4.5/5 The vibe inside is super laid-back, with dim lighting to set the mood, and there’s a bigger outdoor space for larger groups. The menu has lots of meat varieties, probably more suited to choosing your own main and sharing separate sides with friends. They also have burgers and desserts! The quality hasn’t dropped since my last visit in 2019, and that’s a win because they really know how to cook up some amazing food. If there’s anything you need to try at Dexter, it’s their famous Hot Meat Donuts. Yes, it is exactly how it sounds. A sugary jam-donut-like exterior, with flavourful, moist minced meat on the inside. It sounds like an odd combination but it works SO well. It’s probably one of my favourite dishes in Melbourne. Order these and thank me later, you will not regret it. All of the meats are served with house pickles, bone marrow mash, slaw and bread, all of which are absolutely delicious. I wish more restaurants would offer complete meals like this, negating the need to pay for extra sides. It makes sense, it saves us money and it’s still high quality. Both the pork belly and the short rib were fantastic. Super tender and not too sweet despite the ingredients. If I could choose, I’d add a bit more sweetness, but that’s just personal preference. The bone marrow mash is divine and probably one of the only times I’ll eat mash. I’m glad to see Dexter still doing well and surviving lockdowns because they are really one of a kind and don’t break the bank. I feel like that’s pretty rare these days, making me appreciate it a whole lot more. If you’re into a laid-back venue and top-notch food and drinks, Dexter’s the place to be.

Meats, buns and booze. A dynamic trio. I absolutely love the meat plates from Dexter. They're flavourful and melt in your mouth worthy. I especially love their bone marrow mash - I only wish there's more of it on the main plate. Will have to order a side of mash next time! I always gravitate towards the brisket because it just hits all the right spots. The short ribs was sooooo drool worthy. Very fatty and melt in your mouth. Steaks are cooked to perfection (medium rare).

Amazing service and food this place has to offer. Loved the sweet and sour cauliflower with miso ranch. There was a nice crisp on the glaze and the flavours were great. The meat plates - we tried the caramel short rib and o'connors striploin steak where the meats were so tender. The dish was quite filling and paired well with the sides the dish came with. I'd recommend trying their hot meat donuts - crispy with a sweet yet spicy taste.

This was one of the most delicious meals I have ever had. My wife and I tried the brisket and caramel steak. I cannot explain how delicious it was. The flavour was amazing. On point. Just fantastic. So full of flavour. But not overpowering. The subtle differences in ingredients complimented each other perfectly. None over powering the rest. I cannot speak highly enough of the food and service. It’s a beautiful place too. Just loved it.

Been wanting to come here for a long time and it certainly didn’t disappoint. The lamb rib portion size was larger than expected for an entree and the meat was soft and off the bone. We ordered a main meat dish each which was too much and took most of our pork belly home. Will definitely come again.

Had the donut meat balls. They are super delicious and highly recommended. Had the sorbet with jelly, which I wasn't very impressed with. The jelly texture is a bit too solid for my liking. The broccolini and the 30 day dry aged rib eye is alright, not my thing as well. The Hot smoked lamb rib chimichuri was amazing. The waitress allows us to order half the dish. The drink was great too. Orange spits

So I heard this was good. But I didn't realize it was this good. This goes straight to the top end of the best bbq in Melbourne. If it wasn't such a long way from where we reside, we would be here all the time. Great desert idea too. Impressive!

Food was quite decent and generous portion. We have ordered meat donuts, brisket and burger plus charged broccilini. The brisket was very juicy and tasty, maybe a little bit lack smokiness which is fine, it's sreved as like steak shape and not a traditional thinly sliced, it comes with side and the bone marrow mashed was the highlight of the dish. Thw burger was pretty good and had a good quality meat, that's why they are offering medium rare which is usually not safe for cheaper meats. I saw the boxes of the meat arrived from vic meats which is famous butchery and known for high quality wagyu beef. The inly down side was the broccillini. It was very dry and hard, specially the stems. Wasn't good, there was thick black sauce at the bottom which made it a bit smoother but for sure there are a lot room for improvment. Hot meat donut was very tasty, but becareful it is a lava, don't put it in your mouth straight away

Just your friendly local neighbourhood BBQ meat joint. The hot meat donuts are a must; pillowy fried delicious magical things. We ordered the pork belly and short ribs, all full of flavours. Both meat platters came with a bunch of sides, including my personal favourite bone marrow mash. Cocktails were on point, bartender was very attentive and had great recommendations. Wish they had more dessert options though!

One of the best place is Melbourne for dinner. Who would have thought that sweet donut filled with savoury meat would taste like the most delicious thing in the world? Dexter did, Meatball donuts are must have, along with the ribs, steak and bone marrow potato mash. They are so generous with their portion and service is top notch. Everything is so reasonably priced, you walk away with full tummy but with amazing tasting food. This place is a must try.

We came here off the back of the awesome reviews. The food was good but not really up to par with the expectations we had! Hot meat donuts are a fun interesting savoury take on donuts but we found the pastry to be nothing special and the pulled meats inside was almost too mushy with not much of a distinct flavour. I wouldn’t actually recommend getting this. The beef tartare was overpowered by the black bean inside of it. It was a nice entree but we weren’t able to appreciate the freshness of the beef. The beef brisket was on the dry side and didn’t have that pronounced smokiness you get from a bbq. Abit disappointing that the star of the show was quite average. However. The sides were done well. I especially liked dipping the fried bread in the bone marrow infused potato mash. The pickled cucumbers were nice and tangy too! In general, food was decent priced but there was nothing that really wowed us.

Can't even count the amount of times I've been back. Meat donuts, steak and caramel short ribs never fails me every time I come. Perfect amount of mash, slaw and pickles on each plate. Just always so good!!

I have never really been the one to have a steak when I can make one better at home but in this case, I definitely cannot make one better, especially when I’d have to slave all day to make something a fraction as good as what you can get at Dexter’s. Warmed up with some entrees, the meat buns were interesting but not sure if I would order again given the price point however enjoyed the experience. The hanging steak was amazingly paired with the marrow mash and demiglace. It was a touch bluer than I wanted however it paired nicely with the glace and fried bread. Hard to do a steak perfectly as it is always a mixture of personal subjectiveness but I would have preferred an aggressively seared steak whilst achieving that’s perfect rare inside. Hard to do given the volume but I do appreciate the meal as a whole. 10/10, meat in my mouth again

Where do I start? Sensational. Ordered Smoked meats: beef short rib and beef brisket, side of beetroot a must! Cocktails matched food. Decaf coffee to end was perfect

One of the best meaty feeds in Melbourne that I keep going back to, their meat donuts are a must! We ordered: 🥩 Hot Meat Donut 🍖 Caramel Short Rib 🍔 Dry Aged Cheeseburger 🥔 Bone Marrow Mash 🍪 Milk & Cookies Loved this place since the first time I ever visited (even though the serving sizes have decreased and the prices have gone up, but that’s inflation I guess 🥺). The meat donuts are always a must for me - sweet fried donut with a savoury meat filling, a perfectly delicious combo. Their caramel short rib is my all time fave - fall off the bone tender ribs served with their signature bone marrow mash that is buttery and smooth, alongside pickles, slaw and fried bread. Their cheeseburger was juicy with a soft bun and smoky flavours, while their milk and cookies dessert had creamy milk ice cream served with soft warmed up choc chip cookies, a great finish!

Fantastic all round experience with great food and service. A really consistent establishment that is still one of the big restaurants to dine in the north side. Meat donuts are a must but everything we had was delicious.

We had a fabulous dinner feast here! 💗Food was super delicious, we demolished everything with much pleasure. 😋The dishes came in good portion size and paired well with the sides they came with ( their homemade pickles are to die for). 🥹Make sure you book in advance as they tend to be packed all times. 📌

The food is so delicious. Service was great for my son’s birthday dinner. Absolutely well worth a visit. We’ll be back.

Great spot for American style caramel pork belly, burgers, beef short ribs and Amaretto Sour. Try beef donuts and bone marrow mash - something different and delicious.

Nice restaurant. Tried their signature donut with hot meat - combination of sweetness and savory, and the juicy of the pulled meat made it quite special. Their capsicum dip had a charred flavor to it too. Smoked pork belly could be more juicer but the smoked beef brisket was just right. Paired with their special mash potatoes with garlicky taste. It was good. Their bread for the chicken burger was sweet too, which was a good match with their fried chicken. Good experience.

ORDERED: 🍩​ Hot Meat Donuts: with house hot sauce ($7.00 each) 🍖 Caramel Short Rib: 250g cooked weight with house pickles, bone marrow mash, slaw and bread designed to feed one person ($44.00) REVIEW: Loveeed the hot meat donuts from Dexter. What a fantastic amalgamation of sweet and savoury! It's great from the savouriness of the meat to the cinnamon sweetness of the donuts, along with the hot sauce to add heat and another flavour dimension to this dish. You need to get this masterpiece - you're missing out if you don't. The caramel short ribs is also recommended by the locals here. It's delicious and the meat is already pulled off the bone for you in sizeable pieces; fuss free since you're not trying to play with your food and carve along the bone. This makes the eating experience so much better. The bone marrow mash is soft, and I loved the smattering of garlic on top. It adds a really nice fragrance to it and a twist. Dexter is fantastic, and the food is filling. Unfortunately, wasn't a fan of the dessert (from what I remember - kind of like a sticky date pudding?) because it wasn't as fudgy as I hoped. Felt more plain compared to the outstanding performance of the dishes earlier.

It was a sudden decision to go out for dinner and we end up eating and eating and eating like never seen any food! Every dish till dessert was amazing and flavourful bite to bite. No regrets and wanting to go back there everyday! Wish the staff was more friendly and attentive but it wasnt a huge worry...

Brisket was to absolutely die for, melted in the mouth and the sauce that came with it was the best i’ve ever tasted. Mash was divine, pickles were good, i’m not a big fan of coleslaw but my partner loved it. Staff were OK, some need to learn to smile, especially in hospitality. Food took an hour to come out.

Honestly some of the best food I have ever had! Nice atmosphere, the prices are average-pricey bit well worth the cost. Will definitely be back again.

Dexter was an American-ish ‘meatery’ located in Preston. They had on their menu a variety of burgers and meats as well as cocktails. For dinner we ordered a few different dishes; smoked lamb ribs, dry aged cheeseburger, apple glazed pork belly, Korean cheesy corn, strip loin steak, fries with cinnamon salt, milk & cookies, and sticky toffee pudding. My favourite was the cheeseburger that was so juicy cheesy and flavourful! The pork belly would be a close second. The rest were ok; lamb ribs were a bit too fatty, cheesy corn was a bit bland, fries didn’t really have any cinnamon flavour. Dessert option was a bit limited too (only 2 on their menu!) but the milk & cookies made up for it; freshly baked fragrant gingerbread cookies served with smooth milk ice cream - yum! Staff members were friendly and the atmosphere was lively and buzzing although I wasn’t a fan of the intense red lighting.

First diners to arrive yet served our food after 5 other tables were already eating. The meat doughnuts were cold in the middle, the brisket was tough like an overdone rump steak, the rib eye was tough and riddled with gristle/fat, it also sat around 1.5cm which added to the disappointment. The fries were good, nice and crispy plenty of salt but the sauce was almost like an off milk. The slaw was bitter and left a foul taste which didn't sit well with the rest of the abysmal and off flavours from the other dishes. Mashed potato was a good consistency but it was rather cold. This used to be a great restaurant, a safe bet to dine at but this experience has shown that there has been a change in hands and its definitely for the worst. 1/5 dining experience.

WOW. Had the strip loin steak, that was next level. Worth every cent and absolutely will be coming back. I am not usually a steak person but this has converted me, and the sides were all 10/10. Great service too - thanks so much!

Always consistently good food here. Everything on the menu is tasty but I feel the burgers miss the mark for me. Get the meat donuts and steak they are great!

Came here 4 years ago and just again 21 Jan 2023, easily one of the best places to eat in Melbourne Their meat donuts, caramel short ribs and fried cauliflower are definitely their standouts, but in my opinion they do not have any bad dishes

Good experience and food is good quality for the price point (about $40 mains). Particularly loved the pickles (best Ive ever had!). Staff were also very accommodating, particularly as we didn't have a booking (weeknight). Seems like you would be unlikely to get a table on weekends/other busy days without a booking.

Sauces contain abit too much MSG, throat was quite dry the next day. Atmosphere is great, but food wise, brisket & steak were not to my personal liking, as there were quite chewy & tough. Donut was interesting, worth trying.