Magical Melbourne cont...
We had champagne at Madame Brussels “Rather Fancy Terrace and Public House” – a cosy little bar at Level 3, 59-63 Bourke St, with bright green Astroturf on the floor and a fake paved path, white wicker grandma garden furniture and fake flowers… plus an outdoor area where people sat wrapped in blankets gazing out over the busy night streets. It was simply delightful... and very intoxicating. Then we trotted off to dinner… at Gingerboy.
Wow, wow, wow, wow. When we entered Gingerboy from cobbled Crossley Street it was packed to the hilt, and we were told to wait at the crammed bar until our table was ready. Already we knew this place was good. We were eventually led into the dining room… apparently this is the low key version of über chef Teage Ezard’s five star restaurant, but Gingerboy hits the perfect mark of casual sophistication. The décor is steel and plastic, nothing fancy – but the lighting is sensational. The walls are lined with blue tubing that is filled with fairy lights and the effect is like being under an industrial night sky – very intimate and very sexy for a first date.
The snapper...We sat down and I noticed that everyone at the surrounding tables sat giggling on an excellent-food-sated high. So we ate too, and I won’t bore you with superlatives except to say that I have eaten thousands and thousands of Asian meals in my life without coming across anything remotely as good as this. You will groan, you will laugh, you will never forget Gingerboy. We had the set menu – it’s not many dishes but they are very filling. The warm udon noodle and smoked trout salad with soy mirin dressing is amazing, so are the corn cakes, so are the salt and pepper chicken spare ribs with green chilly soy (wooha!) and soooo is the whole fried snapper vegetable jungle curry BUT…
Ahhh... the duck.Do not miss the red duck leg curry with thai basil and coconut cream. I wept. It was astounding. In fact I accosted a chef (he was standing at the bottom of the narrow stairs - looking shocked and slightly perturbed to suddenly find himself surrounded by half-drunk raucous people) on my way back from the bathroom (was it Ezard himself?), grabbed his supple, burn-scarred hands (you thought I was going to say something else, didn’t you!), and told him, “That was the BEST food I have ever had in my entire life!” Best restaurant ever. I wish it was in Sydney!
Imagine it dark and packed with punters...We finished the night with a glass of water (how can you top that meal?) at the Blue Diamond Social Salon and Cabaret, way up on the 15th floor, 123 Queen Street. You go up in the late-1960’s style lift (it’s like a James Bond flick circa Sean Connery) and the bar is done in the same retro style (or is it just preserved?). What I noticed about this packed place was that it’s so NOT Sydney – no beautiful teenagers posing a la Lindsay Lohan.
Blue Diamond is the latest investment of nightlife guru Henry Maas - formerly of Fitzroy's Black Cat Cafe and the Night Cat. The music is great, there are people of all nationalities, all ages, all shapes and sizes here – they’re getting down and hanging out. Young and old. What a blast. I would recommend starting a night here quite early so as to get the whole atmosphere (and the whole live show). I felt like I was in Europe – what a great place. Again – Sydney, catch up!
Phone: (03) 8601 2720
Scultpture: We Are the Revolution, by Maurizio Cattelan. 2000The next day we headed to the National Gallery of Victoria to see the Guggenheim Collection: 1940s to Now, New York-Venice-Bilbao-Berlin. Running from 30 June to 7 October, this exhibition features more than 85 works by 67 artists, from 22 different nationalities. The exhibition brings together masterworks from the 20th and 21st century - by Mark Rothko, Roy Lichtenstein, Jackson Pollock, Andy Warhol, Jeff Koons, Cindy Sherman and more - revealing the evolution of art since the 1940s to the present. If you’re an art ignoramus like me, you must take a tour. Each evocative piece – from sculptures to paintings, to giant pencil sketches that take weeks to do, to a room that floats above the ground, to a multimedia presentation of five bizarre abstract films, to a montage of photos of half real people and half plasticine figures - is explained and put in its relevant historical place.
Mural: Preparedness, by Roy Lichtenstein. 1968But you can be a philistine and still “get” this stuff. It simply works. You stand in front of the pretty pastel coloured Andy Warhol and you feel all kinds of inexplicable sad feelings, before you realise you’re staring at a collage of electric chairs… See it see it see it.
The Rose Street MarketsMORE MELBOURNE MAGIC
* Browse around the Rose Street Artists’ Market in Fitzroy. This small and charming open-air market showcases contemporary Australian handmade art. A great place to pick up an unusual gift – a cute brooch, a funky tie, a handbag, a t-shirt, a miniature cactus... open every Saturday between the hours of 11am and 5pm.
* Have Tapas at MoVida - a pretty, bright bar-style restaurant located in grungy Hosier lane. It is Chef Frank Camorra’s interpretation of an inner-Madrid neighbourhood bodega. Very meaty food and deliciously tasty. Great for a group lunch or dinner. 1 Hosier Lane, Melbourne Ph: (03) 9663 3038
* Have a cocktail at Toff in the Town! This beautiful bar is lined with train carriage booths and full of young funky arty types. We saw two hotter than hot bands here. It’s totally unpretentious and a fantastic venue. Great service too! 252 Swanston Street.
* Check out the Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF) at ACMI (25 July to 12 August), where you’ll see the freshest international and local feature films, documentaries and short films. Plus there will be plenty of events with filmmakers and actors, creating what is truly a unique festival experience. Films from more than 50 countries screen in Melbourne for 19 days only – don’t miss out.
Oh how we love you Melbourne – so much so we’re sending another writer down again this weekend to find yet more hidden treasures!
