02 May 2010

Seven days of eating in Melbourne: Snapshot Summary (2 May 2010)



Quintessentially Melbourne

My seven day whirlwind tour of eating through Melbourne (24-30 April 2010) has sadly come to an end and thanks to recommendations from friends and blog readers it has been a good one. I managed to visit many new bars, cafes and restaurants on my wish list but there's still many more I wished I had more time to visit so I'll keep them in mind for next time. At times I felt like the face of Luna Park in St Kilda — passionately eating everything in sight — which I'm sure has contributed to my weight gain. The AGideas Conference was inspirational and took out three of my days in Melbourne. Here's a snapshot summary of places I visited which I'll elaborate on in future posts with photos and a review.

FOOD:
Melbourne Bratwurst Shop - Cheap & Popular
Queen Victoria Markets, Stall 99-100 Dariy Produce Section, Melbourne VIC 3000
SIMON FAVOURITE :-)

Movida Bar de Tapas - Tapas & Wine
1 Hosier Lane Melbourne VIC 3000

66 Bourke Street, Melbourne VIC 3000

Lorca - Spanish influenced breakfast
7-9 Centre Place, Melbourne VIC 3000

St Kilda Cake Shops - Window browsing
Acland Street, St Kilda VIC 3182
- Europa Cake Shop
- Le Bon Cakes
- Acland Continental Cakes
- Monarch Cake Shop

Thanh Nga Nine - Vietnamese
160 Victoria Street, Richmond Victoria 3121

Cumulus Inc. - Interesting dishes
45 Flinders Lane Melbourne VIC 3000

Roule Galette - French Crepes
Shop 2/241 Flinders Lane Melbourne VIC 3000

St Ali - Coffee & Breakfast
12-18 Yarra Place, South Melbourne VIC 3205

Brunetti - Best Italian Cakes in Melbs?
194-204 Faraday Street, Carlton VIC 3053
SIMON FAVOURITE :-)

La Spaghettata Restaurant - Italian with nice decor
238 Lygon Street, Carlton VIC 3053

Cafe Segovia - Nice spot for Breakfast
33 Block Place, Melbourne VIC 3000

The Deanery - Management & Chef about to change
13 Bligh Place, Melbourne VIC 3000

+39 Pizzeria and Degustation Bar - Best pizza in Melbs?
362 Little Bourke Street, Melbourne VIC 3000
SIMON FAVOURITE :-)

Degraves Expresso - Coffee and Breakfast
23 Degraves Street, Melbourne VIC 3000

Ramen Ya - Best Ramen in Melbs?
Shop 250 GPO, 350 Bourke Street, Melbourne VIC 3000
SIMON FAVOURITE :-)

Shark Fin Inn - Chinese
50 Little Bourke Street, Melbourne VIC 3000

EQ Restaurant and Bar - $20 lunch deal with wine
100 St Kilda Road, Melbourne VIC 3000

78 Williams Road, Prahan VIC 3181

Le Triskel - Crepes & French bowls of coffee
32 Hardware Lane, Melbourne VIC 3000
SIMON FAVOURITE :-)

Brother Baba Budan - Best coffee in Melbs?
359 Little Bourke Street, Melbourne VIC 3000
SIMON FAVOURITE :-)

Half Moon Cafe - Best Falafel in Melbs?
13 Victoria Street, (Mall) Coburg VIC 3058
SIMON FAVOURITE :-)

Coburg Coffee & Kitchen Centre - Cheap $2 coffees
7 Victoria Street, Coburg VIC 3058

Laksa King - Best Laksa in Melbs?
Shop 3, 320 Racecourse Road, Flemington VIC 3031
soon moving to: 6-12 Pin Oak Crescent, Flemington VIC 3031
SIMON FAVOURITE :-)

BARS:
Gin Palace - 35 types of gins on offer
10 Russell Place, Melbourne VIC 3000
SIMON FAVOURITE :-)

The Carlton Hotel - Drinks with stuffed animals
193 Bourke Street, Melbourne VIC 3000
SIMON FAVOURITE :-)

Cookie - Hip and happening
1/252 Swanston Street, Melbourne VIC 3000

The Toff in Town - Dark and sexy
2/252 Swanston Street, Melbourne VIC 3000

The Croft Institute - Enter via dodgy lane ways
21 Croft Alley, Melbourne VIC 3000
SIMON FAVOURITE :-)

City Wine Shop - Imported wines
159 Spring Street, Melbourne VIC 3000

Madame Brussels - Rooftop tea party
Level 3, 59-63 Bourke Street, Melbourne VIC 3000

Riverland Bar and Café - Views and Drinks
Vaults 1-9 Federation Wharf, Albert Park VIC 3000
SIMON FAVOURITE :-)

Murmur - Nice Hidden Gem
17 Warburton Lane, Melbourne VIC 3000
SIMON FAVOURITE :-)

2 Driver Lane, Melbourne VIC 3000

Section 8 - Grunge Container Bar
27-29 Tattersalls Lane, Melbourne VIC 3000

21 Liverpool Street, Melbourne VIC 3000

New Golden Mountain - Cocktails designed to taste
Level 1, 21 Liverpool Street, Melbourne VIC 3000

Der Raum - 40 types of Absinthe available
438 Church Street, Richmond VIC 3121

SHOPS WITH CHARACTER:
Zetta Florence - Stationery and Cards
197 Brunswick Street VIC 3065

Spellbox - The Witch's House of Tarot, Spells & Potions
Level 2, 387 Little Bourke Street, Melbourne VIC 3000

WALKIES:
St Kilda Markets - Arts & Crafts on Sundays
Queen Victoria Markets, Melbourne CBD - Delis
Brunswick Street, Fitzroy - Cafes/Shops
Lygon Street, Carlton - Italian restaurants

CULTURE FIX:

MAYBE NEXT TIME:
The European, Melbourne CBD
Gingerboy, Melbourne CBD
Laksa Me, Melbourne CBD - Laksa
Noisette Boulangerie Pastisserie, Port Melbourne
Via Volare, Fitzoy - Pancakes
Little Malaysia, Melbourne CBD
Boreks, Queen Victoria Markets
Culter & Co., Fitzroy
Koko Black Chocolate, Melbourne CBD
Mamasita, Melbourne CBD - Mexican
Baker D. Chirico, St Kilda - Bakery
Yu-U, Melbourne CBD - Japanese
Balha's Pastry, Brunswick - Baklava
Stalactites Restaurant, Melbourne CBD - Greek
Tempura Hajime, South Melbourne - Degustation
Bar Lourinha, Melbourne CBD - Tapas


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25 comments:

Phuoc'n Delicious said...

WOWSERS! That is a lot of places! Good work Simon. I'm so up for a huge pig out after I'm done.

Oh I'm so jealous that you got to try out Movida; that's on the top of my list for Melb. I've heard good things about Brunetti but when I walked pass it last time it was packed! Instead I went to Koko Black and enjoyed the desserts there; we need one here!

Seems like you'll have a lot of work coming up to try write up these post. Good luck! I look forward to reading them :)

Jen said...

OMG. All of that in four days (taking out the three days you spent @ the conference)? Looking forward to drooling over all of these upcoming posts!

Steve Marshall said...

Looking forward to see all the images Simon.

YaYa said...

I see you're still not sleeping, hehe! I can't believe the number of places you managed to work in - well done, looking forward to more details!

Mike said...

I'm so jealous, I love Melbourne. I was very, very close to living there but ended up staying in Sydney. Love Movida, and Koko Black is a must-try next time.

Maria said...

Awesome!I've been planning to go and now I'm even more convinced I should!

Anonymous said...

Welcome back! Thanks for all the good recommendations on where to eat in Melbroune!

joey@forkingaroundsydney said...

Wow, that's a lot of places! How much fun did you and your tastebuds have!

Brenda said...

Goodness me! How did you manage to squeeze eating in all those places in such a short time?? Well done!!! Hahhahahaha!! That's what I call dedication to food ; )

Anonymous said...

i will definitely be printing off your list when i head to melb in the future :)

Anonymous said...

Very very commendable effort, Simon! I know how tough it is setting yourself the goal of ploughing through all these spots. I always fail miserably and only make it to between half and 2/3s of the places I want to sample. Oh well, there's always the next trip... PS Andrew MacC is the chef/owner of Cumulus Inc and Cutler & Co - I've known him since his Dining Room 211 days pps Brunetti is waaaay overated in my humble opinion. Gobsmack'd

john@heneedsfood said...

Looks like someone needs a holiday after all these places you've visited! Good work Simon!

Angie Lives to Eat (and Cook)! said...

Oh my goodness Simon that is ALOT of places! Look forward to all the lovely photos =)

Elaine@Three Wise Pigs said...

That is crazy. 7 days? Really? Definitely go to Yu-U. I've been there earlier this year and I loved it, probably my favourite restaurant in Melbourne which I have been to so far.

Simon Leong said...

hi phuoc, i believe movida aqui might be better than movida and movida next door but i wouldn't mind trying all of them to compare. be sure to try http://www.barlourinha.com.au which was highly recommended by a melbourne friend. i was recommended to try the kingfish carpaccio but never got around to it.

hi jen, i was an eating machine. i wish i could have stayed longer. so many places, so little time.

hi steve, will take a while for me to get around to them but eventually will get around to it.

hi yaya, hehe no time for sleep. for a foodie it comes naturally to eat doesn't it.

hi mike, i'll definitely force myself to get to Koko Black next time. i wish they had one in Sydney.

hi maria, you definitely should visit melbourne. it has so much to offer in terms of food and culture.

hi ellie, hope you get to try some of them when you're next in melbourne. stayed at the Novotel on Collins which was very handy spot as well and nice rooms.

hi joey, taste buds was having lots of fun. i wish i could have extended my stay for more fun.

hi brenda, i think my stomach was having trouble keeping up with me but i've trained it well.

hi anonymous, be sure to check out the melbourne map as well with all the spots on it. if you have an iphone you can just check it while walking around too i guess.

hi gobsmack'd, i tried to do my best with your listings. i hope i've made you proud :-). can you recommend any other cake places instead of brunetti? when i walk into the place i'm still in awe of all the cakes in the display but to be honest i actually haven't really tried any so i'm not sure how good they are. but it's great food porn for the eyes in any case.

hi john, i certainly do. would come in handy to find the time to write up my reviews of all the places. wouldn't it be great if i had other people working for me to write up reviews and photoshop the images for me :-) that way i could just concentrate on eating.

hi angie, and to think i actually wanted to eat at even more places than this in the time.

hi elaine, Yu-U high on my list for next time. i was really trying to get there but needed a couple of extra days to fit it in with others i missed.

Trissa said...

I will surely have to try the SIMON FAVOURITES next time I am in Melbourne.

Myriam @ Detours said...

Wow, very impressive list, thanks for sharing!!

We do have tastes in common, it seems. I've tried quite a number of your favourites places (how cool is Brother Baba Budan!!). But next time I go to Melbourne I have my work cut out thanks to you! Have to try Triskel, Brunetti, Murmur among others.

PS: another bar I really like is Berlin Bar in the CBD, 16 Corrs Lane. The bar is inspired by a City once divided and then reunited. The first room is West Berlin, very posh with chandeliers and velvet-upholstered chairs, while the 2nd room, East Berlin, has bunk army beds and bathtubs instead of tables. Very quirky!

Anonymous said...

Hi Simon,

As a Melbourne kid living in Sydney it was interesting to see the places you checked out on your trip south. As the ex manager of Murmur I'm pleased to see that you loved my old joint, but must say I'm disappointed you visited St. Kilda rather than heading to the much more food and drink-centric Fitzroy!

Some places to add to the list for your next trip that I can't recommend more highly are as follows;

Bars:
Black Pearl (Fitzroy- Australia's best bar, SERIOUSLY)
Golden Monkey (CBD)
SweatShop (below Seamstress- CBD)
Gerald's Bar (Carlton)
Gertrude Street Enoteca (Fitzroy/Collingwood-Best wine bar, owners KNOW their stuff)

Restaurants:
Cutler and Co (Fitzroy- Expensive but A MUST! If he has his apple confit, burnt butter icecream and salted caramel as a special you'd be insane not to try it!)
Bar Lourinha (CBD)
St Judes Cellar (Fitzroy)

Other:
Babka Bakery (Brunswick Street- Fitzroy- The BEST almond croissants, sandwiches and borsch/pilmeni in town. It's an odd combination, but this place rocks!! It's always packed and always closed on mondays, a mid week visit is best)

Anyway, hope these add to your already impressive list ;)

Cheers! Amy

Simon Leong said...

hi trissa, best of luck in getting around to them.

hi myriam, only knew about brother baba budan through a local friend which was lucky. remember you can get bowls of coffee at triskel — so French! berlin bar sounds cool. i haven't heard of it but really want to check it out now.

hi amy, thanks so much for the recommendations. AWESOME! they are now on file for my next visit. this is one of the reasons why i started a blog so i can record places i want to visit and get recommendations :-) the main reason for st kilda was for the art markets on sundays but i've never been too impressed with the food and cakes. i've been to golden monkey in the past but haven't even heard of the other bars. such is life when living in sydney and only visiting melbourne once every 3-5 years :-( it's so easy to lose touch of what's there. i really tried to get into cutler and co but timing wasn't good. i actually visited the place about 3.45 pm. they were settling down from lunch and bar was about to open at 4 pm where i could have stayed to try but i'd just had lunch and was wanting to eat later that night but was booked out. definitely next time. local friend recommended Bar Lourinha so it's on my list for sure. i did walk up Brunswick st but missed Babka Bakery. sounds excellent. makes me want to find a cheap flight and go back down again now!

Laura said...

I lived in Melbourne for 10 years & never went to this many places. You are incredible & I bet you were full.

Simon Leong said...

hi laura, i definitely had a full tummy most of the time but my passion for food kept me going. at times i wasn't feeling the best though so too much food definitely takes its toll :-)

Julia said...

Next time you're in Melbourne try Papa Gino's on Lygon street. Best thing to Italian cooking in Melbourne!

Jerry said...

A great place to eat in the CBD is Vietnam Noodle House on Swanston st. Give uit a try! They have the best Singapoore noodles!

George said...

Pantheon Cakes on Sydney Rd Coburb has great cakes, try it next time!!

Nick said...

If you want to eat great Greek food, (tapas style)
Go to Alsfa ouzeri on Brunswick st Fitzroy! The guy that has it is a great chef!

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