This convenience store in Collins Street was my saving grace and office escape in the corporate…read moreworld prior to working for myself as a freelance writer. One used to feel a little like a kid walking into a candy store at the time, and there would be some days where they would have items for purchase for only $1 to celebrate a particular time of day, and most recently their birthday. Cherry Ripe here I come. The staff always seem to be so glad to see you, it isn't stock standard chain based convenience store service. You would feel kind of special. The Freddo frogs (although simple) was a big deal at the time, like my office survival kit: especially during the last three months of my corporate career. They would always have specials for buying four Freddo frogs of different varieties at any given moment, and this convenience store would run the occasional competition where a pre-paid Visa card was up for grabs to entice you into buying more chocolate which stocked up my survival kit when one needed it stocked up the most. The ambience was inviting, especially the owl and inside (although a bit of tight space at times) allured that welcoming feeling for the tired office worker.

There's something about little family run businesses that give them a superior edge over all other…read moreoptions. The Grange Mini Mart, which I always called the Milk Bar until I asked for a business card, is no exception to this. The service here is impeccable and always friendly. The store itself is warm and inviting from the moment the bell tinkles above the door to signal your arrival. There is a great range of products on offer including: fruit, chocolate, lollies, ice-creams, magazines, confectionary, milk, cake, cigarettes, bus tickets, phone credit and my personal favourite - Willy Wonka Nerds. If you are a regular customer here you won't get called by name but you will get special privileges. The amount of times I race down there to find that I'm ten cents short or my eftpos card declines have piled up in a corner where I store all my embarrassing moments. Fortunately, the owner of this Mini Mart is super nice when this happens. She pulls out a notepad and takes down your name and phone number before writing down how much you owe. Let her know when you will be down next and she'll pop in a date of expected payment too. Be nice and try to pay her quickly. The shop is always clean and well stocked and best of all - it is open until 9pm every night of the week.

CONVENIENCE +++. This place is so convenient, open til 10 most nights............a little of the…read moreexpensive side. great staff!!! You can get nearly anything here.............they have a great liquor store too.

This convenience store deserves note for the range of international products. There are lots of…read morelittle gems, particularly from the UK, to be found. Staff are always friendly and there's a well-stocked liquor section as well, where more or less anything can be found. Open until 10pm every night. Prices are a little extra, as you'd expect from this kind of place.

The local Milk Bar, good for last minute items or if you cannot be bothered with the extra 500m to…read moreWoolies. I've been in here a few times and just really shocked by the pricing in here. My housemate had fallen ill and needed some Soda Water, so instead of venturing a few more minutes down the road to Woolworths, i stopped in here and my god i left just as soon as i entered. I looked in the fridge and saw that a 2L Soda Water was around $4. This is something that the local Woolies stocks for 80c - $1. I understand that this small independent business is something of a dying sort but i'm not comfortable paying twice or three times as much for something i can get a few hundred meters down the road.

The name of this place suggests that this small family-run store, which has been here for over 30…read moreyears or more, is an in fact a convenience store. Phooey! I totally disagree with that and therefore refer to it as a milkbar, because that's exactly what it is. After all, milkbars are a dying rapidly and only a few now remain, like this one, and I'll be damned if I start referring to it as a convenience store. I don't know how many times I'd be on my way to work and completely forget to bring some change for the ticket machine on the tram. And, like a mirage in the desert, this little milkbar would come to my aid. It also looks after me on all those days when nothing can take away your troubles like an impulse buy of ice cream or chocolate on the way home. The prices can be a little higher than other places but for the people situated around this milkbar, and forgetful little me, the convince it provides more than outweighs the extra few dollars. Plus I quite enjoy the friendless and familiarity you get from regularly coming to a small place like this which you'd never get from a supermarket no matter times you go there or how much you spend. I applaud these guys for keeping the legacy of suburban milkbars alive.

The whole point of a convenience store is that you expect a quick get-in-get-out deal. The 7-Eleven…read morestores are small, so there's no much browsing you need to do. You probably already know what you want straight away. Unfortunately, since this particular 7-Eleven is located smack dab in the middle of Melbourne's CBD, everybody and their mothers want a piece of it. Sometimes at night when everyone's out and about, it can get as crowded as Coles. And I'm not exaggerating. I queued up for about 10 minutes before it was finally my shot at the counter. How unfortunate for 7-Eleven because its popularity isn't its fault. In fact, I suppose being bustling with business is a positive. Still, if you can, avoid.

Some of the friendliest 7-eleven staff (especially the slightly older bloke) I've ever encountered.read more

I've been going to the Knoxfield Milk Bar since my primary school days. I remember taking the…read morelonger route on my walk home just so I could pop in and grab some Fads for a dollar or so. I remember the days when I actually believed they looked like real cigarettes and I'd rush out to buy some on cold mornings so that I could loll them out of my mouth and breathe out big gusts of steam. I thought I was so cool. I've had some many experiences in this milk bar, some great and others not so good. When I was ten I remember the guy behind the counter would persistently shortchange me and try to make me think that I was bad at maths. Eventually I had to get my Mum to stand outside the shop and she would check my change and go in and yell at him if he gave it back wrong. Ah, those were the days. Mostly though I've had pretty all right experiences there. The shop itself is always stocked up and though the service is the same in any milk bar, it is still service. The bell rings, the staff member calls out hello and then I wander around until I find something. I approach the counter, give them my money; they repeat the cost and the amount I gave them before giving me my change. I haven't had a problem with them shortchanging me since I was ten - but maybe that's because they are scared I'll bring my Mum back in. She can be pretty scary when she's mad! At the end of the day, it's cheap enough and it's convenient. I've always been a fan.