Melbourne Places » Tram Route 67

The Grosvenor Hotel St Kilda – Sylish Bistro and Wine Bar

Melbourne — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 10:39:45 +0000

The Grosvenor Hotel was lit up on a cold rainy night and on a whim we went in for an early meal.

Grosvenor Hotel

We arrived shortly after 6pm and for a good three quarters of an hour we had the Bistro to ourselves and the waiter’s full attention. We needed this attention. The Bistro has an Italian flavour and lacking knowledge of the Italian language we found some of the expressions and words on the menu confusing. The waiter who had memorised the daunting number of specials was able to explain what we needed to know. It makes for secure dining when your waiter knows what the food is all about.

Bistro – Grosvenor Hotel

One of the group chose ‘Durum wheat fusilli, almond, chilly and parsley pesto from Trapani with pecorino pepato’ This was listed under pasta and that, of course, is what it was.

Durum wheat fusilli

My other companion and I ordered ‘Kid goat slowly roasted in wood fire oven with peas, potato and five herbs’. This was much the better choice. It was delicious and the meat just fell off the bones.

Kid goat slowly roasted in wood fire oven

My friend who had the pasta felt it was a little bland and wasn’t hot enough. She believes that they served it early and kept it waiting. When she mentioned that she would have liked it hotter it was explained that was how it should be – something to do with the cheese. So if you like your pasta steaming hot this isn’t the dish for you.

There is an array of desserts. Our table had ‘Tiramisu al Fruiti Di Bosco’ which tasted good but unlike your average Tiramisu but none the worse for that.

Tiramisu al Fruiti Di Bosco

And ‘Buffalo Panna Cotta with cantucci crumble, orange and vin santo syrup’,

Buffalo Panna Cotta

We shared a bottle of Merlot Çhurchview ‘Silverleaf’ Margaret River $26.00. Very good drinking especially with the goat.

Seven o’clock appears to the magic hour for dining in St Kilda and when the clock hit seven the restaurant began to fill up.
The food was interesting with the goat being outstanding for a cold winter’s night.

We plan to return and try the bar food menu. It is opens for lunch so that could be an option.

The menus are available on line here and I suggest you have a look at it before you go. That would have served us well. We could have given more attention to the specials and with so much to ponder I missed an entree that I later wished I had tried ‘stuffed zucchini flowers with ricotta and pecorino pepato mousse, fregola salade’.

The wines on the wine list are all available in the drive through bottle store at $10.00 less than the wine menu price. So if you liked your choice you can grab a bottle on your way out, knock $10.00 off the price and drink more at home.

The menu identifies dishes that are gluten free and vegetarian.

Where:-
Grosvenor Hotel
10 Brighton Road
St Kilda East.
Phone: 9531 1542
Web: http://www.grosvenorhotel.com.au/

Opening Hours:-
The Bistro opens for dinner from 6pm
The Wine Bar is open all day from 12 noon.

Getting there:-
Tram : 67 tram stops out side
Car: There is a parking space behind the hotel with the entrance off Grosvenor Street and street parking in the side streets – try Brunning Street

St Kilda keeps on changing with new apartments for old houses.

Melbourne — Sun, 17 Apr 2011 23:15:25 +0000

Melbourne is changing! “Well of course,” I hear you say.

I know this happens all the time but it came as a shock to me when I found a place I knew well was to change.

Yesterday I drove past a corner I used to live near. As I waited at the red traffic light I saw this new notice attached to a charming old house.

” Construction begins soon,” ‘they’ say. I always liked this house especially since it was painted black.

This is a corner in St Kilda where Inkerman Street crosses Barkly Street and becomes Grey Street.
You may recognize the corner because of this block.

The old uncared for houses opposite the building have wonderful concrete decorations on the second stories.

The notice of construction suggests more modern sleek units will pop up and the old pretty decorated houses will vanish. In time we will forget they were there and we will forget what we have lost.

I want to remember this Melbourne Place as it is now. That is why I am posting the photos; to keep a record of what was on this corner in 2011.

The corner is a bit of a show place of old houses displaying the frivolous and labour intensive concrete decorations of the past.

I suggest if you go through this area look up and check out the beautiful upper stories of these building. Better still take time at a red light to click a memory-photo.

Strangely, the corner milk-bar/laundry appears to be invincible.

I used to do my laundry here every Sunday morning while I read the papers. It has stayed exactly the same! It even has the same ice cream ads on the windows as it did then. Will it be next to go?

This is the corner of Grey Street, Inkerman and Barkly Streets, St Kilda.

There are some interesting and long-term shops here too;

“The Bitch is Back” features 20th century modern interiors.

“Surround” features contemporary and often cutting-edge-furniture. They have they have some of the most stunning window displays in Melbourne.

“Liquid Snow Tours” at the moment they are collecting used and new warm snow gear for the victims of the Japanese Earthquake.

Several eating places including “Mr Wolf”. – It is a great corner.

To get there by tram:-
Catch the 67 to the corner of Inkerman Street and St Kilda Road
Turn right and wander up Inkerman Street until you get to the corner with Barkly Street. It is an interesting stretch of road.

Alister Clark Rose Garden St Kilda Botanical Gardens – they have names, now

Melbourne — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 21:25:22 +0000

Something wonderful has happened to the roses in the Alister Clarke Rose Garden in the St Kilda Botanical Gardens. Well, it is wonderful to me. Some lovely person has identified these roses and now they have name plaques.

There is something about looking at a rose and knowing its name. It adds an extra pleasure. With no names it’s like a never ending sea of flowers. There is no way to distinguish one from the other. I like to isolate the individual. I have mentioned the lack of names before see here. And see Ester’s comment. I hope it has been a labour of love and my thanks to Ester.

It is also fun to see the names the rose breeders have come up with; Dolly Parton for example. Would you have guessed the name by looking at the rose?

Then there is Apricot Passion – it sounds like a wallow in a mango.

Reading the names as I did the other morning, showed how many of the roses had been propagated by rose breeder David Austin.

Then there are those attributed to Alister Clark and of course it is his rose garden. This name of his is a puzzle.

I thank the ‘Rose Namer’. It is lovely to become acquainted with these roses – it’s a pity the prickles prevent a handshake.

Where:-
St Kilda Botanical Gardens
The gardens are open from sunrise to sunset (from dawn until dusk) seven days a week.

Getting there:-
96 Tram to the terminus the end of Acland Street. Walk up Blessington Street – on your left.
67 Tram to the corner of Brighton Road and Carlisle Street and walk along Blessington Street -on the right off Brighton Road.

Shakahari – fine vegetarian dining in Carlton.

Melbourne — Fri, 31 Dec 2010 00:35:12 +0000

My first visit to Shakarhari, the vegetarian restaurant at 201/203 Faraday Street in Carlton, was a few years ago.

I was with a vegetarian friend who was visiting from overseas and I wanted to give her a experience of fine dining –something more than the average vegetarian fare which often seems to include beans or Dahl. Actually I quite like Dahl but I don’t see it as fine dining. A work colleague suggested Shakarahri.

We dined well. The evening and the food were a great success.

This year an old friend suggested Shakahari for a pre-Christmas catch-up lunch. I was excited and I wondered why I had left it so long between visits.

The outside of the restaurant is the same. A cute cottage painted yellow. It opens up inside and flows through to the right, which takes you into the next door house and to the courtyard.

The inside is still the same orange colour and still furnished with a few Indian/Asian artifacts. It is comforting to find something you remember with affection is still the same.

However the menu had changed since my last visit so it was like a new adventure. No change in the wine list and we ordered the Richmond Organic Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand, that I remember, to sip on while we chatted and discussed food. I have always been wary of organic wines but this is a good Sauvignon Blanc. $8.00 per glass.

There is a touch of romance to the menu. For example ‘Scent of a green papaya’ in the entrees. How could you go past a dish with a name like that – as you read it the scent seems to waft around you? You immediately want to taste it. $14.50

Scent of a green papaya

This is how the menu describes the salad -” Northern Territory green papaya (high medicinal qualities) lightly crushed and tossed with green beans, cherry tomatoes,cashew nuts and seaweed tofu crisps. Dressed with a sourish tamarind palm sugar chilli sauce”.

We also chose Croquettes de Chine.

Croquettes de Chine

This dish is described as; “Crunchy patties of steamed mashed yam, potatoes, roasted macadamia nuts, pickled turnips and diced vegetables. Served with herbal oil, tossed greens, kim chee and a mild black bean ginger sauce”. $19.5

We shared these dishes and thought them good choices for lunch. The papaya salad was especially interesting. The taste was light and different, possibly like the scent of a green papaya. We would order it again. The Croquettes were filled with a subtle flavour. I remember them from last time but I think they had something different served with them.

We had intended to have dessert and we had talked about their ‘Black Rice and Sago Pudding’ as we headed to the restaurant only to find it was one of those things removed from the menu.

Another disappointment was the change in the seating. It was a calm warm day with some sun and we wanted to sit in the courtyard but there were no tables only benches for seating. We asked about a table but we were told the manager, who wasn’t there, had wanted it that way. I hope he has a change of heart and puts tables and chairs out there again.

Friendly service, fine vegetarian dining. The restaurant has been operating for about 20 years so they must be doing something right. For me it is the different slant on the usual vegetarian fare giving the meal a touch of lightness, that is often the romance of food. In the winter a gas fire looks cheerful and welcoming– try for a table near it.

The menu is labeled for gluten free, non dairy and vegan dishes see here. If you plan a visit have a look at the menu on line before you go. It will help you work out what you want to eat.

Where:- Shakarahi Vegetarian Restaurant
201/203 Faraday Street
Carlton
Phone:- 9347 3848

Opening times:- Monday to Thursday Midday to 3.30pm then 6.00pm to 9.30
Friday to Saturday Midday to 3.30pm then 6.00pm to 10.30pm
Sunday 6.00pm to 9.30pm

Getting there:- All trams that travel north along Swanston Street eg, 3, 6, 12,1, 8, 67. Get off at the University stop and walk along Faraday Street to Lygon Street. The restaurant is just over Lygon Street.

St Kilda Botanical Gardens – the Magpie-larks make it time to stop and stare.

Melbourne — Tue, 26 Oct 2010 07:05:45 +0000

A pair of magpie-larks or mud-larks, as they are sometimes called, have honoured the Rainman statue in the St Kilda Botanical Gardens by making a nest on his arm.

They look very much at home and secure as they fly to the statue and settle on their nest to keep their eggs warm.

I haven’t seen many of these little magpie–larks in the gardens. You can hear the shrill, piping voice of one or two of them occasionally. So I think these must the ones I heard piping and shrilling away during the winter and I like to think they see the gardens as their home.

The Rainman is rather a forlorn figure these days. His pond is almost empty and his base is exposed so he no longer looks as if he is standing on water.

The Magpie-larks have chosen a secure and friendly place to bring their family into the world. No four legged-predators can get across the muddy pond and disturb them. When it rains the Rainman is there to shelter them.

The magpie-larks build round nests that are quite small. They make them of grass, plant material then plaster all this together with mud and then line the nest with feathers, soft grass and fur.

I like the thought of the three of them; the Rainman and prospective Mum and Dad settling down together every evening.

These two small black and white birds don’t appear nervous of being watched and photographed and they are happy to potter around in the muddy edge.

Magpie-lark or as it is sometimes called mud-lark at the St Kilda Botanical Garden

Getting there:-
96 Tram to the terminus at the end of Acland Street. Walk up Blessington Street – on your left.
Trams 67, 3 or 16 to the corner of Brighton Road and Carlisle Street and walk along Blessington Street – Blessington Street is on your right when you get off the tram.
Opening Hours:-
Between sunrise and sunset seven days a week and the conservatory is open between 10.30am and 3.30pm week days and 1.00pm and 4.30pm Saturday to Sunday and public holidays.

St Kilda Botanical Gardens – a winter view

Melbourne — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 22:18:00 +0000

The St Kilda Botanical Gardens are in winter mode. It is a lovely time to visit and see the gardens preparing for spring and summer. Occasionally you see a sign of things to come with clumps of bulbs sending up their first spring shoots.

The ambiance in the Alistair Clarke Rose Garden is different at this time of the year. The roses have been pruned – the green and the flowers have gone and the canes are stark against the mulched ground.

I am interested in their pruning style. When I studied the canes and what was left after such abundant growth earlier in the year I realized that I had been very timid when I pruned my few roses. The gardens have cut them back severely.

I am looking forward to seeing how these canes sprout and how quickly the flowers come. Last season they were beautiful.

The grass is very green after all the rain we have had and bare branches of the deciduous trees stand out against the sky and the luscious green of the Macrocarpa hedge that protects the rose garden.

There is a lot to see at this time of the year.

Getting there:-
96 Tram to the terminus the end of Acland Street. Walk up Blessington Street – on your left.
Trams 67, 3 or 16 to the corner of Brighton Road and Carlisle Street and walk along Blessington Street – Blessington Street is on your right when you get off the tram.

Salvos move to Carlisle Street, St Kilda and take on a new look.

Melbourne — Sat, 10 Jul 2010 02:00:22 +0000

The say good things come in small packages and the St Kilda, Salvation Army Opportunity Shop is proof of this. They have downsized. In doing so they have created a much better outlet in Carlisle Street than the previous one on the corner of Inkerman Street and St Kilda Road.

That huge rambling and messy warehouse on the corner of Inkerman Street and St Kilda Road has closed. The site has turned into a bike emporium.

The new shop in Carlisle has style compared with the old one and they have cut down on their stock. I always believed that there was so much ‘stuff’ in the old warehouse no one would be able say exactly what was in there.

The new store has added style to a Salvo browse. The shop is laid ‘out’. The dressing rooms are no longer a sort of curtained box, designer gear is in the front when you walk in.

Shoes are ordered on racks and someone keeps them tidy.

Home wares tend to be colour coded for example there is a shelf of blue. Books are newer – less knocked about, It feels cleaner and there are less of the things that no one is ever going to buy. It also feels as if the place is dusted sometimes – perhaps regularly.

I have been told they are charging more that they did in the old warehouse. This could apply to their designer gear although my black Country Road singlet was $5.00.

Last time I was there they had a piano, which seemed odd because the shop next door is a piano shop. I was hoping some one in the large browsing crowd would play it. If they did it was after I left. I also noticed some crutches in one corner should you ever need any.

The Salvos, St Kilda:-
Opposite the City of Port Phillip Town Hall in Carlisle Street.

Opening hours:-
Monday to Wednesday 9.00am to 5.00pm
Thursday to Friday 9.00 to 7.00pm
Saturday 9.00a, to 5.00pm

Getting there:-
Trams No 3 or No 16
Get off at the stop on the corner of St Kilda Road and Carlisle Street.

Alister Clark’s Rose Garden in Full Bloom

Melbourne — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 09:49:52 +0000

October was a wet month for Melbourne and the roses loved it. They’re in flower all over the city. It was time for a visit to The Alister Clark Memorial Rose Garden in the St Kilda Botanical Gardens. (See my previous post)

I went this week in the relative cool of an early morning when the temperature was to rise into the 30s later. The roses have suffered because of this heat. It has actually singed some of the more delicate blooms.

The Alister Clark Rose Garden is a special place - warm and fragment with the huge sculptured macrocarpa hedge protecting it. It is a little sad to think this beautiful hedge may have contributed to the scorching that some of the blooms have suffered.

It is still worth a visit. Many have been spared by the heat wave and are putting on a spectacular display.

This is one of my favourite roses and I am again lamenting that the roses aren’t named in this garden. I would like to own it so unless I can find a knowledgeable nurseryman who can identify it from the photo I am stuck with simply admiring it whenever I visit the Alister Clark Rose Garden.

There are some big shady trees for a picnic and at the moment it is also a chance to admire some of the irises – they don’t appear to mind a gust of hot wind.

The gardens are open from sunrise to sunset (from dawn until dusk) seven days a week.

Getting there:-

96 Tram to the terminus the end of Acland Street. Walk up Blessington Street – on your left.

67 Tram to the corner of Brighton Road and Carlisle Street and walk along Blessington Street -on the right off Brighton Road.

Hearty Hungarian meals – Authentic European eating in East St Kilda .

Melbourne — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 00:58:34 +0000

A cold evening, showers and a chill wind, your heading home and the big question is what to eat. Take-a-ways seem a good idea and you want something quick.

How about The Hearty Hungarian, in Carlisle Street East St Kilda?

The food is ready to go – no waiting around. All you have to do is make choices. The Hearty Hungarian – is right next door to the St Kilda branch of the Port Phillip Library Service so you can roll out of there and step into it..

The first time I got food from there I’d been to the library and at closing stepped from that warm building into the chill of the evening. There it was, the Hearty Hungarian in all its unsophisticated glory – Hungarian colours, bright lights and hot filling food.

The café has been here for a couple for a couple of years and is becoming known for serving up good home cooked traditional Hungarian food. The meals are cooked by a Hungarian cook who has been feeding her family delicious wholesome food for 30 years or more

The food is ‘cheap and cheerful’. There is nothing polished about this place. The tables inside are covered with flower patterned oil-cloth.

A meal, $11.90, is served with a main and two sides. I believe you get enough food to feed two with the one serving but of course that depends on how much you eat and how hungry you are.

$11.90 meal

Tightly filled cabbage rolls ( 2 per serve) are baked with sauerkraut. When you think of a cabbage roll keep the thought of a spring roll out of your mind. These are huge in comparison. The taste is interesting and could well come from the paprika that is used extensively in Hungarian cooking.

My favourite main is stuffed red peppers. They are filled with delicate flavoured rice and mince. The slightly sweetish taste that I love and go back to the Hearty Hungarian for may come from the red pepper and possibly paprika.

stuffed red pepper with sauce and cabbage roll

I have a retro Hungarian cook book written by Kato Frank published in 1963. Kato Frank talks a lot about the heavy use of Paprika in Hungarian food. The stuffed Red Peppers have a great colour too.

A $11.90 meal consisted of two peppers or two cabbage rolls or another main such beef stroganoff or meat loaf and two sides. For side dishes I like lentils and Hungarian gnocchi a very small sized pasta about the size of a pea and it goes well with the red peppers. The lentils are particularly good.

lentils and Hungarian gnocchi

This little food outlet enhances the European feel you get on this part of Carlisle Street St Kilda East.

Getting there:

Trams 12, 3, going along Carlisle Street, first stop past St Kilda Road. 67 Tram get off at the corner of Carlisle and St Kilda Road or a 78 that runs from Richmond to the St Kilda East end of Chapel Street.

The café is between Chapel Street and St Kilda Road, beside the entrance to the St Kilda Library and opposite the St Kilda Town Hall.

You can also can take the Sandringham Line train to Balaclava Station and walk towards Chapel Street.

Chess at St Kilda Botanical Gardens – St Kilda

Melbourne — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 13:28:19 +0000

One of the attractions at the St Kilda Botanical Gardens is the Giant Chess Board.

There is an area set aside especially for Chess near the pond and the conservatory. It has built in bench-seats and tables. The tables have regular chess boards set into them so you can bring your own set, sit in the fresh air under the trees and challenge your friend to a game. Summer’s fine too because there are beautiful old trees shading the area.
For the experience of walking around with your chess pieces you need to to book

Ring 9209 6777 to book the Giant Chess Set.

If you are reading this over Queens Birthday weekend you could wander along to the St Kilda Botanical Gardens and check out the ‘Paint These Gardens Competition’.

The winner is announced at 4pm on Queens Birthday Monday. All the paintings, winners or not, will be on display in the St Kilda Town Hall in September.

A lot happens in the St Kilda Botanical Gardens – they are ‘user friendly’ as they say.

Take either a 3 or a 67 Tram to the corner of Brighton Road and Carlisle Street then walk up Blessington Street. The 96 tram will take you to the end of Acland Street and you can walk to the Gardens from that end of Blessington Street.

Either way it is about 2 minutes from the tram stop.