fitzroyalty

hello cupcake

Carrot cupcake at Seven Seeds. Beautiful and delicious. Nice coffee too. I will return.

Fitzroyalty - hyperlocal news and reviews about Melbourne's first suburb: Fitzroy 3065 by Brian Ward is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 2.5 Australia License.

vandalism

Wood St, just off Moor St. Hmmm, how do artists fight?

expanded bike parking outside Fitzroy library

Thanks City of Yarra for expanding the bicycle parking outside the library – this is great!

property

People are unhappy about property in Fitzroy. Top: Moor St. Bottom: Brunswick St. But what are you going to do about it?

the art of motorcycle and scooter parking

It’s so convenient to be able to ride anywhere in Melbourne by motorcycle or scooter and park on the footpath like in European cities. It’s the only major city in Australia where it is allowed. Some people hate it, and even though I ride I can understand this when I see bikes parked stupidly. There’s really no excuse for being selfish and lazy and causing inconvenience for other people. The rules are simple: park parallel to the road and in line with street furniture etc to minimise the space used and the inconvenience to pedestrians. Avoid narrow footpaths and major intersections. The top photo shows excellent parking judgement, the botton one terrible judgement. With freedom comes responsibility: use it wisely ... read the complete post

fitzroy 3065

Fitzroy is home and I don’t want to live anywhere else. London was exciting but you have to be rich to live well there. Sydney can be exciting in parts but it’s not as enjoyable as Melbourne. I’m planning to continue exploring Fitzroy and reporting on it here. The mission for today: shopping on Smith St (hopefully without a hail storm this time).

more Indonesian food for lunch at Minang Nasi Padang, Carlton

Another work lunch, another chance to try some delicious Indonesian food in the Carlton area. Minang Nasi Padang on Pelham St, Carlton is a new favourite place. See reviews by Walk walk Melbourne and Avlxyz. $6.50 for 1 meat and 2 veg with rice is much better than what you can get on campus.

window of the week – Lion in Love

Amazing combination of clashing items – a Chanel style jacket, Disney tshirt and peacock tights.

the best coffee on (or around) the University of Melbourne campus?

I have not tried everywhere yet, obviously, but my early impressions of the coffee available on campus and in the immediate vicinity are mixed. Plush Fish on campus has many fans, and Momo Sushi on Swanston St made me a good coffee – better than I was expecting. Maybe there is some synchronicity between Japanese food and coffee? But the clear winner in my opinion is Kere Kere. Excellent coffee, nice people, muffins with berries and chocolate. It’s all good. Is there anywhere better?

want to work for Brunetti’s on Johnston St?

Positions are available at Brunetti’s new Johnston St panetteria.

eurotrash

Who are these Eurotrash and what have they done to offend you I ask?

March recommendations

These are the stories people have been writing about Fitzroy in the past month:

Justin posted a photo of stencil art Tasted by two ate at Cutler and Co Peter discusses where to get print making supplies The year of brekky reviews Birdman Eating Bellygood review Madame Sousou Clara Emily reviews the craft market at the Workers club The food adventurer reviews Blue Chillies The green quail describes Fitzroy as her favourite neighborhood Burger adventure rates the burgers at Danny’s in North Fitzroy Gourmet worrier lists some of her favourite things on Brunswick St Notions went shopping at Meet me at Mike’s The Melbourne Leader reports that the future of the Birmingham hotel as a live music venue is being ... read the complete post

your art sucks balls

Detritus in a vacant lot on Smith St.

Indonesian lunch at Garage cafe, Carlton

I’ve not worked in the Carton / University of Melbourne vicinity for about five years, and a lot has changed in that time. Although I’ve read reviews of lots of places in the area, I have a long list of potential lunch venues to try for myself! One that I have been meaning to try for a long time is Garage, a cheap and cheerful Indonesian place on Berkeley St. Many dishes are under $10. My beef rendang was slightly over that but made a satisfying lunch. See reviews by Melbourne gastronome and Taste buds galore.

aftermath

The roundabout on the corner of Napier St and Kerr St opposite Ici cafe after the storm.

brunch at Trippy Taco, Smith St Collingwood

Trippy Taco is a fun place to take friends visiting from interstate. Over the long weekend I met some visiting friends on Smith St and we brunched at Trippy Taco, sharing the breakfast tamales (declared the winning dish), taquitos and the fried tofu burrito (very delicious). Then we had a wander through the shops and enjoyed the hail storm…

Fitzroy outdoor cinema opens on March 20

An outdoor cinema is being opening in Fitzroy. The following post is adapted from a press release email. The Fitzroy outdoor cinema plans to provide a community cinema experience with free films starting on Saturday 20th March 2010 at the Atherton Gardens Oval, underneath the housing commission flats. The program will be shorts from Fitzroy and Bend it Like Beckham, commencing at 7.30pm. Bring a rug and a pillow!

The evening begins at 6pm with performances from local Sudanese dancers, Westside circus and musicians King Marong and Safara. Food will also be available. The Fitzroy outdoor cinema aims to open up a little crack in the invisible wall that separates the rest of Fitzroy from the Atherton Gardens public housing estate. It is an initiative ... read the complete post

Fitzroy history – from whitegoods to retro fashion

When some of the recycled clothing in Hunter Gatherer had not yet been made, the 1885 building housed Gawith Industries Pty. Ltd, a retailer of white goods.

Courtesy of John L. O’Brien Collection, the University of Melbourne image archive collection (UMAIC) / ID: UMA/I/6883 / photographer: John L. O’Brien / copyright: used under the fair dealings provisions of the Copyright Act 1968 / c1958

Smith St Bazaar videos

The Smith St Bazaar has posted some videos of their stock – I like virtual tours!

stupid fools who stand in line like EMI

I work for a tertiary education institution creating and publishing electronic media: I write and edit text for websites, I take photos, I shoot videos and I make content for Facebook, Twitter, Flickr and Youtube. I recently made a video of international students at an orientation week bush dance, where they learned some daggy dances and had fun trying to understand the Australian slang in the song lyrics.

One of the songs performed by the live band was ‘Along The Road To Gundagai‘ by Jack O’Hagan, which was written in 1922. He died in 1987, and copyright law says this song remains the property of its owner until 70 years after the death of its creator. EMI Music ... read the complete post

wild things

Wild creatures on Rose St and Leicester St. Watch out for the duck!

Hungarian lunch at Cafe Pinocchio, North Carlton

Cafe Pinocchio on Rathdowne St in North Carlton introduced a new offer on their site recently that drew me from campus for lunch. The $20 Hungarian set lunch (March only) of a main, dessert and coffee sounded good and I love the food of central Europe. I enjoyed a stuffed capsicum so soft and full of minced meat and rice that it had mostly collapsed, a kugel cake (not sure of my spelling, delicious with a texture like pannetone or brioche) and a good strong macchiato. It’s a cute and friendly place worth visiting, espacially during March for the Hungarian lunch.

... read the complete post

exploitation or shoes

More work by K on Leicester St, and opposite a cartoon about buying shoes. Oh the irony…

celebrity

I have no idea who these people are meant to be. Their posture suggests minuscule celebrity. On Elgin St Carlton.

London holiday – travel notes

This is my final London post based on my recent month-long holiday. I’d like to thank the authors of the fabulous London food blogs, whose reviews were fundamental to my wonderful experiences there. Their guidance was accurate and influential. I’d also like to thank some hyperlocal bloggers whose sites helped me choose where to stay and which areas to explore by foot. I recommend reading Spitalfields life, Fitzrovia news, Greenwich and London voices.

The rest of this post is about random observations. For example, the supply of chocolate in supermarkets. In my opinion, Tesco’s stocks better chocolate than Sainsbury’s. Travellers need to know this! Public space, or private space used as public space, is so different – ... read the complete post

a flower in the desert

A saw this wire flower sculpture on the traffic light post on the south east corner of Smith St and Johnston St over the weekend.

London holiday – food for £5, £10, £15, £20, £25 and more

For Australians visiting London, you’re told food can be more expensive, but it’s difficult to know what will fit into your budget, and what quality and quantity you receive, until you arrive and see for yourself. In this post I’ll show you some examples of what food you get for your money, and the variety of food available in central London. I found that a lot of what I had heard from people was wrong: while food can be expensive, there is lots of goodness to be found.

Breakfast – what can you get for £5?

A rich buttery cherry and orange scone and good macchiato from Bea’s of Bloomsbury (44 Theobald’s Road, Bloomsbury, below). See reviews by tomeatsjencooks, ... read the complete post

The Nook opens on Johnston St

A new vintage shop called Nook opened recently on Johnston St next door to Used. It’s great to see the east end of Johnston St gradually coming to life. I was also curious to see that the Indian restaurant Tandoori Station that opened in the space of the former Guru da Dhaba has changed to become the ‘Fitzroy curry house’. I did wonder what Tandoori food had to do with the Buddhist images on the walls inside. Not much, apparently. The former Sukhothai has also become an Indian restaurant. I’ll have to reopen voting on ‘the best Indian restaurant in Fitzroy‘.

London holiday – dinner at Salt Yard, Fitzrovia

The tapas obsession that overwhelmed Melbourne in recent years is most likely a worldwide phenomenon. It is equally prevalent in London, with the same problems. There are many places serving what looks like poor quality overpriced vaguely Spanish food and calling it ‘tapas’, as well as other places renaming anything served on a small plate as ‘tapas’. I shudder. My experience of exploring food in London was that it is harder to find good quality and value for money (at any price point) restaurants than in Melbourne.

I recently reviewed Barrica in Fitzrovia, and about two weeks after I ate there I tried their neighbour and rival Salt Yard, which was also excellent. It would be difficult to ... read the complete post

Fitzroy history – the Vegie Connection

Throughout February I posted a story about my recent London holiday each morning with a local story each afternoon. It’s time to give local stories priority again in the morning, though I will post a few more London stories in the afternoon to complete the series. I was fascinated to learn recently that there has been a fruit and vegetable shop where the Vegie Connection now stands for far longer than I previously knew, as this photo from 1958 demonstrates.

Courtesy of John L. O’Brien Collection, the University of Melbourne image archive collection (UMAIC) / ID: UMA/I/6894 / photographer: John L. O’Brien / copyright: used under the fair dealings provisions ... read the complete post

but is it art?

I’ve become even more cynical about street art. Everything I see makes me suspicious. Is it art? Or just rubbish? I thought my visual palette was refreshed by seeing some different street art in London, but I have not seen anything new of exciting since returning to Melbourne.

London holiday – random images

A door on a Greenwich street.

Outside the Tate Britain.

The London Eye from the Thames.

Tower Bridge from the Thames.

Scooter seats for al fresco eating at the Camden market.

A mosaic in the Tottenham Court Rd station.

Brompton cemetary.

An architectural detail in Fitzrovia.

Tulips in Fitzrovia.

... read the complete post

Local government food hygiene enforcement: London vs Melbourne

Here’s further evidence that the standards of enforcement, disclosure and transparency regarding food hygiene standards in Victoria are hopelessly inadequate and out of date. In London, local government authorities close down suspect businesses and refuse to allow owners to reopen under different names. They post information on the windows of premises for the public to see. This business was the Saffron cafe (11A Sicilian Avenue, Holborn) and I saw this by coincidence. Why can’t we have this in Melbourne? We could if our inept, obsessed with secrecy, state government developed some political will and forced local governments to take their responsibilities in relation to public health seriously.

... read the complete post

London holiday – lunch at Canela Portugese cafe, Covent Garden

One day I wandered around Covent Garden for some time before deciding to eat at Canela Portugese cafe. By that time the lunch rush was over but so too was the lunch special, which at £4.95 sells out quickly. Nonetheless everything looked so delicious I wanted to eat there, and so I chose the chorizo and vegetable slice with salad and a wonderful lemon and coconut cake. They make fine coffee too.

Canela has been positively reviewed by:

oolamoola thisideofthepond bijoureview divineambrosia londonist cucabrazuca

astronauts

I think this was on Napier St, but I’m not sure. I’ve seen several. Does anyone know the artist?

London holiday – dinner at 32 Great Queen St, Holborn

Of the modern British restaurants I ate at in London, 32 Great Queen St seems to have received the most consistently positive reviews, although there is much difference of opinion about their practice of serving the wines listed by the glass in tumblers rather than in ‘proper’ wine glasses (if you order a bottle from the wine list you get wine glasses). I’m not convinced that the glass makes any difference, and await a genuine scientific examination of the issue.

In the meantime, when I see wine served in tumblers it makes me think about the idea of ’style over substance’. 32 Great Queen St is probably the least formal or fussy ... read the complete post

a hole in Brunswick St

The former premises of Thomas Gannan at 239 Brunswick St were demolished while I was away, so it was a surprise to see work already beginning on the new building, which is for public housing.

London holiday – lunch at Daquise, South Kensington

After a brief and horrid adventure into the Natural History Museum on a Sunday (full of chav breeders and their unsupervised shrieking replicants – hint: it’s not a wrestling creche, it’s a place to go where you learn things), I fled and found Daquise, a Polish restaurant in South Kensington. I quickly ordered some familiar sounding food (from visits to Court Jester and Borsch, Vodka and Tears) and a glass of what turned out to be an excellent house red – a French grenache syrah.

From the top down: Ukrainian soup with sour cream (like borsch, but with vegetables and white beans), mixed meat plate containing bigos, potato ... read the complete post

the City of Yarra’s arts and cultural strategy 2010 – 2014

The City of Yarra is developing its arts plans for the next five years. You can read more here. You have until 5 March 2010 to complete and return surveys aimed at community members, arts organisations and arts practitioners. If you have something to say about the arts in the City of Yarra, the time is now.

London holiday – lunch at The Cinnamon Club, Westminster

Having cooked from the Cinnamon Club cookbook, I had to visit the restaurant when in London. Perhaps my expectations had been raised to an unrealistic level due to the extraordinary experience I had at Launceston Place two days earlier, as I found the the £22 set lunch menu to be good though not spectacular. From the top down: amuse bouche of potato cake with sweet sauce, entree of quail with peanut and dried mango, main of trout, dessert of date pancake with spiced icecream and caramel sauce.

A glass of marsanne and a service charge took the bill well over £30. This was reasonable value for quality food, but I was ... read the complete post

the naughty corner

This sofa abandoned on the street outside Bimbo Deluxe amused me for a moment over the weekend. Is this where their security staff send people they eject from the premises?

London holiday – hotel reviews and recommendations

When in London I chose to stay in hotels for only a few days each, so I could try many different ones in different areas. I enjoyed spending several days in each area, walking the streets for hours looking at the buildings and shops, the cafes and restaurants and the people going about their lives. My choices of hotels ranged from budget to luxury, and included an eccentric bed and breakfast style hotel called Miller’s residence and a private club associated with the Quakers called the Penn Club, which offers accommodation to non-member guests when it has spare rooms (such as in the quiet January – February period).

My criteria for measuring hotels have evolved from previous travel for business and ... read the complete post

somewhere over Australia

On my flight home to Australia from London via Hong Kong, the pilot announced we had flown over Darwin and were heading towards Melbourne. We flew south-east towards the sunset. At one point, the sun was below the horizon line formed by the clouds, and burned through them to the clear air above.

London holiday – lunch at Launceston Place, Kensington

I quickly became confident at eating at some of London’s best restaurants, particularly those with a modern British menu, by choosing the more affordable lunch menus. This enabled me to eat at a price within my budget and to act spontaneously based on my mood, arrive without a booking and obtain a table because lunch is far less busy than dinner. Launceston Place in Kensington has a formidable reputation and its £20 three course set menu lunch was irresistible. A meal at Launceston Place begins with handmade potato crisps with a hole for a handle and a ribbon to hold them together.

I was surprised to receive an amuse bouche for ... read the complete post

there is awakenings

There is awakenings to be had, apparently. On a laneway wall off Elgin St Carlton.

London holiday – Concorde at Brooklands

Flying on Concorde was a dream of mine for many years, but sadly it was never realised. When in the UK I took the opportunity to see a Concorde on display at the Brooklands Museum at Weybridge. Concorde cruised at Mach 2, twice the height of a Boeing 747, on the edge of space where you could see the curvature of the earth from your tiny window. It was one of the remarkable technical achievements of that extraordinary decade – the 1960s – that saw men walk on the moon. It is beautiful to look at and to imagine…

... read the complete post

taking a stand

Market Lane, Melbourne.

London holiday – dinner at Hereford Rd, Notting Hill

While staying at Miller’s Residence on Hereford Rd in Notting Hill I ate at the self-titled restaurant on the same street. Hereford Rd has received mixed reviews, but I was curious to try it, partially because winter is game season and I was keen to try partridge, which was on the menu.

From the top down: the front bar interior adjacent to the open kitchen where you can watch the chefs at work (there is a larger conventional restaurant seating space to the rear), entree of smoked eel with frisee, main of partridge (warning: game may contain shot, and it did) with black lentils and kale, and dessert of rhubarb ... read the complete post

sublime

This work first appeared in Fitzroy as a paste-up but it and its companion have also been created as paintings. I like both versions.

London holiday – arts and culture (sex and drugs and rock and roll)

Arts and cultural events in London are astonishing in their variety. I had many plans to see galleries and museums, and to attend concerts by Brett Anderson and Pat Metheny, but some of the most impressive experiences I had were at events or exhibitions I heard about only once I arrived in London. This post summarises the arts and cultural experiences I had in London.

Film

Sex and Drugs and Rock and Roll is a biographical film about the life of Ian Dury. It’s sympathetic, surreal, self-indulgent and over-saturated but also very enjoyable, amusing and moving. Hopefully it will be picked up by a local distributor or appear at MIFF. See ... read the complete post