Share your tips on Melbourne...

[pixie_genie]

Hi all,

I'll be heading to MELbourne this weekend for a short get-away (Real short due to work constraints, will only be there for 5 nights), staying at the former Ramada hotel opp Flinders station. Since my accomodation does not include breakfast and Australia does not allow us to bring in ANY food stuff (not including cookies, biscuits and instant noodles?! Is that true? Are they that strict?), can someone pls recommend cheap eating options/places around town?

I'm not fussy when it comes to food...but I heard even sandwiches cost about A$7-8 per serving and they come COLD! I believe Melbourne is a popular tourist destination with many CSers so I hope to get some insider tips before we go. Thanks heaps!

 

[Kit]

Hi all,

I'll be heading to MELbourne this weekend for a short get-away (Real short due to work constraints, will only be there for 5 nights), staying at the former Ramada hotel opp Flinders station. Since my accomodation does not include breakfast and Australia does not allow us to bring in ANY food stuff (not including cookies, biscuits and instant noodles?! Is that true? Are they that strict?), can someone pls recommend cheap eating options/places around town?

I'm not fussy when it comes to food...but I heard even sandwiches cost about A$7-8 per serving and they come COLD! I believe Melbourne is a popular tourist destination with many CSers so I hope to get some insider tips before we go. Thanks heaps!

The place you are staying in is at the edge of the CDB. Head down to the cafeterias along Elizabeth St. for $1/slice pizzas. Just opposite the tram terminal and 5 mins walk from where you stay. Unfortuately, living standards is higher and food costs more. A typical meal will cost you $6 to $8. To better spend your money, I suggest you try Chinatown. Just go to where the students go.

There's this stall in the foodcourt just beside Nike Melbourne which let you stuff your plate for $6 (if I remembered correctly). If you eat at the typical delis, you can request your sandwiches to be toasted(no extra charges) so they won't come cold. If you feel like stuffing yourself in the morning, then go to Cafe Automatic at Crown. Order the $11 breakfast and you won't feel like eating anything till 3 or 4 in the afternoon.

Mekong on Swanston St serves pretty good big portion vietnamese beef noodles. If you are hungry in the middle of the night, some of the fast food restaurants open 24 hours. Just be a little careful when moving around at night but don't worry, its relatively safe if you stay in the light. Let me know if you need more info.

 

[Benign]

Well, depend on what you want to eat. Go to the local supermarket. You can buy the whole roast chicken at around $9.....bread cost you around $2.50.

U can alway go to Chinatown groceries...or VicMarket to buy instant noodles....korean noodles only cost about $0.85cents each :bsmilie:

As Kit suggested, Vietnamese food outlets fits your budget lor. Try the beef noodles or porkchop broken rice...which generally cost around $7.50. The tea is free :thumbsup:
If you really thick skinned, then go find soup kitchen. :sticktong


Just kidding, :devil: have fun

 

[dan_1337]

"When in Rome, do as Romans do"

So...when in Melbourne, do as Melburnians do! I think that if you're here, don't eat chinese food. You can do that in Singapore.

Around the city I recommend you go and get a lamb souvlaki (greek food) from Stalactites restaurant. It's on the corner of Lonsdale St and Russell St. It has a blue surrounding and is open 24/7. It is the best souvlaki around. If you're not sure what souvlaki is, it's basically a pita bread with HEAPS of lamb from a spit fire with tzatziki (yoghurt based) sauce, lettuce and tomato. AWESOME food. My Singaporean friends swear by it.

I also think that you should make your way to Lygon St in Carlton. Along Lygon St there are 90% Italian cafe's and restaurants. I always go to a restaurant called "Papa Gino's", which is near the corner of Lygon St and Grattan St - but still on Lygon St. The pasta is about $9-11 and pizza around $11-13 but it is second to none. The pizza is put in a proper wood furnace (i think it's wood fired anyway) instead of a rolling griller tray like Pizza Hut.

Breakfast can be eaten at any cafe. Like the suggestion by kit before, go and get yourself a proper big breakfast from a cafe like Automatic. It should come with sausages, hash brown, bacon, eggs, pan fried mushrooms, tomatoes and toast. Awesome way to start the day.

If you want steak, don't get it from an Italian restaurant. Go somewhere like Steakout in Crown Casino to get it. It'll be much better.

Crown Casino has a lot of nice and cheap restaurants inside the casino itself. Look out for Kings buffet, Margo's and Georges. Also try The Pub at Crown. It's right outside the cinemas and Steakout.

Melbourne is all about eating well - that's where most of my money goes =)

 

[dan_1337]

Also try Marks Pizza which is on the corner of Lygon St and Grattan St. Awesome pizza.

 

[plsoong]

Also try Marks Pizza which is on the corner of Lygon St and Grattan St. Awesome pizza.

yar u can't miss that!

yellow building...or have they painted new stuff?

try their half-halfs

Anywayz, brings back good memories when i was studying there!

Melbourne is a darn ex place to stay and eat...in australia, generally, cooked/prepared food costs alot more than doing it yourself...so if u can cook, go victoria market....u can buy some really good cheap high quality meats and veges (esp when nearing closing time!!!).

if not, then go Lygon street.....Universal Cafe is popular with cheapos like me (when i was mugging hard for exams). if u've got more $$ to spend, then u can go brunettis, nocturno, lapocetta etc......

so far my cheapest meal?

BREAD and cuppacolo from safeway!
or head to franklins (are they still there?) near brunswick and whack the sample nuts (sssshhhh......dun get caught!) :bsmilie:

for chinese (not THAT hongkong food) try lemongrass pork chop opp of that City BBQ building.....(damn...can't remmeber that small building's name.....next to Mooks)

heheheheh .... another way to save $$$?

shitloads of vegemite and table waters..... its an acquired taste! but i lurve it!

 

[pixie_genie]

Hey Good Morning everyone!

Wow...I'm so happy to receive so many replies. Thanks to Kit, Benigh, dan and plsoong for sharing so much valuable info for me, really helpful for my trip! Btw, I love lamb souvlaki (just that I didn't know that this is the name for it) and pizza stuff so will definitely go try it. My colleague mentioned 'Mekong' too so it must be really good.

I've got 3 more questions.

1) I'm thinking of making a trip to Brighton Beach to snap some shots...will it be worthwhile and how do I get there? I suppose I can always ask the concierge when I reach the hotel but since so many of you know Melbourne so well, I would prefer getting 1st hand info from you.

2) I'm also thinking of visiting St. Kildas on the day of my arrival - Sunday morning. Any 'must-try's there?

Thanks all!
pixie :bsmilie:

 

[plsoong]

Hey Good Morning everyone!

Wow...I'm so happy to receive so many replies. Thanks to Kit, Benigh, dan and plsoong for sharing so much valuable info for me, really helpful for my trip! Btw, I love lamb souvlaki (just that I didn't know that this is the name for it) and pizza stuff so will definitely go try it. My colleague mentioned 'Mekong' too so it must be really good.

There's another one at Russel street called Pho....some silly poreans like that better cos the "chilli" is hotter...personally i'm not a chilli fan as i believe the level of cooking skill is directly proportionate to the amount of chilli NOT used! anywayz personal opinions....thus...Mekong is good

I've got 3 more questions.

1) I'm thinking of making a trip to Brighton Beach to snap some shots...will it be worthwhile and how do I get there? I suppose I can always ask the concierge when I reach the hotel but since so many of you know Melbourne so well, I would prefer getting 1st hand info from you.

Rent a car and go everywhere with it! thats the best way to go around Aussie.
or take trams and trams and trams and abit of walking. for me, i bot a blardy ex mountain bike there (or sometimes u can rent) and ride there. Bosari along lygon is EX for bikes but they are quite good. u can get bikes elsewhere for good rental rates.

just stay away from the cabs...they are BLARDY ex! Brighton beach has beautiful beach houses!

2) I'm also thinking of visiting St. Kildas on the day of my arrival - Sunday morning. Any 'must-try's there?

WAH!!! thats a place i will NEVER forget! There's are 2 restaurants there...both BEAUTIFUL! one is a posh place called Stokes or something (sorry my alzheimic mind going nuts) and the other is the beautiful cosy Donovan's house. Make a reservation for a ROMANTIC evening dinner by the beach...ask them for the table that faces the bay. but the place is not cheap coz its really good food.

then walk along the beach. a couple of years back during winter, i was walking along the beach with 2 of my friends and we saw these kids and a couple throwing sand (shi*loads!!!!!) into the waters!!!!! initially we were quite unhappy that there are such idiots spoiling the beach liddat. so we went nearer and guess what? everytime the sand hits the water....the water became fluorescent green (LITERALLY!!!) and the moon was as big as a giant roti prata that was going into the waters!

later during one of the seminars from my uni, i learnt that that was the effect of a seasonal timing of the bacteria vibrio harveii. Bonnie Bassler from Princeton University came down to unimelb to give a seminar on quorum sensing in bacteria. This bacteria also lives in the gut of squids, hence causing them to "glow" when they receive a "chemical signal/2ndary messenger (which i forgot simi sai name) and they function as a "neighbourhood" and every bacterium starts to upregulate their fluorescing gene, thus lighting up that "group" of bacteria, hence lighting up the squid. IIRC, its when there is a presence of food..... now scientists in the US of A are using that unique mechanism to engineer vaccines and drugs to "respond" as a "groupie" when infectious material/diseases are present...

can't rememeber all the jumbo liao...but heheheh......following St. Kilda's, take a tram to the CASINO!!!!!! in the evening...esp on Sat/Sun....if its in winter, they throw up balls of fire every weekend night! (i was told each time they do that (by the hour anyway) it costs the casino 30grand!...now u noe y singa of pore also want casino! (can't they just give me 10% of what they can waste?!?!?!!) Cafe Greco is my fav joint there.... Flaming lamborghini is blardy good there, as well as passionfruit cheese cake!!!!! not forgetting pita and dips not THAT cheap again.hehehehehe

eh.....okay too lor sor reliving my memories........

Enjoy!!!!!!

Thanks all!
pixie :bsmilie:

 

[Gymrat76]

Bring your sweaters and windbreakers... Was there 3 weeks ago and its still bloody cold at night!

Melbourne is loads of fun... on top of the food, can shop at the Nike, Adidas and other factory outlets at Smith Street and Bridge Rd... There's a Kathmandu and also a Mountian Design factory outlet on Smith Street also, if you're into outdoors stuff

If you have a group of friends (3-4 persons) and feel like having meat, you can head to Limor's on Kooyong Rd and have their BBQ Special platter ($79.90 but loaded with just MEAT!) :bigeyes:

 

[pixie_genie]

haha...plsoong, you are damn farnii :bsmilie: but thanks heaps for your suggestions on St Kilda's. Hmm...makes me wanna try throwing in shi*loads of sand into the ocean too and witness the scientific theories come to life!! I am so looking forward to walking on the beach and watching sunsets there...what time does the sun set in November? and what's the temperature like now?

Gymrat, thanks for reminding us to bring our sweaters, that's 1 of the 1st things we put into our luggage as I've heard that we can experience 4 seasons in Melbourne in a single day. It's a pity we are not going with friends, just my hubby and I, going for a short shopping getaway.

Just wondering, besides sporty stuff at factory outlets, can I get some lady-like executive work clothes there too?

 

[Gymrat76]

haha...plsoong, you are damn farnii :bsmilie: but thanks heaps for your suggestions on St Kilda's. Hmm...makes me wanna try throwing in shi*loads of sand into the ocean too and witness the scientific theories come to life!! I am so looking forward to walking on the beach and watching sunsets there...what time does the sun set in November? and what's the temperature like now?

Gymrat, thanks for reminding us to bring our sweaters, that's 1 of the 1st things we put into our luggage as I've heard that we can experience 4 seasons in Melbourne in a single day. It's a pity we are not going with friends, just my hubby and I, going for a short shopping getaway.

Just wondering, besides sporty stuff at factory outlets, can I get some lady-like executive work clothes there too?

Yup, just walk around Smith St/Bridge Rd...lots of shops there, can prob spend 1/2 the day shopping there... They're pretty long roads, so wear comfortable walking shoes :bsmilie:

The Esprit factory outlet isn't really worth checking out, as my wife told me that they're 1-2 seasons behind, but other shops are ok I guess (from a guy's perspective!). Definitely more ppl here who can give more info, as we spent most of the trip OUTSIDE of the city going around Victoria. Have fun!

 

[Gymrat76]

Actually, if you've got 5 nights, do consider getting OUT of the city and experiencing Victoria's other attractions.

Rent a car and just drive around, the traffic system is very similar to Singapore (except certain areas in the CBD where the trams run) and roads are long, straight and well paved. Signboards are very good, so you can get around well with a MelWays (their verison of StreetDirectory) and a good map for areas out of the city.

Some places which you can try are:

1. Phillip Island - See penguins, koala bear sanctuary
2. Great Ocean Road - scenic drives
3. Yarra Valley - if you love wine, must go here.. only 45 mins from the city
4. Dendenongs - about 45 mins from city also. Scenic drive through the hills, excellent English style-restaurants
5. Sorrento - Nice beachfront property. Swim with the dolphins! :thumbsup:

Oh and you can leave your swimsuits at home, unless you enjoy swimming in the 15oC waters off Port Phillip Bay.

I brought my swimming trunks there, and it didn't occur to me that the ocean was soooo cold till I had to jump in when I did the dolphin swim at sorrento (even with a 12mm wetsuit it was FREEZING!)

For 5 nights, you may not be able to see everything, but can pick and choose the ones you like. Much better than just being in the city, you want something different right?

If you want to see some pics of my recent trip, can PM me and I'll give you the site, if you're interested.

 

[dragos]

u can pm me for my melbourne travelogue also

 

[plsoong]

haha...plsoong, you are damn farnii :bsmilie: but thanks heaps for your suggestions on St Kilda's. Hmm...makes me wanna try throwing in shi*loads of sand into the ocean too and witness the scientific theories come to life!! I am so looking forward to walking on the beach and watching sunsets there...what time does the sun set in November? and what's the temperature like now?

Gymrat, thanks for reminding us to bring our sweaters, that's 1 of the 1st things we put into our luggage as I've heard that we can experience 4 seasons in Melbourne in a single day. It's a pity we are not going with friends, just my hubby and I, going for a short shopping getaway.

Just wondering, besides sporty stuff at factory outlets, can I get some lady-like executive work clothes there too?

hahahha, i absolutely lurve melbourne....oh and do speak like the aussies.....coz they lurve to say AWWWWWWWWWWWWESome! and or RECKON!!!!!

anywayz, the fluorescence thingey is a seasonal thing. best go by the breakwaters and observe the waters hitting the rocks to see if it glows. if yes, its in season...else... u can try to do some skinny swimming and freeze yer butt off hehehehe.

anywayz.....i really do recommend renting a car!!!! GO drive to Mornington peninsula!!!!! it is AWWWWWWWesome! there u can go phillip island and watch those tiny blue-silver penguins up close! your sweetheart will absolutely lurve them. only prob is no photography....the flash will cause the penguins to go blind...... and no point putting high ISO...coz its BLARDY DARK!

u can take the train to chadston and go for shopping and followed by a train to a very small town called Williamstown and walk around. The houses there are AMMMMMMMMMMAzing..... and u can take a boat back to crown casino via yarra river.

If u're too free, u can drive to grampians and climb that dunno what jaws of death.....(which for a super unfit me, almost made me die even b4 reaching it) from there u can observe the valley and the vast expanse of the grampians! However if u've been to the Grand Canyon in Nevada, u'll prolly think grampians are nothing much hehehehe

Great Ocean Road is a must for 1st timers in melbourne (dang, i went there 3 times coz 1st, my brother came, then my friend came, then my ex gf came....pengz, i became tour guide 3 times...... can almost fuse with the rocks there!).

are u going during winter? if so, Mt Buller is a reasonably nice place for skiing and freezing your butt off again . Mt Beautiful is great for sunset n sunrise!

(anybody wanna offer me a personal job as a tour guide to melbourne?.....:sweat: )

 

[plsoong]

There's a place called Richmond....where it used to be one side of the road selling clothes to the female species...and the other side the male species...

over the years...well....u noe it....... the female side kinda "invaded" the other side of the road too.....:cry:

if u've time, go to the rememberance shrine ...alamak....its shrine of rememberance...

and maybe can go cook's cottage which houses a greenhouse or something liddat


actually, what i suggest is look up the internet, kinda study the map of melbourne city....its rather easy to navigate. the city roads are named after the royal family and are in parallels. the smaller "off" streets from the mains are usually (though not always) named with the letters "lt."

it stands for Little ......

my 1st time there, i took a cab from tulamarine airport (melbourne airport) and told the driver i'm going to "lieutenant Bourke street".....the cab driver gave me this funny look and said.... "ay mate, there ain't no lieutenant named Bourke!" .... after i showed him the address...he said..... "thats Little Bourke Street!":sweat:

.....:embrass:

 

[pixie_genie]

[my 1st time there, i took a cab from tulamarine airport (melbourne airport) and told the driver i'm going to "lieutenant Bourke street".....the cab driver gave me this funny look and said.... "ay mate, there ain't no lieutenant named Bourke!" .... after i showed him the address...he said..... "thats Little Bourke Street!":sweat:

.....:embrass:

LOL...hahaha :sweatsm:

 

[Gymrat76]

anywayz.....i really do recommend renting a car!!!! GO drive to Mornington peninsula!!!!! it is AWWWWWWWesome! there u can go phillip island and watch those tiny blue-silver penguins up close! your sweetheart will absolutely lurve them. only prob is no photography....the flash will cause the penguins to go blind...... and no point putting high ISO...coz its BLARDY DARK!
...

If u're too free, u can drive to grampians and climb that dunno what jaws of death.....(which for a super unfit me, almost made me die even b4 reaching it) from there u can observe the valley and the vast expanse of the grampians! However if u've been to the Grand Canyon in Nevada, u'll prolly think grampians are nothing much hehehehe
[/SIZE]

They've completely disallowed ANY kind of photography of the penguin parade at Phillip Island already.

And if you're going to the Grampians, stay at the YHA (Youth Hostel)... its called the EcoLodge and its really, really nice -cheap too. Only note that a number of the popular walking trails such as The Pinnacle are still closed because of the Jan/Feb 06 bushfires. The landscape is brown and black mostly with patches of green

 

[Kit]

Hey Good Morning everyone!

Wow...I'm so happy to receive so many replies. Thanks to Kit, Benigh, dan and plsoong for sharing so much valuable info for me, really helpful for my trip! Btw, I love lamb souvlaki (just that I didn't know that this is the name for it) and pizza stuff so will definitely go try it. My colleague mentioned 'Mekong' too so it must be really good.

I've got 3 more questions.

1) I'm thinking of making a trip to Brighton Beach to snap some shots...will it be worthwhile and how do I get there? I suppose I can always ask the concierge when I reach the hotel but since so many of you know Melbourne so well, I would prefer getting 1st hand info from you.

2) I'm also thinking of visiting St. Kildas on the day of my arrival - Sunday morning. Any 'must-try's there?

Thanks all!
pixie :bsmilie:

Ya, Mekong is pretty good. Ask Jackie Chan and Samo Hung.

I don't really fancy the beaches in Melbourne. I think Sydney has the better ones. Getting around in Melbourne is easy. You most direct and immediate mode of transportation would be the trams. There should be a direct tram to Brighton if I'm correct.

St Kilda is a pretty laid back community with pretty interesting thing to experience. Think you should try there. Again, direct tram from the city. Another nice place to visit is Chapel St if you love to shop and eat. Take no.8 tram from the city. All other major shopping places are mentioned earlier except for Chadstone, which is in the suburb. Take a train to Caulfield and there should be free shuttle services to and fro the station.

If you prefer to get around in a cars, most of the rental companies e.g. Hertz is located along Franklin St, opposite RMIT. Not sure about the rates now but a week's rental should be about $400 to $500.