melbourne cbd

HOT: Phillippa’s City Store, 15 Howey Place, Melbourne

November 17, 2011 ⋅ 6 comments

When I worked in the CBD one of my shopping challenges was finding a good loaf of bread. I rarely had time in my lunch hour to travel to Queen Victoria Markets or battle the lines at David Jones Foodhall, which meant often I had to be organised enough to buy my bread on my [...]

HOT: Melbournalia Home, Level 1 Rear 126 Franklin St, Melbourne

November 17, 2011 ⋅ Post a comment

Stuck for a unique, Melbourne-themed Christmas gift or holiday souvenir? Then make sure you get to Melbournalia, a series of pop up stores open now in the lead-up to Christmas. Over the next few weeks four Melbourne CBD venues and one repurposed newspaper stand will host displays of Melbourne design goodness, with HQ being at [...]

HOT: Bento Lunch, Taxi Dining Room, Level 1 Transport Hotel, Federation Square, Melbourne

November 13, 2011 ⋅ Post a comment

Out of all the dining venues in Federation Square, my favourite is the Transport/Taxi/Transit complex. Transport is great for a quiet riverside drink (though it can get rowdier on weekends), I often take visitors to experience the slick food and expansive Yarra views at the high-end Taxi restaurant and we even arranged our post-wedding drinks [...]

HOT: Miss Marie, 45 Beetham Pde, Rosanna

October 24, 2011 ⋅ One comment

Miss Marie is a cafe with an inner-city vibe catering to the discerning suburban cafe set. The first hint of its slightly left-of-centre sense of humour is in small shrub outside its entrance. The hanging child made me take a horrified double-take before I gasped in relief to see that it was only a doll. [...]

HOT: High Tea at Lobby Lounge, The Westin, 205 Collins St, Melbourne

October 4, 2011 ⋅ One comment

I can think of no better way to spend a cold, rainy afternoon than in front of an open fireplace drinking tea. Better still, drinking tea, eating cakes and lounging around reading an Evelyn Waugh novel. I recently indulged in my perfect rainy-day afternoon scenario with High Tea at the Lobby Lounge of The Westin [...]

NOT: The Tea Room, Level 1 NGV International, 180 St Kilda Rd, Melbourne

September 13, 2011 ⋅ Post a comment

Oh I know, I should have known better. When you have a captive audience (hungry, footsore gallery goers) then there’s probably not too much incentive to provide a great dining experience at the in-house cafe. Other than Cafe Vue at Heide Museum of Modern Art and some international examples (notably Tate Modern and Musee d’Orsay) [...]

HOT: Dressed for Murder: Fashions from the World of Hitchcock, Melbourne Writers Festival, BMW Edge, Federation Square, Melbourne

September 7, 2011 ⋅ Post a comment

Melbourne Writers Festival is over for another year and we’re in the middle of the Melbourne Spring Fashion Week – so this post straddles the two events nicely. One of the events I attended this year at the Melbourne Writers Festival (along with the Jonathan Franzen Q&A which was really enjoyable – he’s the guy [...]

HOT: Espressino Coffee and Pizza Bar, 68-70 King St, The Rialto, Melbourne

September 1, 2011 ⋅ 4 comments

A lifetime ago I worked at Rialto in Collins Street and there were zero good lunch options. Fortunately things have been moved on in what my former colleague dubbed the ‘Beirut’ end of town. One of the great places located under my former liftwell is Espressino. Espressino is a pizza and coffee bar brought to [...]

HOT: The Age Good Food Guide 2012 Winners!

August 30, 2011 ⋅ Post a comment

The winners of The Age Good Food Guide 2012 Awards were announced last night. Here is the complete list of winners, some with my previous reviews – congratulations! Vittoria Coffee Restaurant of the Year – Attica Citibank Chef of the Year – Dan Hunter, Royal Mail Hotel Regional Restaurant of the year - Loam Best New [...]

HOT: Orchestra Victoria, NGV International, Great Hall, 180 St Kilda Rd, Melbourne

August 22, 2011 ⋅ One comment

For those of you lucky enough not to work on a Friday, did you know you can give yourself a dose of classical music with your art every few months at NGV International? Orchestra Victoria, the orchestra which accompanies Opera Australia and the Australian Ballet is presenting a series of free lunchtime concerts every few months [...]