Melbourne Patron

Anyone who's met my current housemate will know she is a massive ramen fan. Along with nachos, it's pretty much all she eats. In fact, she was one of the first to take me to Shop Ramen on Smith Street, which has since become one of our favourites. Having lived with her for a while now, I am happy to admit that her ramen obsession has rubbed off on me. So it was not unusual that a group of us decided, after an afternoon drinking session at Naked In The Sky one Saturday, to head to Little Ramen Bar (346 Lt Bourke Street, Melbourne) for dinner. A tiny joint near the corner of Lt Bourke and Elizabeth Streets, Little Ramen Bar is consistently packed, often with a queue outside the door. Fortunately, the staff have a great system in place, manning the door and ushering in patrons as soon as a table becomes available. There is usually a quick turnaround, so even though waiting might be annoying to some, it's usually not for long. The front door queue Most tables s...

My chef buddy - whom I've known for years, and whose name I'm going to have to tell you now, since he's deigned to join Twitter , finally - gave a cooking class in Cremorne last week and kindly invited me and my bestie to partake. Chefs Shane Kenny and Mark Favaloro Mark Favaloro (Twitter handle @ChefFluffy ... don't ask) and his sidekick, Shane Kenny ( @Shane_Kenny987 ), met whilst working at the original MoVida , where Shane still holds the fort. Mark now heads up the kitchen at Naked In The Sky on Brunswick Street, and has maintained a strong interest in (and talent for) Spanish cooking. Mark chopping stuff really impressively quickly Our menu/recipe booklets Hence, the theme of this class was "Entertaining - Spanish Style!" and, for a fee, was open to members of the public. Along with other foodies and food appreciators, we were treated to a hands-on demonstration, and (thankfully) the consumption of several tapas dishes and a calamar...

Despite the name, no one got naked here. Sadly. I'm still waiting for the day when Naked For Satan (downstairs) hosts a nudist Satanists party, amped with flavoured vodkas and THE BEST CROQUETTES EVER ('cause they're pretty friggin' awesome). I guess the new upstairs venue, Naked In The Sky  (285 Brunswick Street, Fitzroy), would be the meeting place for naked angels. Or birds without their feathers. Or Supermen without their capes. Or something. I digress. My now-ex-housemate - let's call him 'The Chef' - started working at Naked In The Sky (which, frankly, I'd rather not think about in too much detail) when it opened, so I've been hearing of this place for quite a while. Prior to Christmas, just after opening, it had queues of patrons waiting to get in on Friday and Saturday nights. I was happy to wait until January to check it out. An out-of-town friend was staying with me, and what else do you do with out-of-towners in Melbourne but take t...