melbourne cbd

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 [...]

HOT: The Cupcake Bakery, Cnr Flinders Lane and Elizabeth St, Melbourne

July 13, 2010 ⋅ 5 comments

Where can one find the best cupcakes in Melbourne?
This is a question which seems to occupy a lot of space on places like the Vogue forums, and the opinions are wide-ranging and strongly held.
I don’t really have anything to contribute to the debate as frankly, I think the best cupcakes in Melbourne come from my [...]

NOT: Jolimont Expresso, Federation Square, Melbourne

July 12, 2010 ⋅ One comment

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 is [...]

HOT: Ghin Khao, 242 Swanston St, Melbourne

July 8, 2010 ⋅ One comment

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 dishes [...]

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 of [...]

NOT: Dead Man’s Cell Phone, Sumner Theatre, 140 Southbank Boulevard, Southbank

July 7, 2010 ⋅ Post a comment

Way back in January this year I ordered my usual 3-play mini subscription for the Melbourne Theatre Company. As July rolled around, I realised that I had tickets to see Dead Man’s Cell Phone….and I had no idea why. The blurb for the play stated:
“A surrealist fantasy. Dancing out of the light-footed imagination of Sarah [...]

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 to [...]

NOT: Bokchoy Tang, Level 2, The Crossbar Building Federation Square, Cnr Flinders & Swanston Sts, Melbourne

June 30, 2010 ⋅ Post a comment

Bokchoy Tang is a contemporary high-end Chinese restaurant which holds a prime position facing Federation Square and ACMI. The long narrow restaurant is impressively decked out in expensive-looking cabinets and feature tables, and a window table is a pleasant place to bask in the afternoon sun.
I haven’t been to Bokchoy Tang in years and was [...]

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

June 28, 2010 ⋅ 7 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 Burton [...]

HOT: Buttonmania, Level 2, 37 Swanston St, Melbourne

June 22, 2010 ⋅ 4 comments

It amazes me that Melbourne can support a business that specialises in buttons. But then again I think out of all the cities in Australia, Melbourne is the home of the artisan, the handmade and the unique, hole-in-the-wall shop.
Not generally being the crafty type I’ve never had reason to visit Buttonmania until now. Their website [...]