Melbourne Patron

We'd been hearing about it for months and months. Chris Lucas and his never-fail Lucas Group venues had closed what was Pearl Cafe at 599 Church Street (corner of Newton Street), Richmond, and left the small 60-seater site to marinate for a while. Things went quiet next to  Petbarn , then suddenly the new fit-out was complete, and Broadsheet was running a competition in cahoots with Mercedes-Benz for winners to experience the as-yet-unopened restaurant, Kong , at a special (and very well-publicised) dinner. There were also tastes of the food - with mixed reviews - through Rue & Co , a pop-up Collins Street venture between Kong, Jimmy Grants and St Ali . Everyone was anticipating Executive Chef Benjamin Cooper 's menu - would it be all "chilli, chilli and more chilli", that he had proclaimed as his preference on a Masterchef immunity challenge? Or would his expertise from heading up the kitchen at the ever-popular Flinders Lane haunt,  Chin ...

Ocha (3 Church Street, Hawthorn) is something of a suburban legend. The Japanese restaurant built up a huge following at its original location in Pakington Street, Kew - so much so that it relocated to its current location in the revamped Beehive complex in 2010, effectively doubling its cover size from 35 to 70 plus. Comfortably settled in next door to schmancy gastro-pub  Barkers Wine Bar  (old-man-pub the Beehive Hotel in another life), Ocha is still notoriously difficult to get a booking at. I haven't tried their degustation ($120.00 per head), held on the last Monday of each month - but I imagine it, too, would be very popular. Ocha has even released its own ranges of dressings and sauces for home use. MERCH! My, that is confidence personified. Bottled. Whatever. There to celebrate a milestone birthday, five of us rocked up on a Thursday evening, armed with lots of nice wine (of course). A delightful young chap was our waiter, most smiley and helpful, and he even remem...

Top Paddock ? A new cafe in Richmond? Pfft, I'm not going there. Richmond doesn't have quality cafes that actually last. Plus, Richmond is a huuuuuge suburb. I'm a PT kind-of-a-gal. Tell me EXACTLY where it is, then maybe I'll check it out. What? 658 Church Street, near the river? Just down the road from my work?! No WAYYYYYYY! Okay. I'll probably get there one day. A venue for a belated birthday lunch, with my weekly lunch date? ...Why the hell not!? Geez. That was easy to find. And this place is huge. And schmick. I don't think I've ever seen so much cool designer lighting. Are they recycled crystal vases with lightbulbs inside, casting different geometric patterns on the wall? White coffee machine. White marble benchtop. Bar stools. Long communal table. Small private nooks. Clean. Airy. You have HOW MANY different coffee blends? I'm in love. Okay. What are you having to eat? One steak sandwich, please, ...