melbourne cbd

HOT: Grossi Florentino Cellar Bar, 80 Bourke Street, Melbourne

October 28, 2009 ⋅ 2 comments

And it’s a…..GOAL! After the disappointing misstep of Grossi Florentino Grill, Guy Grossi’s empire has redeemed itself on this blog by delivering the goods at Grossi Florentino Cellar Bar. The waxed wood interior of the Cellar Bar is a beautiful narrow space straight out of la dolce vita Italy but note that it is really [...]

HOT: T2 Tea Too, 340 Brunswick St, Fitzroy

October 28, 2009 ⋅ 4 comments

As my regular readers will know, I’m getting married soon – and as a Chinese bride it is traditional to have a Chinese tea ceremony. So, another thing to tick off the wedding to-do list was to find a tea set. I wanted something that was vaguely Oriental, without any gaudy gold leaf or dragon/phoenix [...]

Ask the Doctor: Cheap dining in Chinatown for a large group

October 27, 2009 ⋅ One comment

Help me Doctor!: One of the grads at work has asked for a recommendation for a restaurant in Chinatown for their grad dinner (informal plus because we’re a public body… cheap). Dinner will be for about 20 – 25 people and if there’s a banquet option (or some easy ordering option), that would be good. [...]

HOT Alert: Week of 26 October 2009

October 25, 2009 ⋅ 4 comments

Can you believe it’s the end of October and they’re erecting the Christmas tree at City Square already? Events this week: preview of The Brothers Bloom with Mark Ruffalo, Adrien Brody and Rachel Weisz; preview of Jane Campion’s latest film Bright Star, starring the gorgeous Abbie Cornish; glamming it up for homeless shelter charity Many Rooms [...]

Ask the Doctor: Eating itinerary for HOT new restaurants

October 24, 2009 ⋅ Post a comment

Help me Doctor!: I’m going to be in town for a week – could you recommend five restaurants for me to visit, one for each day, Monday to Friday? I haven’t been back to Melbourne in a while so would like to try some new places. – Miranda Your prescription: So Miranda, you want to [...]

HOT: Julie & Julia, Hoyts Melbourne Central, Cnr Swanston and Latrobe Sts, Melbourne

October 21, 2009 ⋅ Post a comment

Of course I enjoyed Julie & Julia. I love to eat, I love to cook, I love to blog. I have a very understanding partner. I work in an office and I’m a Francophile. The only difference is that I’ve never lived in Paris or New York City and I’ve never deboned a duck. Julie [...]

HOT: Nobu Melbourne, Crown Melbourne, 8 Whiteman St, Southbank

October 21, 2009 ⋅ 6 comments

I admit that I don’t generally choose to dine at Crown unless I have visitors, the Yarra being the closest thing Melbourne gets to a glamourous harbour view. In my mind, all that shiny sleekness lacks personality – the strip just feels like a series of faceless, corporate expense account-style restaurants. Which just goes to [...]

HOT: Valhalla, Arts Centre Forecourt, 100 St Kilda Rd, Melbourne

October 20, 2009 ⋅ Post a comment

In Norse mythology, Valhalla is a majestic, enormous martial hall housing the chosen dead. I didn’t know this fact when I entered Valhalla, Callum Morton’s new work for the Melbourne International Arts Festival. I knew that the desolate, pock-marked, concrete crumble was a three-quarter scale replica of Morton’s childhood home and I knew that some [...]

HOT: New Kum Den Restaurant, 15 Hefferman Lane, Melbourne

October 19, 2009 ⋅ Post a comment

I think sometimes the Jetsetting Parents can be pretty cool for middle-aged retirees – they were one of the early adopters of Facebook and have just recently entered the world of Twitter. Now they’ve decided to venture into the blogosphere – welcome Jetsetting Mum, my parental guest-blogger! Here’s her review of New Kum Den Restaurant [...]

HOT Chat: Alex Hume of Eco Fashionista

October 19, 2009 ⋅ One comment

This week’s HOT Chat comes from Eco Fashionista. Alex Hume chatted to me about fashion, living eco-conscious and being a business-owner with a young toddler. Alex, how did Eco Fashionista come about? Eco Fashionista was launched almost a year to the day my son Max was born. Max’s arrival (and the huge sense of responsibility that arrived [...]