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Hobart is like London or Paris in the sense that it is a walking city. From the galleries of Salamanca Place to the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery; from the Royal Botanical Gardens to the waterfront where the crayfish fleet moors and then a pad around nearby Battery Point, you can wander much of Hobart’s finest.

The thing about walking is that it is a little like fossicking and you almost always unearth some sort of treasure, no matter how small, if you know what you are looking for. And at the end of the day when your thoughts turn to food, keep an eye out for some of the places the locals consider their own treasures: restaurants that have been serving up good value food for years. You might not find them in glossy brochures but you just might happen upon them when you’re walking.

Battery Point is named after the gunnery once stationed there and visitors wander about narrow streets with some of the most faithfully preserved colonial-era homes in Australia. Hobart is Australia’s oldest capital after Sydney and Battery Point’s finely preserved heritage makes it the city’s most exclusive suburb. Magic Curries is an unobtrusive restaurant on the main thoroughfare. Good Indian food is served up by keen waiters with an appealing, efficient simplicity.

Magic Curries probably never set out to impress food critics and neither does it do pretence. This restaurant caters to everyone from young families, twentysomethings fortifying themselves for a big night, and local retirees. The smiles of the waiters never seem to wan, not even when pre-schoolers refashion a table with rice, bits of nan and aloo poshto. In winter the open fire gets almost as hot as the rogan josh. Good food. Great people.

Restaurants and cafes line the main road through North Hobart. From cheap Thai to fine French, this food strip caters to bohemians, yummy mummies and African migrants. This is Hobart’s pocket-sized version of Sydney’s Darlinghurst. The Republic Bar has been around for a while and is still one of the places to step out in Hobart, but it also a great lunch stop. No doubt the casual mood and Art Deco surrounds are part of the appeal. Fun, cheap, good. With live music seven nights a week the Republic has a large and loyal local following. On the same strip, look out also for Mai Ake Thai. This Thai eatery is another favourite.

Don Camillo in Sandy Bay serves up old-fashioned Italian and you can load up on all the carbohydrates required to walk the entire city. They don’t do pizza, but specialise in veal dishes and heartier Italian mains including an extensive offering of pastas. It was open before any of the Beatles had wrinkles and has red and white gingham table cloths. Don Camillo used to be considered very cosmopolitan, back when Hobart’s restaurant scene was in utero and chops and mashed potato was standard fare.

Finally, if you’re staying in a place that lends itself to self catering, consider buying seafood from the fish punts on the water front. If the word ‘fresh’ means anything to you, spend a few dollars on a punt and you’ll be serving up seafood to remember. Fat meaty oysters from Bruny Island make a fine starter and for the main you might never buy a better value-for-money fish than the local trevalla. Just don’t forget to grab a bottle of Tassie vino.

More inside information

Magic Curries is at 41 Hampden Rd Battery Point:
(03) 6223 4550
The Republic Bar: 229 Elizabeth St, North Hobart:
(03) 6234 69544
Don Camillo: Magnet Court, Sandy Bay:
(03) 6234 1006

The fish punts are by the Franklin Wharf