Melbourne Patron

With recent additions  Shop Ramen , Hinoki Japanese Pantry and BistroK , plus long-stayers  Peko Peko , Easy Tiger , Wabi Sabi Salon , Wood Spoon Kitchen and more, Smith Street, Collingwood is slowly turning into an Asian food haven, with a strong focus on Japanese cuisine. Woohoo! One night after some ramen, friends and I decided we needed dessert, and sake. (Essential.) We walked past the freshly minted Pabu Grill & Sake (190 Smith Street, Collingwood) and decided to give it a shot. We sat at the front communal table and were given very attentive service by the host. I was particularly keen to sample the sake flight and one of my favourite all-time desserts, mochi. (See my previous rave about them here .) The green tea ones were okay, but the plain and melon flavoured ones were delicious. A selection of MOCHI !!! Pabu (Japanese for 'pub') pitches itself as a modern Izakaya, or Japanese tapas bar - that is, a casual establishment where the foo...

(As seen in GRAM magazine) Now officially THE CLOSEST cafe to my house, I am delighted to announce that new Collingwood addition, Lemon, Middle and Orange (25-31 Rokeby Street, Collingwood) does a decent dose of caffeine.  Secondarily, it is a few doors from my local watering hole, the Prince Patrick Hotel  (135 Victoria Parade, Collingwood) -- so now I can trot directly from brunch to the pub. Score!  Kidding. (Sort of.) Of course LM&O (or "the citrus place", as my housemate and I have taken to calling it) has benefits other than its proximity to the pub.  For instance: the decor. Originally an old paint factory, LM&O's premises were dolled up by upstairs neighbours John Wardle Architects , next-door neighbours Spacecraft Studio , and branding-crew-to-the-hip-and-delicious, Projects of Imagination . It's all pared-back blank surfaces of concrete, stainless steel, brick and loads of timber joinery -- with touches of yellow and brig...

As you may have gathered, I tend to stay northside in Melbourne. This is due to several factors: I'm very lazy. The coffee northside is waaay closer to my house, and I can't operate until I've been caffeinated. I don't have a car and who can be arsed PT-ing when you don't really have to?! There is a BUCKETLOAD of Awesome on the north side, and  I came to Melbourne from Sydney for a different vibe - why would I visit the side of Melbourne that is most like Sydney?! (On a side note, I find it quite hilarious how there's a north/southside divide in Melbourne, much like in Sydney... Waterways, eh? They could cause wars!)  HOWEVER, on the very odd occasion, I venture out of my comfort zone to other suburbs (hey, sometimes even other CITIES! I know, right) and whilst there, I try to milk said unknown area for its best coffee/food/venues available. Recently, I spent a night in St Kilda prior to a weekend day trip, which meant that early one Saturday morn, I w...