Hobart has never been synonymous with H words – hip, happening or hot. But there is a revolution occurring in the Tasmanian capital as the city once renowned for slow conservatism notches up its street credibility with a hipster scene that has been compared to Melbourne.

You may have heard the term hipster bandied about before, but to set the record straight, these individuals shun the mainstream and commercial homogenisation. That shunning is well and truly happening south of Bass Strait, in the major city of Australia's most southerly state, Tasmania.

From art to food to music, Hobart is reinventing itself one venue at a time. There is an underground movement towards collaboration across the creative spheres which is embracing innovation. Go into Ethos restaurant, for example, and you will find art on the walls by a Hobart painter, music by local artists and meat fed on the lush green grass that surrounds the city.

The impressive evolution of Hobart has led to Lonely Planet naming the city in its Top 10 World Cities to Visit in 2013. It's the only Australian city to make next year's list and there has never been a better time to discover Hobart's charms. 

Locals say that Sydneysiders and Melburnians flock to the city for two reasons: The Museum of Old and New Art (MONA) and Garagistes restaurant. But on my visit I discover a new breed of venues with an edgy and bold philosophy, perhaps inspired by those trailblazers.

ART

You can't discuss Hobart and neglect MONA, the art gallery that begins subverting the art establishment with its guide to "art wank" and continues it by chucking Picasso's next to nobodies and stuffed owls beside priceless Egyptian artefacts. Mocking what it represents with a tongue in cheek irony is essential hipster and MONA is credited with increasing interstate visitors to the city.

But beyond MONA, one of the delights of Hobart is its tight-knit art community. All the major players seem to know one another and this fosters a creative collaboration that is palpable – a rare thing in a city. On an art tour of the Henry Jones Hotel, curator Christine Scott tells me of the relationships she builds with established artists and up and coming graduates of the nearby art school. Scott only showcases Tasmanian artists, giving them the breathing room to one day become a name as big as renowned Tasmania painter Geoff Dyer, who is also displayed at the hotel.

As we pass through the art-littered hotel bar, Christine spots an artist whose work is on show in a central Hobart gallery and we stop by to say hello. Big names of the art industry are mentioned as we discuss the scene and it's suddenly evident why Hobart is such a hub of creativity. "I would say no stress, no traffic and a low cost of living enables the freedom to be creative," Scott says.

FOOD

It's evident that the overall-wearing waiter has won me over when I order a dish of brown onion on his recommendation – after he squatted down to my chair and pointed out the menu highlights. Apparently the onion dish was the perfect compliment to a main course of venison with horseradish cream. So I went with it.

Restaurant Ethos fits the hipster criteria. Built in a space that was re-imagined? Tick – it's in old stable. Food that is locally sourced and organic where possible? Tick. Bread and butter made on site? Tick. Limited signage and tucked down a laneway off the main road? Tick. Recycled old school medicine bottles arranged into a chandelier? Tick. 

If you need proof that Hobart is now hipster, head to this restaurant. The onion dish is literally half a brown onion, a few edible flowers, sliced fennel and pink eye potatoes. The onion was cooked in its skin so it crunches as my fork fishes out the meaty viscose. This is followed up by warm flathead with green apple slithers so thin as to be molecular, with onions, capers, spring onion and a lemony olive oil all served in a weighty mineral dish shaped like an ashtray. 

A ten minute walk down the road is Salamanca restaurant Smolt and the place is humming with a positively nightclub vibe on a Monday night. The nearby Machine Laundry Caf√© is precisely that. The vintage steel machines roll washing about in a suds bath that is rather hypnotising before the first coffee of the day. 

Garagistes, meanwhile, is Tasmania's most hyped restaurant, and with good reason. A former mechanical garage, it won the accolade of best wine list in Australia at the Gourmet Traveller food awards. Only open four nights a week with a no booking policy, the venue cultivates a buzz that sees it fill up every night.

ETCETERA

The ultimate hipster accessory is the bicycle and Hobart city council has accommodated accordingly with art bikes. Visitors can borrow a bike for free and pedal between art galleries on a Dutch designed Vanmoof bike complete with helmet, lock and map. Even the bike racks are imaginative – they are aluminium outlines of people ranging from a mum with school child to a man bearing a briefcase. These bike hubs were created by urban designer Ken Bethlehem and allow users to latch their wheels onto street art.

A defining feature of the hipster movement is niche consumerism. According to website Wikihow's guide to being a hipster, "If your purchase helps local retailers, the environment, and the craft wenches down the road, then it's hipster." A Common Ground fulfils those criteria to a tee with its support of artisan producers. A wonky shop under the stairs in Salamanca Place that could easily be missed, it feels like a pioneering stumble has led you to your own discovery. The shop brings the handiwork of local farms to the city so you can skip the road trip out. A star attraction is the shop owner Matthew Evans, also known as SBS's Gourmet Farmer. A food writer turned farmer, he started the shop with Nick Haddow of Bruny Island Cheese Company. 

As for the Hobart music scene, it is being led by MONA FOMA or MOFO, a music festival curated by former Violent Femmes member Brian Ritchie. David Byrne and St Vincent will headline next year's festival, supported by local creatives. Be prepared, Hobart might just bring out your inner hipster.