under $20

HOT: Ladro, 224 Gertrude St, Fitzroy

July 20, 2010 ⋅ 3 comments

Ladro was one of the restaurants at the forefront of the designer pizza craze that swept through Melbourne about 5 years ago. It’s still going strong despite the departure of one of the original owners/chefs Rita Macali (who’s sprouted another pizza joint called Supermaxi in North Fitzroy), expanding to a new outpost in Prahran recently. [...]

HOT: BikePark, Vault 15, Banana Alley vaults, Melbourne

July 15, 2010 ⋅ One comment

Despite the best efforts of organisations like Bicycle Victoria and various councils and state governments, not every workplace has facilities for cyclists who want to commute to work. I know, I’ve worked in places that ranged from providing individual lockers and numerous showers, to being told to just park my bike outside on the street [...]

NOT: Jolimont Expresso, Federation Square, Melbourne

July 12, 2010 ⋅ 6 comments

I think that Melbourne has an amazing cafe dining scene. So when I encounter a below-par cafe, it makes me wonder how they are able to survive with the above-average level of competition and a clientele of highly discerning diners. What’s even more surprising is that Jolimont Expresso (why not espresso?) is busy. The city [...]

HOT: Ghin Khao, 242 Swanston St, Melbourne

July 8, 2010 ⋅ 2 comments

Ghin Khao is the second of my Soup Noodle posts, this time recommended by Billy of food blog Half-Eaten. Obviously I have been up and down Swanston Street a million times, and do you know I have never even noticed Ghin Khao. Mysterious actually, given that the frontage is plastered with laminated pictures of Thai [...]

HOT List: Melbourne International Film Festival 2010 Long List

July 7, 2010 ⋅ 4 comments

The Melbourne International Film Festival is my favourite way to celebrate winter in Melbourne, and this year, like other years, I’ve invested in a 10 film festival mini-pass. Selecting the 10 films is always a protracted process of creating a longlist, a shortlist and the final 10. It requires the negotiation of RM’s tastes, coordination [...]

HOT: Izakaya Hachibeh, 143 Bourke St, Melbourne

July 6, 2010 ⋅ One comment

Izakaya Hachibeh is new contender for my favourite quick-and-easy CBD lunch spots. The relaxed and fuss-free Japanese restaurant spans over two levels on Bourke Street, with a rather nondescript frontage and the standard red-lantern izakaya decor. I would never have gone in if my friend J hadn’t suggested we meet there for lunch. She wanted [...]

HOT: The Bell Jar, 656 Smith St, Collingwood

July 1, 2010 ⋅ 12 comments

Occasionally I have readers tipping me off about places to go and I recently received an email suggesting that I try The Bell Jar. So one cold, blustery afternoon I decided to trek up the nether-regions of Smith St (I rarely go past Johnston Street) to have a look. The cafe is quite hard to [...]

HOT: Tim Burton: The Exhibition, ACMI, Federation Square, Melbourne

June 28, 2010 ⋅ 8 comments

One really great way Melbourne embraces its winters is to hold special exhibitions dubbed ‘Melbourne Winter Masterpieces‘. Over the years they have had some wonderful shows, but I think nabbing the Tim Burton exhibition from the Museum of Modern Art in New York is pretty high on the wow list. I can’t say that Tim [...]

NOT: Sex and the City 2

June 24, 2010 ⋅ One comment

Today we have a guest post from Kylie, a writer for the sister blog BNE: HOT OR NOT, reviewing Sex and the City 2. Sorry if you liked this film SATC fans, but she hated it! Thanks Kylie. I’ll be honest. I wasn’t expecting a lot from this movie. I’d seen a few reviews, and [...]

HOT: Felice’s, 141 Greeves St, Fitzroy

June 23, 2010 ⋅ One comment

Just last week I discovered that tucked in behind a lurid kebab shop on Smith St is the other-worldly Felice’s. The retro wood panelling and black laminex bar is reminiscent of an old-fashioned Italian social club, while interesting touches such as the giant model aeroplane suspended from the carved ceiling take the cafe out of [...]