Melbourne Patron

One cool evening in late September, three ladies went for dinner at one of Melbourne's hot new venues: Lucy Liu Kitchen and Bar (23 Oliver Lane, Melbourne) (also known as "Lucy Liu's" around town). They trotted up the cobblestone laneway and found a red neon sign proclaiming the way. Excited with anticipation, they squished through a narrow entrance and alighted upon the buzzing, angular restaurant. Unsure of which direction to take, the girls felt momentarily lost, but after a while someone led them to their table near the open kitchen, took their coats and the fun commenced. The single-sheet menus were an immediate source of amusement with metallic, holographic images on one side, mainly of animals - a hit with one of the girls in particular, who was an animal lover. The impressive restaurant interior was also an attraction. Slimline lengths of pale Tasmanian oak, spaced out at intervals, gave the impression of a flat wall, but provided a...

On my walk to work each morning, I often used to pop into Fifty Acres (65 Bridge Road, Richmond). Not only was it in a prime position for a coffee pit-stop en route to my work, but the coffee was actually good. If I sound surprised, it's because I'd never had good coffee anywhere along Bridge Road prior to finding this place. Bircher muesli Bridge Road is long, but seems to be a cup-half-empty sort of place: several abandoned shop sites, some big names sticking it out with determination, a sprinkling of not-very-impressive pubs/bars, and the occasional restaurant. Recently, it has picked up a bit with the addition of restaurants like Ladyboy Thai and Mister Jennings , and my personal favourites: a Gorman store and the Mt View rooftop (not new, but worth a mention!). But a decent cafe was certainly missing from the area, and Fifty Acres has stepped up to the mark, neatly positioned near the Punt Road end of Bridge so you can fuel up before your shopping spree. Ra...

I'd never heard of SummerSalt Festival or Exxopolis until a friend suggested we go. I'm a sucker for anything to do with light and colour, so of course I said yes. Turns out SummerSalt is an outdoor arts festival, held between 23 January and 21 February this year, comprising music, art, theatre, dance and art events, in and around the Arts Precinct . It is a collaboration between a number of arts bodies, including the ABC , Arts Centre , ACCA , Chunky Move , Malthouse Theatre , Recital Centre , MSO , MTC , NGV , Australian Ballet and Victorian College of the Arts . (Phew!) Exxopolis is a luminarium (another thing I'd never heard of, but I sure as hell am going to research more on these things now) created by Architects of Air in Nottingham, UK. AoA is headed up by Alan Parkinson , who has been experimenting with ' luminaria ' since the 1980s. Essentially, they are carefully designed, inflatable, tent-like structures, creating internal burro...