Melbourne, Australia

Memories from Melbourne are pervaded by the plethora of coffee shops. Living in Los Angeles, I thought that I was accustomed to seeing third wave coffee shops as a familiar sight, but this did not compare to the number awaiting my adventures in Melbourne. I stopped at so many! Some that I remember were: 

Higher Ground Melbourne 

Dukes

Gold Drops Coffee

Vacation Coffee

Market Lane Coffee

Much of the fun had when stopping into the coffee shops were the opportunities to meet the welcoming and chatty baristas. They were all willing to share suggestions to add to my list of coffee shops, too!

PRAHRAN MARKET

The city has multiple markets, the most popular of which is the Victoria Market, but this is another with a well established clientele. I enjoyed the various shops while wandering around, but found that I found more distinctive goods at the other markets. I did stop into RIPE the organic grocer and purchase some wine as well as tarts from a vendor at Prahran. 

RIPE the organic grocer

SOUTH MELBOURNE MARKET

Emerald Dell Cheese Room 

This market had many many vendors in the indoor space. I particularly enjoyed finding this cheese room. 

Atypic Bean to Bar Chocolate

At this time that I visited in 2018, this was as of yet a young chocolate company. At the time of this writing, the company is known internationally for exceptional chocolate. I met the young chocolate maker, an entrepreneuring young woman clearly passionate about her business. 

SMS Oyster Bar

There was a constant stream of people lining up to get food from South Melbourne Seafoods, serving casual, but quality, seafood. I decided on some ceviche for a snack! They served it in this bag with a spoon.

VICTORIA MARKET

Hugely popular and ever busy, this market is one that nearly everyone visits while in the city. 

The market is a very large covered area with cement floors with a significant space dedicated to none food wares as well as a very large area with street foods being cooked. The variety of foods on offer is fantastic, ranging from paella to french pastries, as well as places to purchase meats more unusual to the country. There is something for everyone!  

PURE SOUTH

This restaurant felt more of upscale contemporary dining with large windows lining the exterior walls allowing a view of the light making up the city skyline at night. 

I happend to mention that I had eaten Wallaby to some people from Australia and they were surprised I was able to locate this meat on a menu! This restaurant was lovely, but mostly worth the visit for me because of this singular opportunity. 

Flinder's Island pasture fed Wallaby, parsnip, and native pepper berry sauce 

THE ORGANIC FOOD AND WINE DELI

I made a stop here mostly because I was curious if I could find a healthier version of the varies popular pies. I did! A hole in the wall stop off, but boasting a nice variety of quality ingredients! 

Spring Street Grocer

This was one of my favorite unexpectedly enjoyable finds in the city. I knew that they had a variety of cheese and local goods, but did not realize the extent of the cheese varieties! They had an entire cold "cave" under the main storefront that was on street level. I carefully selected local cheese that I really wanted to try and the staff patiently answered all of my questions. It felt particularly special to get to enter the lower area specifically dedicated to careful storage of their cheese. The upstairs also provided beautifully curated goods, both from local and international sources. There were eggs, chocolates, wines, cookies sauces, meats, and all types of dried goods. At the front entrance, there was an outdoor coffee bar that was beneath an overhang, allowing walk up service in all types of weather. 

CHARCOAL LANE

This restaurant was still in the city, but away from the most central area. The restaurant was open and airy and with staff passionate about providing native ingredients incorporated into the menu. The intention is to include Aboriginal people at the restaurant, providing employment and inclusion of their culture.

Roasted emu filet with sandalwood nut salad, quandog, and witlof 

If you can identify which foods align with those words, then anyone would be impressed! I was so thrilled to find a menu from which I certainly was not familiar with the foods! Absolutely one of my favorite thrills when I travel is uncovering a food as of yet unknown to me. As the list becomes shorter with time, I am even more excited when I have this experience! This was a nicely balanced salad with a dance of different textures and flavors, but without any being overwhelming. Delicious and light! 

There were other restaurants and drinks, wine tasting and coffee drinking filling my every moment in the city, but I tried to give some of the most memorable highlights above. Melbourne was an easy and yet invigorating exploration!