Street libraries have been in the news and on facebook. These cute little libraries are just on the side of the road. They come in different shapes and sizes, are waterproof and have a see through door. My attention was drawn to them by a reader of this blog. Thank you! I went to…
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This gallery which is part of the Port Phillip Town Hall and council offices is a source of continuing fascination and stimulus to locals. There is always something interesting and different to see. The current exhibition of paintings by Anne Middleton is a stand out. It is called Gates of Paradise. Walk through the…
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I decided to have a rest from Asian food. Asian food is so good, and so easily available I tend to eat it most of the time. I ended the old year with dinner at Uncle one of my favourite Vietnamese restaurants, also in Balaclava. So far this year I have eaten yum cha,…
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Batch is still here. I first wrote about Batch on this blog in 2010. It is wonderful to find that some places don’t turn over. The media is full of reviews of a new place opening their doors. So they should be we need to know what is happening out there. For example…
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Carlisle Street is bathed in late-autumn sun and it is buzzing with locals and visitors. We stroll through this crowd to Ilona Staller for lunch. It is a special lunch for us and we are early. We wander into their lovely Art Deco entrance and they let us in and give us a menu…
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We talk a lot about clean and green these days. Clean and green was the first thing I thought when I climbed the stairs to first floor dining area of Uncle on Carlisle Street, St Kilda. I think it is the plain wood tables but also the light that comes from high up…
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A restaurant or a cafe is not about one dish but I am only going to talk about one of the breakfast dishes at Las Chicas. I have written about Las Chicas a few years ago – see here. The menu has changed since then and as far as I know ‘Coconut rice pudding…
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Sitting on a high ladder style stool feet propped on a bench while overlooking a car park doesn’t sound an ideal place to have breakfast. Strangely, it is pretty good. We shared the veranda space with two spaniels who relaxed at our feet and did not beg for tit bits or fuss about. They…
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This is a monthly free paper. It is not delivered. You need to pick one up from local outlets. I got mine from the Grumpy Swimmers Bookshop in Elwood. Another good place is Safeway in Balaclava. The editor describes this as an Open Newspaper. This means that anyone can write for it and summit…
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There are always people around the entrance to The Local Taphouse in Balaclava. One reason is because it is right on a tram stop and another is that the downstairs bar is popular and people sometimes spill out particularly in the summer. Last week on a surprisingly sunny July day I ate in…
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