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MELBOURNE | Relocating to the Jam Factory on Chapel Street after their original home, the Capitol Bakery Building, was demolished, Soda Rock Diner remains the same 1960’s style eatery it has been since its establishment in 1994. Owner Les Masalkovski was inspired by the American-style eateries he visited in the United States and so decided to open a similar eatery of his own. The City Lane was invited to Soda Rock Diner’s relaunch party to check out their new venue, and taste their famous all-American menu items.
The new retro-themed venue includes chequered floors, red-and-white booths, pinball machines, a jukebox playing tunes from the 50’s and 60’s, and a life-sized Elvis statue welcoming customers through the front door. At the relaunch party, performances by Australia’s number one Elvis Presley impersonator, Jack, completed the all-American diner atmosphere.
With a menu ranging from 100% beef patty burgers to old-fashioned milkshakes and desserts, you won’t go hungry, especially when food and drinks are speedily brought to the table by roller-skating waitresses and dancing waiters (when the right song comes on!).
Milkshake flavours can be plain and simple, or jazzed up with the addition of Oreo cookie crumbs. Being a lover of Oreo cookie-flavoured things, we had to order one of the Cookie Shakes. Arriving in an old-fashioned milkshake glass, the Salted Caramel Cookie Shake made all of our milkshake dreams come true.
When it came to the burgers, the most highly recommended by staff were the Hubcap (beef patty, lettuce, tomato, pickles, sweet pickle relish, mustard and mayonnaise) and the Big Bopper (The Lot – beef patty, streaky bacon, egg, tasty cheese, grilled onion, lettuce, tomato, beetroot, pickles, mayonnaise and ketchup). Both burgers arrived with the beef patty and fresh salad components bursting between the buns, however more of the sauces were needed to tie the ingredients together, and moisten the beef patty.
To accompany the burgers, are a range of sides which we found to be hit and miss. Onion rings and potato gems were under seasoned and a bit lifeless on the presentation front however at the other end of the spectrum was a side we’d happily recommend – the Chili Fries which were smothered in American beef chili, and topped with grated tasty cheese. This side had the right mix of flavours and spices to give you a kick, but not overpower your taste buds.
For dessert, their exclusive Soda Rock Cherry Pie sounded delicious, with a cherry-filled shortcrust pastry served with vanilla ice cream and extra cherries. Unfortunately, this dessert was so popular on the night that it had sold out by the time we were ready for dessert. Instead, we chose the American Brownie. The moist brownie was filled with dark chocolate chips and walnuts, smothered in a chocolate fudge sauce, and topped with vanilla ice cream. Ticking all the right boxes in the chocolate decadence department, this dessert is perfect to share… or devour on your own.
While there are objectively better places for American diner food in Melbourne these days, there’s enough to like on the menu at Soda Rock Diner which, coupled with a fun theme and vibe, keeps visitors coming back and leaving with a smile on their face.
Soda Rock Diner
500 Chapel Street
South Yarra
Victoria 3141
Australia
Telephone: (03) 9827 3500
E-mail: [email protected]
Website: http://www.sodarock.com.au/
Open
Sun – Thu: 11:00am to 10:00pm
Fri – Sat: 11:00am to 11:00pm