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Hvar: A Walk Along The Sun Glistened Blue Coast

Paul

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21 March 2013

Hvar is a Croatian island in the Adriatic Sea, just off the Dalmatian coast. Hvar is also the name of the largest city on the island.

Home to 4,200 permanent residents, the population of Hvar increases significantly during the summer as it is a very popular tourist destination full of hotels, restaurants, bars and clubs – and of course the Mediterranean climate and endless beaches.

We got the morning ferry from Split, and 75 minutes later, were docked in the port at Hvar.

Hvar was an independent commune of the Venetian Empire during the 13th to 18th centuries, and was an important trading port and naval base. Prior to this, Hvar was part of the Greek Empire and the Roman Empire. The city walls, as well as many of the buildings of this era are still standing today.

I will focus more on the city and the architecture in a later post, but today I was to focus on the stunning coastline. One of the best things to do in Hvar is to sleep in, chill out on the beach, go for a stroll up the coast, get some lunch, hang out at a bar, go to the beach again, sleep, grab some dinner, then go to another bar. Usually I’m quite intensely trying to pack a lot into the holidays that I go on, and it was nice for a change to not to much of anything for a few days.

There are a lot of boats in Hvar. Some are transporting people from island to island, some are docked and have people staying in them, some are for partying, and some are for fishing.

As well as the public beaches, many of the beaches on Hvar are restricted to use by those staying at whatever accommodation is located directly up from that section of the beach. The photo below is the view from the shore of the beach that was connected to the apartment we had rented for the 2 nights we were there. It was the perfect relaxation spot.

Dotted along the coast are several bars. Again, some are restricted to those staying at the hotel up from the beach, but many are open for all. One of the things that I love about Hvar is that people are treated like adults. The bars go right up to the water, and you can grab a drink and sit by the water and enjoy it – taking in the vibe and listening to whatever music might be playing, be it from a radio or a live DJ.

Spend just one day in Hvar, and you start to question how much you really need to live a good life. The stresses of the “real world”, work and the big city all become insignificant.

Hvar, and the other Croatian cities located on the Adriatic are blessed with some of the most amazingly fresh seafood that you’ve ever eaten. Here we saw a local fisherman gutting his catch of the day, ready to sell to the restaurants for the evening. Often you’ll see the fresh seafood being cooked on the grill right out the front of the venues on the side-walk – an enticing proposition for would be diners for sure.

Code Black Coffee, Brunswick

Paul

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19 March 2013

0

Code Black Coffee is one of the latest cafes to open in Brunswick, and is located just off Sydney Road, behind Barkly Square shopping centre. Not only is Code Black a cafe, but it’s also a roasting house – the roasting equipment taking up half of the premises.

Owned by Joseph Haddadd, the man behind Melbourne’s popular Cafenatics cafes, expectations were high that Code Black would offer some excellent coffee and food. Code Black does not disappoint on either front.

A range of breakfast/brunch options, as well as a few lunch dishes and sandwiches are offered on the menu, while a selection of cakes and pastries can be found in the display at the counter.

I ordered the Beetroot Salmon Sandwich, which contained beetroot cured salmon, alfalfa, thinly sliced pickled cucumbers, lightly battered thin onion rings, and mascarpone cheese. The bread was beautifully soft on the inside and crunchy on the outside. It came with a side salad and was very tasty – the flavours were very well balanced.

I hadn’t actually had a proper breakfast and the sandwich was so filling that I couldn’t even finish the whole thing.

A range of black and milk coffees are available, and on the bean front, at any given time there is both a house blend for black, a house blend for milk, and a rotating single origin for both black and white.

Mazzer Robur grinders take care of the grinding duties. Espresso is made using a La Marzocco Strada and Slayer, and the filter is made using the drip filter method.

The fit-out, is a step up from your usual minimalist warehouse conversion, and makes good use of stone and metal.

I had a single origin filter and a house blend flat white. The flat white was very decent – smooth and velvety, and not as complex as some other house blends that I have tried, which to be honest is often what you want in a house blend, with the single origins being where you go for the more complex flavours.

I think this logic was borne out when I tried the single origin filter coffee, which was definitely the stand out here, being very robust and tasty.

Everything that a serious coffee nut could want to buy is available at Code Black, with a range of equipment, including Pullman tampers, VST baskets and some very high end grinders and espresso machines on the list.

Bean wise, the house blends, as well as a very decent range of single origins are available. The only criticism I have to offer here was the lack of tasting notes. The labels on the bags contain information about the origin of the bean/s, the process and varietal, however give no indication as to the flavours underpinning the beans.

The staff were excellent in explaining the different beans to me and helping me to choose some, however a printed sheet of tasting notes would be very helpful.

One final point of note is the fact that Code Black also has a small selection of very interesting teas on offer. I am a big tea fan, and was impressed to see almost the same effort go into the teas on offer as the coffee on offer.

Overall, Code Black Coffee is a great addition to the Brunswick cafe scene.

Code Black Coffee

15-17 Weston Street
Brunswick
Victoria 3056
Australia

Telephone: (03) 9381 2330
Fax: n/a
Email: [email protected]
Website: http://codeblackcoffee.com.au/

Open
Mon – Sun: 7:00am to 5:00pm

BangPop, South Wharf

Paul

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16 March 2013

4

BangPop in South Wharf is the latest Thai restaurant to open in Melbourne. Occupying the space formerly home to “The Sharing House”, BangPop focuses on serving Thai street food in a casual environment.

The space is really open and light and suits the food style and stated aim well. The Lego bar from the Sharing House has been retained, and helps to add to the fun vibe of the venue. The tables are long and communal, and the food is designed for sharing.

Friday night was the last night of the soft opening, before the official opening this week, so my fiancée and a friend of ours went down to see what it was all about. What we ordered was perfect for 3 people.

Often, when restaurants attempt to do “street food” from other countries, the result is less than authentic. At BangPop, experienced restaurateur Paul Mathis has hired chef Kam McManamey to take care of the menu, but has also consulted with Yaigum, a Thai street food stall-holder for more than 40 years, with an intimate knowledge of Isaan cuisine (that is, the cuisine of Northeastern Thailand). The result of this is a very authentic menu, which remains focused on Isaan flavours. Another very clear nod to authenticity is the fact that BangPop do not show restraint when it comes to spices – if a dish is meant to be spicy, it will be spicy!

One of the things that really stood out for me that made me realise that what I was going to eat was the real deal was when the first dish came out, and my group was offered a range of condiments including fish sauce and chilli.

Produce is local and seasonal, and only when it needs to come from Thailand (such as with some of the sauces for example), will anything be imported.

The service at BangPop was excellent. The staff were really helpful and attentive, and seemed genuinely excited when explaining the dishes and flavours.

Kai Chae Mae Pla Tod – Marinated chicken spare ribs with nam jin talay and pickled shallots ($12.90)

This was my favourite dish of the night. The chicken was fried, but not at all greasy, and the dipping sauce was divine and really packed a punch.

Num Tok Moo – Pork Salad ($15.90)

This was probably the weakest of the dishes that we had on the night. It was still excellent, but didn’t hit the heights of the other things that we ate.

Yum Pla Foo – Barramundi “cotton” fish salad ($20.90)

I really enjoyed this dish. The cotton in the name comes from the way the fish is served. If you’ve ever eaten pork floss, you’ll know exactly what it’s all about. I’m not really sure how to explain it to someone who doesn’t know what it is. The fish is dried, and has a light fluffy texture, similar to coarse cotton.

The texture is certainly different, and I think that BangPop got it spot on in this dish.

Kang Daeng Phed – 16 hour cooked duck leg red curry with basil, fresh chilli and roasted coconut ($22.90)

This curry was really nice. It was spicy, and the Thai basil and pineapple provided a good counter balance to the spice. The duck was served on the bone, and after 16 hours of slow cooking, it fell right off the bone and was very succulent.

The cocktail list has not been finalised and they were experimenting with a few things on the night. This was very refreshing, and the chilli was definitely prominent, but not overpowering. Clearly I enjoyed it, as I’d already taken a few sips before realising that I hadn’t yet taken a photo. I shared one with fellow bloggers Sharking For Chips and Drinks and James, who I bumped into on the night.

Saku Song Kreuang – Tapioca pudding with mango ice-cream and roasted coconut ($8.90)

I really enjoyed this dessert. The ice-cream had a very solid (in a good way), creamy texture and the roasted coconut added a nice crunch to the dish. The bed of tapioca meant that there were 3 unique textures going on in each mouthful. It worked well and was very tasty.

Song Kreng – Mango ice-cream and young coconut in coconut juice ($10.90)

The coconut juice inside these containers is on the drinks menu, but is also used for the below desert. Less complex than the above dessert flavour wise, it still tasted great and was more of a refreshing dessert.

Being in South Wharf could be a blessing or a curse for BangPop. On the one hand, the South Wharf precinct is still finding its feet, and it’s not an area that people can stumble across – you have to make an effort to go there. On the other hand, all of the early signs are very good, and BangPop could be just the kind of venue that South Wharf needs – a true destination restaurant. I think it’s certainly worth the trip, and will definitely be back again.

BangPop

35 South Wharf Promenade
South Wharf
Victoria 3006
Australia

Telephone: (03) 9245 9800
Email: TBA.
Website: TBA. You can check out their Facebook page in the meantime.

Open
Mon – Sun: Lunch 12:00pm to 3:00pm. Dinner 6:00pm to late.

Mr Banks, Melbourne CBD

Paul

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15 March 2013

2

Mr Banks is a new cafe that’s opened in Melbourne’s CBD serving all day breakfast as well as lunch. It’s located in the newly renovated Fulham Place, just off Flinders Lane in Melbourne’s CBD.

I had actually intended to check out the CBD branch of Collingwood burger joint Huxtaburger “Huxtaburger CBD“, however it was not open, the builders still working away towards the end of the laneway in the photo below. By the looks of the place, my guess would be 2 weeks before they open (edit – it’s now open, and very good. You can read my review here).

The fit-out is very typical for Melbourne, being raw and exposed. Nothing unique but it works. One criticism I had was that the lighting was a touch too dark. You can tell from my photos that my phone camera was struggling in with the lighting and although I’m generally a fan of lighting that’s not too bright, the dimmers at Mr. Banks could certainly do with being turned up a notch.

The front opens up widely into the laneway, and there are a few tables outdoors, with some more tables to the right of the below photo.

At the counter are a range of salads, sandwiches and bagels, and there is a quite small, focused dine in menu serving typical all day breakfast options and lunches.

No expense has been wasted on the coffee set-up, with a La Marzocco coffee machine, 2 Mazzer grinders, and locally roasted single origin beans from Code Black Coffee. The resulting coffee was pretty much perfect, with a great consistency and balance to the flavours.

In an inspired bout of originality, all 4 of us ordered the steak sandwich. At $16 it was pretty much what you’d expect for the price. The bread was slightly toasted, and the chips were tasty and not too oily or salty. The beetroot paste was a nice twist on what we had assumed would just be normal beetroot. Beneath the steak was steamed spinach.

This all counts for nothing if the steak itself is not up to scratch, and in this regard the sandwich did not disappoint. The steak was a beautifully cooked piece of porterhouse that was extremely tender and flavoursome.

Overall the experience at Mr Banks was a very positive one. There were some teething problems, mainly that although they were adequately staffed, everyone seemed to be doing a bit of everything – I’m sure this will be ironed out in the coming weeks. All of the staff were very friendly and cheerful, and I certainly see myself coming back here to try some of the other lunch and breakfast options on offer.

I’ve not been able to find any information on the Internet as of yet regarding Mr Banks, so the “Essential Information” below is a bit light on. I will update it when the information comes to hand.

Mr Banks

Fulham Place (Next to 347 Flinders Lane)
Melbourne
Victoria 3000
Australia

Telephone: n/a
Email: n/a
Website: n/a

Open
n/a

Split: Diocletian’s Palace

Paul

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14 March 2013

0

Diocletian’s Palace in Split was built between the late 3rd and early 4th centuries AD. It consists of several structures, all of which form part of a UNESCO heritage protected area. The Palace is very important to Croatia from a historical point of view, and depicted on the reverse of the Croatian 500 kuna banknote, issued in 1993.

I visited the area twice, hence the mixture of daytime and night time photos. Like most places in the world, the vibe and atmosphere is quite different during the night versus the day, and it’s well worth checking the area out at both times.

The dominating cathedral was built in the Middle Ages, with several Romanesque churches and medieval fortifications built between the 12th and 13th centuries. In the 15th century, Gothic palaces were constructed, and various Renaissance and Baroque palaces were also constructed.

In the early Middle Ages, the entirety of Split was contained within the walls of the Palace, and it was only in the 14th century, during a period of great prosperity, that the town expanded.

All of the grander buildings, the religious buildings, royal apartments and the like, were contained in the southern half of the Palace, with residences for servants and soldiers and storage areas contained in the northern half.

Diocletian’s Palace is of notable importance due to the fact that it is the most well preserved ancient buildings on the Croatian side of the Adriatic coast, and one of the most intact examples of a complete Roman palace. The Palace’s form and the arrangement of the buildings within the palace represent a transitional style of imperial villa, Hellenistic town and Roman camp.

On the eastern side of the Palace is the Porta Argentea (Silver Gate). Reconstructed between 1932-1934, the gate gives access to the Plain of King Tomislav and to the Peristil (peristyle), the central open-air area of the palace.

There is a small market underneath Diocletian’s Palace that contains the usual bric-a-brac that you find in tourist towns. The architecture itself is what I was more interested in down here, however saying that, you could do worse than here if you wanted to get yourself a memento from Split – beyond the usual touristy stuff there are some quality artisan goods for sale.

Does this sort of stuff need to be sold in the Palace itself? From a business point of view, it clearly makes sense but I know I’d much rather have seen something educational and informative in this space instead.

In the eastern part of the Peristil is the Mausoleum of Diocletian (today’s Cathedral of St Doimus dedicated to St Mary). This is a beautiful building with an amazingly intact interior. It almost completely retains its original octagonal form, encircled by 24 columns which once supported the roof. The dome roof used to contain mosaics, but unfortunately these were lost long ago.

Across from the Mausoleum is a small temple, that was built in dedication of Jupiter. Not much of the temple remains, and two other small temples that were located here no longer stand.

From the seemingly unassuming “back” of Diolcetian’s Palace, you get quite an interesting view of the area, and where the ruins of old and the lives of the new meet.

Leaving Diocletian’s Palace from the south takes you to the boardwalk and the coast. This area is vibrant well into the night during the summer, and it’s a great spot for chilling out and watching the world go by, with a beautiful view of the Adriatic.

Even if you didn’t know the exact details behind the importance of Diocletian’s Palace (as I didn’t when I first visited) you can tell that it’s something special. Walking through the Palace you can feel the history of the area. You start to think about empires, wars and the fluidity of power of the long history of this part of the world and relate it to various things that are happening in the world today.

Visiting Diocletian’s Palace makes you want to learn more – and anything that invokes a thirst for knowledge is worth protecting for that reason alone.

Future Music Festival Melbourne

Paul

-

11 March 2013

2

Future Music is a festival held in various capital cities across Australia at the end of summer each year. It’s one of the big ones in the country and caters for a wide variety of tastes, with a definite skewing towards popular (as opposed to pop) music. I went to Future Music Melbourne in 2013

Future Music Melbourne 2013 edition had a very English flavour to it, with artists such as The Prodigy, The Stone Roses, Dizzee Rascal, Bloc Party, Rudimental, Azealia Banks and Rita Ora performing. It was almost like I was back in the UK (ignoring the fact that it was a scorching 36 degrees Celsius). It wasn’t all British though, with Fun., Avicci, Steve Aoki, Fun and the Temper Trap also appearing amongst others.

There was a Mexican theme, which didn’t really mean anything on a practical level beyond there being some Mexican food on offer and some Mexican graphics around the place.

When the Stone Roses announced that they were getting back together to do a run of shows in the UK in 2012, I was disappointed that I wouldn’t be able to see them so was very happy when it was announced that they would be one of the headline acts at Future Music in 2013.

I’m not usually a big fan of music festivals, and not even a huge fan of any of the other bands that were there, but I was keen to see the Temper Trap, Dizzee Rascal, The Prodigy and Bloc Party so there was enough going on to convince me to buy a ticket. Plus the fact that I’d really not seen much live music since returning to Australia, as opposed to seeing a gig about once a month when I was living in London.

Overall, I’m still not a huge fan of music festivals, and much prefer intimate, smaller gigs however on an objective level, the organisers did a good job with Future Music Melbourne 2013 in Melbourne. The crowd was generally well behaved, there was decent food on offer (Grill’d for example, a quite good Australian burger chain, had a van set up), all the performances were on time, and security was certainly present everywhere, but not overbearing and quite friendly and helpful when you had a question.

You’ll have to excuse the quality on some of these photos. A long zoom lens, in a crowd, with (come night time) challenging lighting certainly made getting quality snaps a difficult task.

The first act was saw was Fun.. I had no idea who they were, but the girls wanted to see them and there was nothing else on that I wanted to see at the time so off we went. Not really my cup of tea, but the fluoro framed glasses wearing hipster crowd seemed to be enjoying themselves and, to be fair, on an objective level it was a good set – sound was well tuned, and the singer had a good voice and was engaging the crowd. I recognised their two singles from the radio at the end which made me feel slightly less out of touch!

Rudimental was playing on the other main stage and again, I had no idea who they were until they performed “Feel The Love”. I quite enjoyed what I saw of these guys. It was very high energy.

While I was waiting in the (very long) line for burgers, the girls went off to see Psy. His set lasted a whole 20 minutes, which included Gangnam Style twice. Props to the guy, he’s making big money by stretching this thing out for as long as he can.

The Temper Trap were one of the artists that I was keen to see and they didn’t disappoint. It was a really good set.

Dizzee Rascal was playing on the next stage, so I caught what I could of him in the gap between the Temper Trap and the Stone Roses. I’ve been a Dizzee Rascal fan since the grimy days of his first album, and as his sounds has skewed more and more towards the pop end of spectrum I’ve been less impressed by his music. There are still some banging tunes, and there’s no doubt that the guy gives 100% when he is on stage, but the quality certainly isn’t what it was a few years back. He was playing a mix of old and new which was good.

Back to the main stage for the Stone Roses, and the average age of the crowd had suddenly increased by a good 10 years. Given that the history of this band and the animosity that existed between them all for so long, this was a reunion that many wanted to see, but most probably never though would happen.

The energy in the crowd was amazing, and everyone was really getting into it. A “best of” set, with absolutely no filler it was great. Ian Brown’s voice had been known to be not so fantastic live at times, but tonight he was in good form. This was also confirmation to me that Ian Brown is, in fact, the biggest Northerner of all-time, equalled only, perhaps, by Noel Gallagher. Seeing Ian Brown walk and “dance” on stage in true late 1980s /early 1990s Manchester style was worth the price of admission alone.

Bloc Party followed the Stone Roses and while their set was ok, the band wasn’t particularly engaging with the audience. We left early because we wanted to check out the Prodigy. I probably would have stayed if they were only playing songs off their first two albums, but I’m not really much of a fan of their other output.

We stood outside the tent that the Prodigy were playing in. It was loud, intense and sweaty and we weren’t really in the mood to cram ourselves in there. There was a big screen set up outside the tent so we stood and watched a few songs. It was a very fast and intense set and the energy just did not let up. You can’t really see anything related to the band, but I really like the way this photo turned out.

Overall, I had a good day out at Future Music Melbourne 2013. My only real gripe had nothing to do with the festival, but trying to get home after. To the Victorian State government, you have to get moving with the deregulation of taxi license plates. There are simply not enough taxis on Melbourne’s streets at the best of times, and when an event like this is held, the problem is magnified immensely.

Have you seen any of these bands perform live before? What were your thoughts?

Pho Chu The, Richmond

Paul

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9 March 2013

2

Pho Chu The Victoria Street is one of many places that you can go to if you want a bowl of Pho in this part of town.

Victoria Street in Richmond used to be to go-to spot for quality Vietnamese food in Melbourne, however in recent years the focus has shifted to Footscray. While Victoria Street does still have many Vietnamese restaurants, there are several duds aimed at locals with a not so adventurous pallet. As with streets that become popular over time, there are many claims on the windows of the Vietnamese restaurants of being the “best Vietnamese restaurant on Victoria Street”.

I was in the area with my fiancée on Friday and with an empty fridge, and relatively empty wallets, the option of an affordable Vietnamese meal on Victoria Street was an obvious one. We are both big fans of a proper big bowl of pho. Pho is such a simple dish, yet there are so many flavours and complexities going on in that bowl.

A quick search on one of my favourite food blogs, Mel: Hot Or Not, revealed Pho Chu The to be a good sounding option. A long standing favourite since 1989, frequented by Vietnamese diners, positive reviews from many trusted sources etc.

The menu at Pho Chu The is very small and focused. Spring rolls, rice paper rolls and pho in small, medium or large is what’s on offer. This is generally a good sign – when a restaurant does this it’s because they know what they do well and stick to it, and are confident that they will get enough business to keep going despite having a restricted menu.

The first call of order was to get a cold drink, to help provide relief from the extremely humid and hot weather outside. I went for the “3 Colours Sweet” which is an icy coconut cream drink. There’s no rule as to what the 3 ingredients should be, as long as they are different colours. The version served here contained red (azuki) beans, and two types of thin jelly strands. It was very tasty and refreshing.

We wanted to order rice paper rolls, but accidentally ordered prawn spring rolls instead (the mistake was ours). Luckily, they were really good. The inside was simply prawn, and the pastry was very light and not at all oily.

At $9 for a medium bowl of Pho, Pho Chu The is a great option for an affordable meal. The servings were huge and neither I nor my fiancée could finish our dishes.

I ordered the sliced beef and tendon. It came out with the usual bowl of thai basil, sprouts and lime, and on the table was the usual selection of condiments – a sweet sauce, soy sauce, pickled onions and 3 types of chilli.

The pho was amazing. The noodles were just the right texture, and not too chewy or dougy as can sometimes be the case. The broth was tasty and not overly salted, the beef was tender, and tendon was very gelatinous and soft. Supposedly the broth is left for 12 hours, and I’d be inclined to believe it given the results.

My fiancée had the shredded chicken pho.

Overall, I couldn’t fault Pho Chu The. The staff were friendly, the meals came out quickly, and the food was of top quality. I’m now more excited than ever for my trip to Vietnam in 2 months time.

In addition to the Richmond Branch, there are also branches in Footscray and Box Hill.

Pho Chu The

270 Victoria Street
Richmond
Victoria 3121
Australia

Telephone: (03) 9428 7797
Email: n/a
Website: http://www.phochuthe.com

Open
Mon – Sun: 9am – 10pm

Split: Beyond The Beauty

Paul

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7 March 2013

0

Split, as I have written about in previous posts, is a truly beautiful city – one of the best in Croatia. It has the warm Mediterranean climate, the blue water and beaches, the stunning old town and a great vibe about it. There is however, a Split beyond the beauty.

It is easy to imagine old European cities as being places that are lost in time. Beautiful relics of the past for tourists to be mesmerised by. This is, of course, not the case and all of these cities are places that continued developing long after the beautiful structures of old were built, and continue to develop today, as cities with populations living their lives today.

As with most European cities, once you leave Split’s old town and its immediate vicinity, there is another world, a world beyond the beauty, where the vast majority of residents live. To find this alternate world, one doesn’t have to travel too far off the beaten path. In fact, I walked no further than half an hour outside of the centre of the old town on the day that I explored the areas that are the subject of this post.

After World War II, Croatia became the Socialist Republic of Croatia, which itself was part of Yugoslavia. President Tito and the Yugoslav government was engaged in a heavy industrialisation and modernisation program, and Split was one of the centres of this activity. The physical size of the city, and its population grew immensely. By the end of 1960, millions of jobs had been created in the cities, and about 80% of the population of Yugoslavia was living in urban areas, as opposed to 20% only 15 years prior.

Different to what Split had experienced in the past, its Yugoslav era architecture was dominated by functional, relatively high rise structures and in true socialist style, extensive use of bare concrete.

Hajduk Split are the local football team and are hugely popular. There are stickers, billboards, and street art featuring the team’s logo seemingly everywhere in the city. During World War II, Hajduk was the official team of the Croatian Parizan movement, and its players and staff fought with the Partizans after the occupying Italians capitulated.

One starts to realise why football in Europe is often so heated as it truly is more than just a game, with a lot of intrinsic connections between various football clubs and the politics and history of their nation.

As well as street art, there is quite a lot of graffiti around Split outside of the old town.

These small news-stands can be found throughout Split.

I didn’t see any skaters, but this retail and entertainment development was absolutely prime for the activity. The centre had a very post apocalyptic vibe about it and there didn’t seem to be too much going on, bar the very large and busy supermarket inside. I stocked up on a few interesting food items for cooking, which of course meant that I had to lug them around Europe for 3 weeks until I got back home.

The hallmark of the French street artist “Invader”. Invader installed his first mosaic in the mid 1990s in Paris, where he lives. The programme of installations began in earnest in 1998 and continues to this day. I have stumbled across so many of these mosaics in so many different cities in different continents around the world that I’ve lost count. It’s quite an amazing effort from Invader.

If I have been able to impart anything with this post, I hope it’s to get you thinking about what else the cities that you visit might have to offer beyond the obvious. Get out there, put away the map and walk. Explore the fascinating areas with their own character that exist beyond the beauty. It’s also a great way to escape the crowds of tourists, even when travelling during peak holiday season.

Melbourne’s Top Rated Restaurants: Part 2

Paul

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3 March 2013

0

Melbourne’s Top Rated Restaurants: Part 2

Melbourne has a large number of top rated restaurants. Many of the genuinely best restaurants appear in many sources, however sometimes you can find places on these lists that aren’t necessarily the best.

Urbanspoon, for example, contains a very extensive list, and is used by many people to decide where to eat, however a restaurant’s ranking can be heavily influenced by its popularity. This means that you’ll see restaurants that are in the tourist guides, or that have a big reputation appearing quite high on the list. Also, people tend to be quite generous in their rankings, which means places that aren’t necessarily that good can have quite a high score.

Overall, these guides do serves as a good starting point, however further research should be done before making a decision. I’ve had a look at the list and have written a short paragraph or two on each of the places on there that I’ve eaten at but haven’t reviewed elsewhere to provide you with some guidance.

Click here for Part 1 of my Melbourne’s Top Rated Restaurants guide.

The Hardware Societe

It seems that so many of the great breakfast venues in Melbourne these days are opening up outside of the CBD. It’s nice when something that really is at the top of its game opens up in the CBD.

The Hardware Societe offers really great French and Spanish inspired breakfasts. The ingredients are fresh, local and always cooked just right. The pastries and cakes (especially the macarons) are a highlight and the coffee is from Proud Mary. Well worth your consideration if you’re in the area, but expect a bit of a wait as it gets very busy.

The Hardware Societe

118-120 Hardware Street
Melbourne
Victoria 3000
Australia

Telephone: (03) 9078 5992
Email: n/a
Website: n/a

Open
Mon – Fri: 7:00am to 3:00pm
Sat – Sun: 8:30am to 2:00pm

Andrew’s Hamburgers

Andrew’s has a real cult following in Melbourne, and it’s been around for a long time – well before the burger fad kicked off in Melbourne. Since 1939 in fact.

The burgers are very tasty, full of decent ingredients, and really good value for money. Beef, chicken, steak and vegetarian options are available.

In this day and age or artisan, complex burgers, sometimes a traditional, good quality “old school” burger taste is just what’s required to hit the spot.

Andrew’s Hamburgers

144 Birdport Street
Albert Park
Victoria 3206
Australia

Telephone: (03) 9690 2126
Email: n/a
Website: http://andrewshamburgers.com.au/

Open
Mon – Sat: 11:30am to 3:00pm; 4:30pm to 9:00pm

Three Bags Full

Three Bags Full is one of the better options for breakfast and lunch in Abbotsford. The coffee is excellent and, the food is very decent and offers the usual range of solid breakfast and lunch options. There’s something about the bacon here that really stands out, and all of the produce is local and fresh, with as much of the produce as possible being made on-site.

Service can be hit and miss at time, especially when it gets busy on the weekends, but is generally good.

Three Bags Full

60 Nicholson Street
Abbotsford
Victoria 3067
Australia

Telephone: (03) 9421 2732
Email: [email protected]
Website: http://threebagsfullcafe.com.au/

Open
Mon – Fri: 7:00am to 5:00pm
Sat – Sun: 8:00am to 5:00pm

Cookie

Cookie can be considered the granddaddy of the move towards a more authentic style of Thai food in Melbourne. When it opened it was well ahead of the competition, but these days has been left behind somewhat. You’ll still get a decent feed there, and the food is good quality, it’s just a bit tired compared to places like Chin Chin and Bang Pop.

Given its location and opening hours, I think that Cookie works very well as a place to go for a drink and a few side dishes. The cocktails are great and the vastness of the menu means that you’ll find something that hits the spot food wise.

Cookie

Level 1 / 252 Swanston Street
Melbourne
Victoria 3000
Australia

Telephone: (03) 9663 7660
Email: n/a
Website: http://cookie.net.au/

Open
Mon – Sun: 12:00pm to 3:00am

Shanghai Street Dumpling

Shanghai Street Dumpling is one of the best places for dumplings in Melbourne’s CBD. The venue is tiny, and you’ll often be waiting for around half an hour to get a table, but it’s all worth it. The interior is no frills tables and chairs, and the menu a range of Chinese dishes with a focus on dumplings.

Shanghai Street is run by Shanghai natives Min Shi and his wife Wayna Zhu, who both have a wealth of experience when it comes to making dumplings. The speciality is the steamed-pork xiao long bao – very thin dough containing a tasty broth and a ball of pork meat. These are great, as are all of the other dumplings on offer here, steamed or fried.

Shanghai Street Dumpling

342 Little Bourke Street
Melbourne
Victoria 3000
Australia

Telephone: (03) 9600 2250
Email: n/a
Website: n/a

Open
Mon – Sat: 11:30am to 8:30pm

Huxtaburger

Huxtaburger is considered by many to be the best place in Melbourne for a burger, and it can’t be denied is that the burgers here are excellent. The menu is simple, with a handful of burger options named after the cast of the Cosby Show.

Open until 11pm, it’s a great option for a late night feed in Collingwood. Ingredients are all local, fresh and of the highest quality. There’s a definite hipster vibe about the place and sometimes service can be a somewhat nochalant, however it’s a small price to pay for the goodness that follows.

You can read my full review of the CBD branch of Huxtaburger here (the menu is identical to the Collingwood branch).

Huxtaburger

106 Smith Street
Collingwood
Victoria 3066
Australia

Telephone: (03) 9417 6328
Email: n/a
Website: http://huxtaburger.com.au

Open
Sun – Thu: 11:30am to 10:00pm
Fri – Sat: 11:30am to 11:00pm

Pellegrini’s Espresso Bar

Pellegrini’s is a Melbourne institution, and has remained unchanged in the decades since it opened. The food is hit and miss, and the vibe is very old school Italian – pizza, pasta, coffee, cakes etc.

If you’re looking for the best Italian food around, you certainly could do better, but if you’re looking for serviceable food and an old school vibe, then Pellegrini’s fits the bill.

Pellegrini’s Espresso Bar

66 Bourke Street
Melbourne
Victoria 3000
Australia

Telephone: (03) 9662 1885
Email: n/a
Website: n/a

Open
Mon – Sat: 8:00am to 11:30pm
Sun: 11:00am – 8:00pm

Pizza Religion

Pizza Religion is a great option for Pizza if you find yourself in this part of town, which isn’t exactly known for its quality dining options. The reason that I discovered it was because I worked in the area and was looking for something that wasn’t Nandos, Subway or bad Sushi!

The venue is small, with a cozy heated courtyard out the back. Service is friendly, and the pizzas are tasty. The pizzas at pizza religion aren’t authentic pizzas, however the bases are thin and crispy, and the ingredients fresh, local and often creative. My favourite is the “Beef Cheek”, which contains Braised Beef Cheek, Celeriac Puree, Caramelised Onions and Gremolta.

Pizza Religion

493 Tooronga Road
Hawthorn East
Victoria 3123
Australia

Telephone: (03) 9882 2555
Email: [email protected]
Website: http://pizzareligion.com.au

Open
Sat – Wed: 4:00pm to 10:00pm
Thu – Fri: 12:00pm – 10:00pm

Melbourne’s Top Rated Restaurants: Part 1

Paul

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1 March 2013

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Melbourne’s Top Rated Restaurants: Part 1

Melbourne has a large number of top rated restaurants. Many of the genuinely best restaurants appear in many sources, however sometimes you can find places on these lists that aren’t necessarily the best.

Urbanspoon, for example, contains a very extensive list, and is used by many people to decide where to eat, however a restaurant’s ranking can be heavily influenced by its popularity. This means that you’ll see restaurants that are in the tourist guides, or that have a big reputation appearing quite high on the list. Also, people tend to be quite generous in their rankings, which means places that aren’t necessarily that good can have quite a high score.

Overall, these guides do serves as a good starting point, however further research should be done before making a decision. I’ve had a look at the list and have written a short paragraph or two on each of the places on there that I’ve eaten at but haven’t reviewed elsewhere to provide you with some guidance.

Click here for Part 2 of my Melbourne’s Top Rated Restaurants guide.

Rumi

I had heard lots of good things about Rumi and, with it being local to me, the time had finally come to give it a try. The menu at Rumi is modern Lebanese, at a higher level than I’ve ever seen before, with Australian touches and a focus on local, seasonal ingredients.

My fiancée has a severe nut allergy and, given that the food at Rumi uses a lot of nuts, we were both very impressed that they managed to tweak everything that we ordered so that there were no nuts present. The flavours were still amazing, and we especially enjoyed the sweetbreads and the quail.

Rumi

116 Lygon Street
Brunswick East
Victoria 3057
Australia

Telephone: (03) 9388 8255
Email: [email protected]
Website: http://rumirestaurant.com.au/

Open
Mon – Sun: 6:00pm to 10:00pm

Bar Lourinhã

The food at Bar Lourinha is really good. It’s all tapas style, and made for sharing with your friends. It took me straight back to Spain – especially the jamon serrano and croquetas. The venue is small, and the vibe is very cosy and friendly.

A range of decent Spanish beers and wines is also on offer, and I was very happy to find the (admittedly Portuguese) Super Bock on offer, which took me straight back to my time in Lisbon.

Bar Lourinhã

27 Little Collins Street
Melbourne
Victoria 3000
Australia

Telephone: (03) 9663 7890
Email: [email protected]
Website: http://barlourinha.com.au/

Open
Mon – Thu: 12:00pm to 11:00pm
Fri: 12:00pm – 1:00am
Sun: 4:00pm – 1:00am

Auction Rooms

The coffee at Auction Rooms is great, and there is a real dedication to using the best beans and experimenting with every method of extraction available. The array of selection is bewlidering, and the staff are happy to guide you through it to pick the perfect drop for you on the day.

Food wise, there are middle eastern spices and influences at play, providing a unique twist on breakfast and lunch classics. Well worth checking out.

Auction Rooms

103-107 Errol Street
North Melbourne
Victoria 3051
Australia

Telephone: (03) 9326 7749
Email: [email protected]
Website: http://auctionroomscafe.com.au/

Open
Mon – Wed: 7:00am to 5:00pm
Thu: 7:00am – 10:00pm
Fri: 7:30am – 10:00pm
Sun: 7:30am – 5:00pm

Brother Baba Budan

Brother Baba Budan has been around for a while now, and was actually the first place that I went to for a “proper” coffee in Melbourne when I was a tourist in 2008. When I moved to Melbourne to live in 2012, I went right back to see if everything was as good as it used to be.

Happily, it was. The space is very small, with the quirkiness of chairs hanging off the roof. Food options are limited to a few pastries, but the reason you come here is for the coffee. Part of the Seven Seeds family, the beans (which can be purchased for home use) and the coffee is excellent. The service here is always top notch, and it one of my favourties places to grab a coffee in the CBD.

Brother Baba Budan

359 Little Bourke Street
Melbourne
Victoria 3000
Australia

Telephone: (03) 9606 0449
Email: n/a
Website: http://sevenseeds.com.au/

Open
Mon – Sat: 7:00am to 5:00pm
Sun: 9:00am – 5:00pm

Seven Seeds

Seven Seeds is one of the veterans of quality coffee in Melbourne. Beans are sourced from some of the best growers in the world and are roasted on site. The coffee is the star here, but the breakfast and lunch options are very good too, with local, season ingredients really being allowed to shine through. The space is a converted warehouse and has a really good vibe about it.

Seven Seeds

115 Berkeley Street
Carlton
Victoria 3053
Australia

Telephone: (03) 9347 8664
Email: n/a
Website: http://sevenseeds.com.au/

Open
Mon – Sat: 7:00am to 5:00pm
Sun: 8:00am – 5:00pm

Don Don

There’s a reason that Don Don has somewhat of a cult following in Melbourne. Is it the best Japanese in town? Far from it. What you get though is a decent tasting meal, extremely (I’m talking 2 mins) fast, and for a very good price.

There’s not much more to say other than if you’re in the area and looking for a fast, cheap and good feed, Don Don has to be on your list for consideration.

There is also a branch at 198 Little Lonsdale St.

Don Don

321 Swanston Street
Melbourne
Victoria 3000
Australia

Telephone: (03) 9662 3377
Email: n/a
Website: n/a

Open
Mon – Fri: 11:00pm to 3:30pm

St Ali (South)

A lot of people like to complain about St Ali, perhaps because it’s popular, or becuase it has the reputation that it does and people want to take it down a notch.

All I know is that to this day, St Ali provides some of the best coffee that you can get in Melbourne, with a real dedication to sourcing, fairtrade, methods of brewing and everything else that goes into producing a great cup of coffee.

This ethos flows through to the food too, and the breakfast and lunch options are excellent. Well worth your time.

St Ali (South)

2/18 Yarra Place
South Melbourne
Victoria 3205
Australia

Telephone: (03) 9686 2990
Email: n/a
Website: http://stali.com.au/

Open
Mon – Sun: 7:00am to 6:00pm

Little Creatures Dining Hall

Coming from Perth, and being a big fan of the original Little Creatures Brewery in Fremantle, I was very keen to see how the Melbourne version compared. It’s quite a different proposition. In Fremantle you have the brewing equipment in full view, and of course the beautiful location on the coast. In Melbourne, the vibe is more in line with the Fitzroy locale, with the large, open warehouse conversion taking on somewhat of a “Fitzroy meets Munich” vibe.

The usual Little Creatures beers are available and are as dependable as always, with beers from sister brewery White Rabbit and wines from the related Giant Steps/Innocent Bystander also on offer. Similarly to the Fremantle venue, the food is quite decent with breakfast, lunch and dinner options available. Interesting pizzas and a variety of share type dishes are the name of the game here. The downside is that prices are on the higher side for what the food is.

One of my favourite things to do in Perth was to go down to Little Creatures and grab a pint and some of the brilliant Belgian style chips and just chill out, and I’m glad that I can get a little taste of home in Melbourne.

Little Creatures Dining Hall

222 Brunswick Street
Fitzroy
Victoria 3265
Australia

Telephone: (03) 9417 5500
Email: n/a
Website: https://littlecreatures.com.au

Open
Mon – Thu: 10:00am to 11:00pm
Fri: 10:00am to 12:00pm
Sat: 8:00am to 12:00pm
Sun: 8:00am to 11:00pm

Fonda Mexican

Fonda is one of the new wave of “authentic” Mexican restaurants to hit Melbourne. This part of Swan Street is growing more and more popular as the months roll by, with a new restaurant or bar seeming to open up all of the time. Fonda was one of the first to kick of the renaissance of this area, and when it opened offered food that was a cut above a lot of what was on offer nearby. As a result, it’s built up quite a good reputation.

Fonda can get very busy during the nights, but you don’t have to wait too long to get a table. Service is fast and efficient, and the food on offer is a variety of Mexican “street food”, with the charred corn that’s everyone’s favourite and a focused selection of burritos, quesadillas and tacos. The fish taco is my favourite, while the braised pork didn’t quite hit the spot. Out of the quesadillas, the vegetarian option is the highlight.

Overall there are some good options on the menu and if you’re in the area you’ll get a decent feed, however the market has changed since Fonda first opened and these days there are better options out there.

There is also a Fonda branch at 141 Chapel Street in Windsor.

Fonda Mexican

248 Swan Street
Richmond
Victoria 3121
Australia

Telephone: (03) 9429 0085
Email: [email protected]
Website: http://fondamexican.com.au

Open
Sun – Mon: 12:00pm to 9:30pm
Fri – Sat: 12:00pm to 10:30pm

THE CITY LANEEAT & TRAVEL LIKE A LOCAL

THE CITY LANEEAT & TRAVEL LIKE A LOCAL

Code Black Coffee

Kai Chae Mae Pla Tod – Marinated chicken spare ribs with nam jin talay and pickled shallots ($12.90)

Num Tok Moo – Pork Salad ($15.90)

Yum Pla Foo – Barramundi “cotton” fish salad ($20.90)

Kang Daeng Phed – 16 hour cooked duck leg red curry with basil, fresh chilli and roasted coconut ($22.90)

Saku Song Kreuang – Tapioca pudding with mango ice-cream and roasted coconut ($8.90)

Song Kreng – Mango ice-cream and young coconut in coconut juice ($10.90)

BangPop

Mr Banks

Pho Chu The

The Hardware Societe

The Hardware Societe

Andrew’s Hamburgers

Andrew’s Hamburgers

Three Bags Full

Three Bags Full

Cookie

Cookie

Shanghai Street Dumpling

Shanghai Street Dumpling

Huxtaburger

Huxtaburger

Pellegrini’s Espresso Bar

Pellegrini’s Espresso Bar

Pizza Religion

Pizza Religion

Rumi

Rumi

Bar Lourinhã

Bar Lourinhã

Auction Rooms

Auction Rooms

Brother Baba Budan

Brother Baba Budan

Seven Seeds

Seven Seeds

Don Don

Don Don

St Ali (South)

St Ali (South)

Little Creatures Dining Hall

Little Creatures Dining Hall

Fonda Mexican

Fonda Mexican

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