food and wine

HOT: make Designed Objects, 194 Elgin St, Carlton

January 19, 2011 ⋅ 4 comments

Even though Christmas is over, there are another eleven months of the year where you might have a need to buy nifty, gifty things. If that’s the case, drop into make Designed Objects. This two-storey converted cottage in Carlton is a treasure-trove of great design gadgets, ornaments and useful doodads from all over the world, [...]

HOT: Scandinavian Christmas Bazaar, Swedish Church, 21 St Georges Rd, Toorak

December 8, 2010 ⋅ 2 comments

Even though I’ve spent most of my Christmases in the Australian summer, I have to admit that I don’t think I’ve ever felt more Christmassy than my time spent in the Northern Hemisphere. Maybe I’ve been indoctrinated by Christmas cards featuring reindeer in snow and songs about a white Christmas, but it just feels more [...]

HOT Chat: Will Cook of Harvest Box

December 3, 2010 ⋅ 4 comments

For a foodie like me, December is definitely the silly season. The lead-up to Christmas perfect excuse to eat lots of mince pies, pudding, chocolate and canapes – which means I have to be a little bit disciplined about what I eat in between. Enter my newest discovery Harvest Box, a nifty service that delivers [...]

HOT: STREAT Graduation, Donkey Wheel House, 673 Bourke St, Melbourne

November 11, 2010 ⋅ 5 comments

Remember my previous post about STREAT, the social enterprise providing homeless youth with training in hospitality? Well, the first intake of eight kids who were selected to participate in the 6 month traineeship have just graduated. I was honoured to be invited to their graduation at STREAT‘s offices at Donkey Wheel House, a heritage building [...]

HOT: Joy Cupcakes, Shop E7B, Southern Cross Lane, 127 Exhibition St, Melbourne

November 7, 2010 ⋅ One comment

It’s hard to think of something that could be more JOYful for JOYce than Joy Cupcakes. OK. Enough with the JOY puns, let’s cut to the chase. Joy Cupcakes sell some of the best cupcakes I’ve eaten so far from a commercial bakery in Melbourne. And I have pretty high cupcake standards given I have [...]

HOT Chat: Owen Thomas of Hipside Guides

October 22, 2010 ⋅ 6 comments

I liked the idea of Hipside Guides as soon as I heard about them – a city guide written by a local to help visitors and locals find the the cool, hidden places of Melbourne. Kind of like MEL: HOT OR NOT, in map form! Today’s HOT Chat is with Owen Thomas of Hipside Guides [...]

Ask the Doctor: Melbourne Top 10

September 14, 2010 ⋅ 16 comments

One of the most oft-asked questions for the doctor is a list of must-dos for a weekend trip to Melbourne. When answering, I assume that most visitors are either aware of or have done the usual ‘touristy’ stuff. So here are my Melbourne Top 10 to do/eat/see suggestions which are slightly more hidden, in no [...]

HOT: Shocolate Chocolate Appreciation, 3/296 Brunswick St, Fitzroy

September 13, 2010 ⋅ 5 comments

How much chocolate can I eat in one sitting? Quite a lot it seems. On Sunday, Monday and Tuesday nights, Fitzroy chocolatier Shocolate holds a chocolate appreciation session for chocolate lovers. Thanks to Scoopon I was able to sate my chocolate appetite for $35 rather than the usual $80 and I spent an hour tasting, [...]

HOT: Taste of Melbourne 2010, Royal Exhibition Building, 9 Nicholson St, Carlton

August 29, 2010 ⋅ One comment

It seemed that every foodie brought their taste-testing appetites to the Royal Exhibition Buildings this weekend for the four days of Taste of Melbourne (26-29 August). The Taste festivals in Melbourne and Sydney are a chance for diners to create their own tasting menu from the selection of dishes offered by some of the city’s [...]

HOT: Sugadeaux Cupcake Tasting, Provenance Food & Wine, 288 Smith St, Collingwood

August 20, 2010 ⋅ 7 comments

Cupcakes are serious business. And as a blogger who writes a lot about food, I take cupcake tasting very seriously :–) Hence I jumped at the chance to taste test and provide my feedback on some of Sugadeaux’s new cupcake flavours. About 30 food bloggers and customers of Sugadeaux gathered at Provenance Food & Wine [...]