Elchi Journal · 23 October 2026 · 4 minute read
On New Year's Eve, one of Melbourne's most influential Indian restaurants will serve its last dinner in Duckboard Place. Tonka opened in 2013 in a laneway few people could find and, over 13 years, changed what this city expected from an Indian meal. Its closing raises a question diners, critics and the industry are already asking: who carries the flag now?
A laneway legend bows out
Tonka was opened by Kate and Mykal Bartholomew with founding chef Adam D'Sylva, on the former site of the nightclub Honky Tonks. Its modern Indian cooking with European influences (pani puri, prawn betel leaves, tandoori chicken tikka and slow-braised lamb curry) drew a loyal following to the Flinders Lane end of the city.
In October the owners announced they would not renew the lease on the Duckboard Place site. Final service is Thursday 31 December 2026. They are searching for a new home for Tonka, and their sister restaurant Coda will keep trading as usual. "Taking our own approach to Indian-inspired dining, in a laneway few people knew how to find, was a leap of faith," they said in their statement, as reported by Broadsheet.
What Tonka proved
Tonka proved Melbourne would come into the city, dress up and pay fine-dining prices for Indian food that went far beyond the takeaway classics. It put Indian cooking in the conversation about the city's best restaurants, and it set a standard every modern Indian kitchen in the CBD has been measured against since.
We hope Tonka finds its new home soon. Melbourne is better with it.
So who carries the flag?
No single restaurant replaces a 13-year institution, and Melbourne's modern Indian scene is bigger than any one dining room. But if you are looking for the place pushing Indian fine dining forward in the same part of town, we would humbly put our hand up.
Elchi is about 200 metres from Duckboard Place, at 72 Flinders Street. Our kitchen is led by Executive Chef Manpreet Sekhon, known across Melbourne as the Curry Queen. She trained in five-star hotel kitchens in Punjab, has been recognised by Jiggs Kalra and Sanjeev Kapoor, and built Elchi to move beyond butter chicken to the regional cooking of India, from Kashmir to Kerala.
Everything is cooked in an all-electric kitchen (Manpreet is an ambassador for the Global Cooksafe Coalition) and served in a dining room beneath a gold ceiling, with curved leather booths and an open kitchen. Broadsheet says Elchi "walks the line between classic and contemporary", and the Herald Sun called our samosa "mind-blowingly good".
If Tonka was your place
What to order
Start with golgappa shots and Palak Patta Chaat, then Not Your Average Chicken Tikka with tomato-chilli caramel, tandoori lamb chops, Lamb Martbaan and dal makhani with naan. Or leave it to the Curry Queen with the $95 set menu. All meat, chicken and seafood are halal, and vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free dishes run right through the menu.
For the office
Elchi can be hired exclusively for up to 60 guests, a natural fit for corporate Christmas parties, end-of-year dinners and client functions around Flinders Lane. Larger events are catered by Curry Queen Catering Co., the official catering partner of W Melbourne, for up to 2,000 guests.
Getting here
From Duckboard Place it is a few minutes' walk to 72 Flinders Street. Lunch is Tuesday to Thursday, dinner Tuesday to Sunday, and we welcome guests aged 12 and above.
Say goodbye properly
Until 31 December, go and have one more dinner at Tonka. Then, when you are ready to find your next favourite, we would love to welcome you to Elchi.
