Hammer and Tong is a new daytime cafe on Westgarth St located in the space of the former Brix restaurant that opened on 11 February. Like Bar Paradiso on Greeves St, which took over the space of the former Felice’s, Hammer and Tong has not wasted money removing an excellent existing fitout and replacing it with something else. It seems to have done only a minor refresh.
Instead they have moved in and started trading, which is smart.…
The Lumpy Space Princess and friends on the corner of Westgarth and Young streets.
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The overly ambitious and pretentious restaurant Brix on Westgarth St closed last year, and it has taken some time for a new business to make use of the space. A new cafe will open there soon. Hopefully they will learn from the failure of its predecessor and other nearby failures and get its marketing right, including putting its menu in the window.
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That was a surprise, and I’m not being sarcastic. I gave it a positive review. La Dulcita only opened two months ago in the front of the space that was Retro cafe, with Brother Burger along the Westgarth side. Perhaps losing the Brunswick St visibility for Brother Burger was a mistake for the owner of these businesses…
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After the closure of Juanita’s two years ago I was bereft, as I was deprived of south American treats. Sonido is great but doesn’t have the cakes that Juanita’s had. Now it seems there is a successor. La Dulcita opened a couple of weeks ago in the front bit of what was Retro cafe, as part of the same development that has Brother Burger along the Westgarth St side and The Playroom upstairs (which is currently hosting an amazing popup wine bar called the Barrel Room by the Vinsurgents).…
What makes a business operator decide to open in a location that has housed numerous previous failures? In the case of 350 Nicholson Street Fitzroy, three businesses have failed there since 2009. The Italian Corner lasted only a few months in 2012, and before that there was L’Angolo Italiano and Vessarios.
It’s now another pizza place called Feldman’s. I don’t like seeing businesses fail. I don’t celebrate it. But I do wonder how much research new business tenants do about the history of their new premises.…
I have been waiting for some time to publish this story wondering what has been happening to The Brix on Westgarth St just behind Brunswick St. It has closed for the second time, apparently permanently. It opened about a year ago to mostly positive reviews. I found the menu too pretentious for my tastes and never went there. It closed briefly earlier this year after a departure of staff, but reopened and continued in a similar style to harsher reviews until closing during winter.…
In the laneway off Westgarth St behind The Brix.
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I can’t believe another restaurant has opened where L’Angolo Italiano closed last year and Vessarios before that in 2009. It’s a failed location. It has a complete vibe of failure. Why would anyone try opening a new business here knowing what has happened before?
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