child-friendly

HOT: Cafe Vue at Heide, Heide Museum of Modern Art, 7 Templestowe Rd, Bulleen

October 6, 2011 ⋅ 3 comments

It’s been a while since my last visit to Cafe Vue at Heide and this time we decided to try the a la carte menu rather than the Menu du Jour set menu. On a sunny weekend the cafe is a real drawcard for visitors to Heide Museum of Modern Art. There’s often a queue [...]

HOT: Mitte, 76 Michael Street (cnr Rowe Street), North Fitzroy

October 3, 2011 ⋅ One comment

I’m not sure whether Mitte is named after the district in Berlin and the German word for ‘middle’ but let’s just say at the outset that there are no German references in the menu, decor or service of this neighbourhood cafe. It’s in a little hideaway location on the corner of two residential streets in [...]

HOT: The Wine Bar Restaurant, Yering Station, 38 Melba Hwy, Yarra Glen

September 30, 2011 ⋅ 2 comments

Fancy a day out in the country? In just 45 minutes from the city you can be out in the vineyards of the Yarra Valley. One of the most popular wineries in the Yarra Valley is Yering Station. It’s the first winery established in Victoria and is definitely worth a stop for the cellar door/art [...]

HOT: Ilona Staller, 282 Carlisle St, Balaclava

September 22, 2011 ⋅ 2 comments

I can’t cope with Melbourne’s growing trend for restaurants that don’t take bookings (too uncertain, too impatient, too hungry). But I really wanted to have dinner at Ilona Staller. What to do? Answer – dispatch my Balaclavan friends R and A to plonk themselves at the bar at 6:30pm on a Saturday night while I [...]

HOT: Small Block, 130 Lygon St, East Brunswick

September 21, 2011 ⋅ Post a comment

Small Block is a cafe particularly well suited to the urban professional/hip and arty/young parents demographic of East Brunswick. To whit: attention to coffee – the blackboard shows the single origin bean of the day and gives a description of its particular qualities; an extensive all-day breakfast menu which has the locals lining up on [...]

HOT: Bluebird Espresso, 134 Johnston St, Collingwood

September 14, 2011 ⋅ 2 comments

You had me at hello. There are some cafes which just grab you by the coat and give you a big bear hug, providing smiles and instant comfort. I loved Bluebird Espresso from the moment I spotted it – a retro blue bike chained to lamp post, colourful tulips bravely wavering against the grey grunge [...]

HOT: Cafe Bursaria, Como House, cnr Lechlade Ave and Williams Rd, South Yarra

September 12, 2011 ⋅ 2 comments

The website of Cafe Bursaria has the tagline ‘South Yarra’s best kept secret’. You know what, I think for once that kind of puffery is true. I lived in South Yarra for four years, within cooee of Como House, and I’d never heard of, let alone stepped inside, Cafe Bursaria. Which is a shame because [...]

HOT: Squirrel Cafe, 23 Groome St, Clifton Hill

September 8, 2011 ⋅ One comment

squirrel /ˈskwər(ə)l/ Noun: An agile tree-dwelling rodent (Sciurus and other genera, family Sciuridae) with a bushy tail, typically feeding on nuts and seeds. Verb: Hide money or something of value in a safe place: “the money was squirreled away in foreign bank accounts”. Squirrel Cafe makes the most of its name by taking both those [...]

HOT: Brunetti, 194 – 204 Faraday Street, Carlton

August 31, 2011 ⋅ 3 comments

There’s something to be said for revisiting old favourites. Before I moved to Melbourne, every time I visited the city I’d make a pilgrimage to Brunetti. Back then it was only a single store in Carlton, half its current size. I loved the European atmosphere, the mirrored walls and the glass cabinet full of cakes. [...]

HOT: Dumpling Masterclass, Oriental Teahouse, GD 068/69 Melbourne Central

August 27, 2011 ⋅ 3 comments

Restauranter and tea merchant David Zhou has expanded his Oriental Teahouse empire to Melbourne Central. The entrance is not immediately obvious from Elizabeth Steet which is a shame as the fitout is gorgeous – warm and earthy tones beckon you inside while punches of firecracker red accentuate the concept’s Chinese origins. I have blogged about [...]