end of a corridor… Put it on your list.
Bentham Street
Bentham Street (2/29 Bentham Street) is a bar, tapas and pizza place with a relaxed vibe and an enviable choice of pizza topping from which to decide (but if you are asking us, may we suggest the Pear, Walnut and Blue Cheese on a white base or the Fiorenza of anchovies, capers, olives and chilli on a tomato base).
With a monochromatic French bistro look, this is a sweet spot for an after-work drink and a plate of jamon, chorizo or olives, before the pizza hunger takes hold and you stay for dinner.
Sushi Ten
Sushi Ten (1/29 Bentham Street) is a relative newcomer to Yarralumla but has impressed locals and sushi lovers alike with its authentic Omakase-style Japanese food and California rolls so overflowing with ingredients that you simply cannot attempt to fit an entire one in your mouth at once.
With a menu offering everything from ramen to Katsu options, donburi and curry, you can find a spot and eat a full meal for a very reasonable price. Otherwise, grab your sushi selection and go.
Farmers Daughter
Farmers Daughter (26b Bentham Street) has a new owner and Toli takes his barista duties very seriously, serving Campos coffee with pride. Here is a classic cafe style meeting place where you can go as basic as a “Tradie Roll” of two fried eggs, double bacon, hash brown, tomato relish, cheddar cheese and hollandaise. or as alternative as a brown rice pudding with poached plum, date and fig compote with almond crumble. The servings are consistent and hearty and there is always a crowd here.
L’épi
The third and newest of Ignace Diompy’s French-style bakeries in Canberra, L’épi (Shop 1, 45 Novar Street) takes you from the inner-South to the Left Bank of Paris. With its elegant fit out and banks of fresh-baked baguettes and sourdoughs to choose from (and they bake 13 varieties of sourdough so you really will need to narrow the field down), you may well get distracted by the patisseries treats at the front of the counter before you come to a decision. In any event, make your choice, order a coffee and sit down to watch the world pass by in the front window, knowing that bread and pastry is truly at its best when it is still warm from the oven. Oui, oui.
Cork & Glass
Cork & Glass (25 Bentham Street) Here is a little bottle shop with a big reputation and a secret speakeasy. A local favourite for evening drinks, you’ll find a classic offering of wines from the Canberra region and beyond, as well as spirits and champagne and genuinely great staff to attend to you if you are feeling ovewhelmed by the choice. But once you’ve perused the aisles, perhaps it’s time to sit down and enjoy a glass on the spot with a cheese or charcuterie board? Here you have the option to stay or take your bottle home to enjoy later on a selection of tables in the wine store.
Meanwhile, if you’re up for an adventure, you can disappear through the back fridge and find yourself in an unspeakably cool speakeasy surrounded by a mural of familiar faces and wondering if you have somehow disrupted the time-space continuum and landed in New Orleans perhaps…
PLAY
Nunie Boutique
Nunie Boutique (2/45 Novar Street) is something of a Canberra institution, offering a selection of classic fashion labels to many a well-dressed local over more decades than we can remember. With a beautiful corner position, you can’t help but notice the colour flooding the store and stock has diversified from just fashion to a curated homewares and beautiful leather bag selection. Frankly it is like discovering an old friend.
GROUNDUP Yarralumla
GROUNDUP Yarralumla (43 Alexandria Drive) is the latest luxe location to get your reformer or mat Pilates, barre or yoga class under one roof. One of several elegant new studios located across the city, the Yarralumla site is located on the bay and offers a reshaped wellness experience that benefits the mind and body, the perfect balance to our hustle ‘n’ grind culture. And with stunning views of Lake Burley Griffin to go along with your workout, it’s the perfect place to enjoy the serenity of nature and discover your flow.
The One Beauty and Spa
The One Beauty and Spa (60 Musgrave Street) is a female-centred day spa offering a range of treatments designed to make you look and feel your absolute best. Specialising in facials, massage, hands and feet, The One also provides brow and lash waxing and treatments, skin scrubs and masks. Treatment packages are available to ensure your entire body gets exactly what it needs.
Weston Park
Weston Park (Weston Park Road) is a leafy green oasis and a 40 acre peninsula offering all Canberrans a chance to connect with nature and their inner child. Established as a site of historical tree and shrub plantings by Canberra’s first Superintendent of Parks and Gardens, Charles Weston, this idyllic little piece of the capital is now equipped with children’s play equipment, BBQ areas, bike and horse trails, a beach area on the lake foreshore and amenities block. It’s also a great place to commence a walk around the lake to the Governor General’s House.
Nurseries
While you are out soaking up the nature at Weston Park, both the Heritage Nursery (Robert Bowden Grove) and Yarralumla Nursery (9 Elm Avenue) are set amongst the historic gardens and offer a chance to bring some gardening glory to your own backyard.
The Heritage Nursery is a pet-friendly garden centre, so please feel free to bring your furry friends along too – on a leash of course.
Meanwhile, Yarralumla Nursery is an ACT Government owned business, supplying plant materials to local and interstate landscape contractors and undertakes contract growing for the nursery industry, Greening Australia, hobby farmers, and rural land owners as well as selling to the public. You are sure to leave feeling horticulturally inspired after a walk through either or both of these nurseries.
Canberra Yacht Club
Canberra Yacht Club (1 Mariner Place) is where land-locked Canberrans embrace their inner sailor. Available for boat hire and the site of regattas and school sailing competitions as well as lessons, this busy little harbour is always bustling. Its proximity next to Snapper & Co ensures there is always light (ie, fish and chips) at the end of a long day on the high seas (ie choppy Lake Burley Griffin).
Yarralumla Gallery and Oaks Brasserie
Yarralumla Gallery and Oaks Brasserie (36 Robert Bowden Grove) is a delightful pit stop for a coffee, breakfast, lunch or brunch as well as a chance to peruse an exhibition space featuring diverse and rotating range of artists (often with a botanical or nature theme). Popular as a beautiful spot for a garden wedding with a large pavilion available for hire, this place is wonderful for families of a weekend or tired but satisfied joggers who need to refuel on eggs Benny after completing Parkrun.
Yarralumla Play Station
The Yarralumla Play Station (9 Prescott Lane) is home to the Weston Park Miniature Railway, Lake Walter Miniature Golf courses, Mini Farm Friends and the YPS Lolly Shoppe. Plus a café to keep mums and dads adequately fuelled. An iconic business that has been operating in Canberra since 1973, here is a little patch of childhood the resides in almost every Canberran. Having undergone some updates and renovations under new management, perhaps it is time for another visit?
The Brickworks
Owned by DOMA Group, all of Canberra can expect big things to arise on the historic Brickworks site (off Denman Street) where a new commercial and residential project is arising. Dubbed as Yarralumla’s own version of The Grounds in Sydney, we can expect a thriving mix of office spaces and luxurious wellness facilities, including a gym, day spa, and skin clinic, as well as allied health services.
A curated selection of food and beverage venues will bring the precinct to life, with a bakery, wine bar, cafés and restaurants, all of which will be housed within the heritage brick kilns and have access to a working garden and landscaped grounds. The Brickworks is due for completing in 2027.
Does this neighbourhood sound like home?
Check out these homes from HIVE.
15 Abbott Street, Yarralumla
Architectural confidence wrapped in luxury. A home designed with deliberate privacy, entertaining, and timeless finishes. This is top-tier living, built with intention – where stone, light, and space speak volumes.
See the full listing.
18/6 Grose Street, Deakin
Effortless living in a prime Deakin location. A north-facing living area, private courtyard, and a ground-floor master suite with an ensuite. Upstairs, two bedrooms plus a versatile multipurpose room, perfect for separate living or a spacious fourth bedroom. Positioned across from Deakin Stadium, with shops, cafés, schools, and major amenities all within easy reach.
See the full listing.
71 Kent Street, Deakin
Comfort today, potential for tomorrow on 830 m² in Deakin. A welcoming façade with classic brickwork and a well-maintained front garden. Inside, a warm and functional layout-3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, and separate living spaces that cater to both everyday life and entertaining.
The kitchen is practical, with plenty of storage, and the dining and living spaces offer feature windows to the north allowing lots of light all day round.
Downstairs, the oversized garage has been converted into a granny flat, with living, bedroom, bathroom and even kitchen – perfect for growing families or extra income as an investment.
The backyard is spacious, private, and full of potential, framed by established greenery. With a double lockup garage, additional car spaces, and easy access to Deakin’s sought-after lifestyle, this is a home that delivers on every need.
See the full listing.
