Melbourne Patron

An institution of Melbourne, Pellegrini's Espresso Bar is one of the first places you are told about when you arrive in Melbourne. It faces street-front at 66 Bourke Street - on the corner of a most artistic-looking laneway - making it relatively easy to find, unlike many of its rooftop-dwelling, laneway-hiding neighbours. Aesthetically, it has an old-school Italian charm, and claims to have imported Melbourne's first espresso machine in the 1950s. Considering that, it's very disappointing that Pellegrini's uses and makes such terrible coffee. Vittoria! Oh, the shame. I have been to Pellegrini's several times over my four years in Melbourne, but I honestly have to say this was my most disappointing visit. Sure, it's cheap - but hey, pasta's not expensive to make. Yes, it has character - but so do a lot of places in this wonderful city... and too many 'cons' does not a 'pro' make. There is a long bar/counter that runs down one side o...

One of my best friends and I had polished off a bottle of champagne (a relatively normal Tuesday for us...) and were in dire need of food. It being mid-January, my local pub was still closed for summer holidays, so we headed down to Victoria Street in Richmond and basically chose the first open restaurant we saw (after one we'd already been to). The lucky winner: Oriental Spirit (54 Victoria Street, Richmond). It had been one of those appalling 35+ degree days, but was starting to cool down, so the front had been opened up, allowing a pleasant airflow and a nice closeness to the passing Vietnamese nannas and friendly local dealers. There was also a non-offensive view of the bank across the road. Score! I was a little tipsy (surprise, surprise), so can't say that I really noted what sort of cuisine Oriental Spirit offered; I just assumed, like many other restaurants along Victoria Street - and especially because of its vague name - that they served pan-Asian cuisine. A b...

On my way home from work one unassuming Tuesday in January, I sauntered past Holliava  (36 Swan Street, Richmond), fully intending to have an AFD - "alcohol-free day", for those not in the know (don't worry, they don't happen often). Then I saw the sign. It wasn't a religious enlightening - God, no (...see what I did there?! Sorry. Dad joke.) - but it may as well have been. Happy Hour! $4 drinks! Carlton schooners, vodka, house wines! Well, I thought. I've worked hard today. I don't have to be anywhere for a while. I have internet on my phone. So, in I went. I avoided the front bar. Despite its very late-night moodiness, which is probably perfect when you're trashed on Saturday night, yelling over loud music to have a non-conversation with a cute stranger, I just can't convince myself that it's an overly attractive place to sit in the early evening during Daylight Savings. Unless you are sitting at the window looking out onto the stre...

Walking past the Boatbuilder's Yard  (23 South Wharf Promenade) in the past, I'd always been attracted by the chilled-but-buzzy vibe, timber overload (warm and inviting, don't you think?) and proximity to water (yep, that water thing again). A date gave me the opportunity to try it out on a school night, and I was looking forward to it. Unfortunately, the night before, I hadn't slept a wink. Not only was this detrimental to my general social performance, but it also meant I wasn't in a great frame of mind to make blog-style judgements on the bar/pub venue. However, I will do my best in retrospect. Lots of timber I ordered the house bubbles, served up by friendly and relaxed-looking barmen. We sat outside - because that's what you do at a waterside venue - but it was an overcast day and the wind was whipping the awnings around beside us. This didn't detract a lot from the feeling of open-air-water-proximity I love, but after a while it was a bit fray...

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...

I've only ever been to The European  (161 Spring Street, Melbourne) for brunch, but apparently it also does quite a swanky dinner. It's a favourite of my family's for brunch when they come to visit me in Melbourne. I find it slightly austere, but classy. Its heritage and location (opposite Melbourne's Parliament House) pull it a notch above other places, and the food is on the traditional side, but wonderful. Last weekend, one of my (originally) Sydney friends was visiting, and, being early January, not much was open. So we decided to class it up (opposite of 'slum it', anyone??) and head to The European for a late breakfast. We nabbed a table outside - far more pleasant than being inside on a beautiful summer's day, although the inside is attractive both aesthetically and temperature-wise in winter. Our waitress was somewhat glum-looking, but polite and efficient. Coffees were delivered quickly, but the food was slow. It didn't matter a great deal a...

This bar reminds me a lot of Sydney. I realise to native Melburnians, that is no praise at all. BUT, it is really cool - actually a favourite of mine - and the only reason it reminds me of Sydney is because it is completely surrounded by water. There are so many bars in Sydney with water views - bugger it, so many of EVERYTHING with water views - that it becomes ingrained. I was so used to the space, the air, the freshness, and the movement of water, that no matter how many awesome laneway or rooftop or hidden Melbourne bars I visit, there is something in me that always breathes a sigh of relief when I sit waterfront, nestling a beverage. But Ponyfish Island (under the Yarra Pedestrian Footbridge, between Flinders Street Station and Southbank - enter via the stairs) is cool in many other ways, too. And when I say 'cool', I mean full-on, hipster-y, so-hot-right-now-even-though-it's-been-around-for-a-while, we-don't-serve-wine-in-wine-glasses cool. Here are some of t...