Keilor Hotel - The Vinery function room: I organised a wake, what they call a celebration of life…read more Michelle, the events coordinator, oversaw the event on the day, with her fabulous team Danny, Tom and Josie. Michelle had excellent advice regarding the menu and catered to my requests. Extra tables, table cloths on all the tables and the open area closed off. I also requested to set up prior to the function, including a tribute table and I dropped off vases with flowers to be placed on tables. A fabulous grazing table under a tree inside the room, was ready upon arrival. Platters of food came out regularly. The event ran seamlessly. Everyone was impressed with the food, the service and the function room, the Vinery. We were fortunate to have lovely weather which really suits the Vinery with the atrium and grapevines adding to the atmosphere. Michelle, a special thank you to you for overseeing the event and catering to all my requests. Marija J R

Honestly, considering that Keilor happens to be one of those suburbs that are filled with new…read morehousing estates I didn't actually expect to find all that much here. Rather, I was expecting to just find one of those new, and rather boring, pubs. It turned out not to be the case, though their selection of beers were rather limited. It turns out that this place is a lot older than I expected, and even has a museum of sorts, suggesting that Keilor is more than just a new housing estate. Pretty cool actually.

Awesome to have a beer hall / drink spot like this in the west, absolutely pumping on a Saturday…read morenight with awesome tunes and a great crowd! 24 beers/ciders/wines/cocktails on tap, plenty of areas to perch on. Great selection of local, kiwi, US goodies on the drinks list. Mixed crowd from young hipster kids, boys on a night out, and middle aged couples. Great atmosphere, such a pleasure to have a venue like this in the inner west with an inner city bar vibe. Will frequent again :)

This is another awesome bar, and it literally snuck up on me. I say this because as I was wandering…read morealong the road towards another destination I looked up and suddenly I saw this bar. Well, I went inside and it was literally love at first site - great beers, awesome outdoor area, and great staff. Not only that but this place was also incredibly chilled. This is the type of bar, if I lived in the area, would end ups spending an awful lot of time at.

So blown away by this hip little bar in Footscray. Incredibly friendly staff and patrons. Can't go…read morepast the cheap BBQ and bloody Mary's on a Sunday. Was particularly delighted to see the owner offer table with a small girl, some bubble making toys and a bag of chips to keep her amused. Even the patrons were friendly and great to chat to. The DJ played an eclectic mix of music too. Will certainly my return.

Oh my the food here is delicious. The staff were happy and friendly. Even got a glass of wine on…read morethe house cause the one i chose was no longer available. What place does that? People get the word out.

Honestly, it was about time for a pub to be set up here, even though there already happens to be a…read moreshopping centre pub at Watergardens, except that that one happens to be on the other side of the shopping centre. This one, however, is much better, and much more convenient, namely because it happens to be halfway between the cinemas and the station. Oh, and they also have some pretty good beers on tap as well.

The food is ok but way too over priced, if the food was incredible then it would be understandable…read morebut the food is like a 5/10. Don't even get me started on the food wait, you go there buying like 2 meal and your wait a good 45 minutes, for the price and mediocre food its just not worth it. There is a couple good things about this place, their booths have little tvs were you can change the Chanel to what ever you want and if your not in a booth there are tvs everywhere playing different games. There is also a bar and pool tables. All around I wouldn't recommend.

I didn't want to review this club, because I didn't want to share the best kept secret in…read moreMelbourne. But I will because it's just too awesome. It's hip, urban underground and smooth. Classy yet it doesn't even appear they are trying. Open from Wednesday through Sunday, each night the Mango Bar comes alive with different sounds and genres of music. They've certainly got their pulse on the hottest up and coming local acts, as well as playing host to a range of renowned international DJ's. Each night there's something diff; electro funk, deep house, jazz and blues - there's something for everyone at Mango. The drinks menu deserves a rave as well. Spirits, beer and wine, as well as a sensational selection of martini's, cocktails and the signature Mango Daiquiri. It's like an oasis away from home. Somewhere you feel totally comfortable, totally chilled out and completed entertained by the music and live acts. There. The secrets out. Now go and enjoy!

Another Hall st gem!…read more Great selection of drinks, from $5 Friday happy hour, to cocktails & top shelf whisky's Mango is the perfect amount of chilled tunes & chatty crowd, with a small dance floor to carve up listening to resident & guest DJ's later in the night if the mood so grabs you, or enjoy the outdoor seating & perhaps throw in a game of jenga. BYO food (pretzels / crisps / nuts onsite for sale), and drop in for a quiet one, or settle in for an awesome night with the staff, old friends & new! PS- word is the espresso martini is the bomb (I don't drink coffee myself. Yes, we do exist)

Doesn't allow a baby into their ('wine bar' portion) premises, thus missed an important function…read more Legally okay under current liquor laws, personally not okay with venue. Strange. Quirk not communicated on website, not communicated verbally, not communicated with person who booked venue. But anybody under 18 is allowed into the restaurant! 3 month old located the other side of a plaster wall, no can do. Manager typically arrogant, unapologetic and occupied solely by self interest when confronted for an explanation. I'm sure you'll remember this feedback. I would advise seeking the services of another venue, unless you can be sure everybody you invite, along with dependants are over 18. Biagio's - communicate with everybody who books the wine bar - communicate this personal choice via a statement on your website.

First time here, quite a nice place, friendly service & a spacious & stylish interior. There's also…read morea lot of choice in the drinks menu & I was glad my lemon lime & bitters was not brought out in a bottle. We ordered the salami pesto pizza, which was very tasty & enough for 2 to share. Although I didn't have a coffee, it seems to be a popular spot for coffee & cake with a selection of delicious looking cakes on display.

In the middle of last week I was sitting happily at home contemplating an alcohol-free day, and how…read moremuch my overworked liver may appreciate such a wondrous happening. Long story short, is I got a phone call saying there was a new wine bar down the road in Essendon, and that I should tag along to check it out. If you like a very competitively priced glass or bottle of wine, I suggest you do to. The wine bar down the road in Essendon turned out to be the Essendon Wine Bar. The night I went was the soft opening, and there was the odd fixture waiting to be fixed in the back of the venue, but it also gave us a chance to look through before it was all polished and suave. One of the highlights for me was seeing inside the old safe (the venue was a NAB branch in a previous life) which now serves as a liquor store (as in backup booze cache, not bottle shop). Somewhere between being a bank and becoming a wine bar, this was also a nightclub, so some of the furniture has been re-purposed, but much of it is slick and new. The back of the venue will retain a wide dance floor and as it will be open until late a few nights a week, but it will be given a facelift. The smoking area out the front is a nice spot when there are no smokers, and there is footpath seating. Food is outsourced to neighboring restaurants. Armed with my initial freebie-opening-night-celebratory-wine, I perused the wine list. It was still being printed, but the interim one was interesting and featured a number if wineries I had never heard of. Second glass of wine was a Heathcote Shiraz, and it was great, at $6 a glass or $22 a bottle. In consultation with my group, we invested in a bottle for the third round. Then another. A third, equally-well-priced bottle was purchased, but I can't remember what it was. Then there was a discussion about sampling a white, so we did that obligingly without doing too much damage to the bank account. Finally it was time to leave as the sober driver wanted some sleep. A beer for good health courtesy of the bar manager was all that stood in the way of a swift departure. Throughout all this I nibbled on samples of the catering, and can tell you the olives a good, the arancini balls delightful, fries moreish, and meatballs worth the wait. As a special tip for those of you who made it this far into my review, bottles of Champagne, real Champagne from Champagne, start at $65 a bottle for Mumm Cordon Rouge or Veuve Clicquot Yellow Label. Now tell me you don't want to check this place out!

Got a groupon as a gift at this place and as mentioned on the coupon went made a booking for 9pm…read morethis evening. The place smelled of puke (or was it cheese), either way it was not too pleasant. The voucher was for a 'Wine Tasting Experience with a Meat and Cheese Platter' for two. Their menu states that a platters include 'cheese (4), cold meats (3) Marinated olives, water & gluten free rice crackers' and the pictures on the website looks scrumptious. Infact, I though it was one of those hidden gems, a cozy nook and and was eager to try their yum cha. However, when I made the booking last evening I was told that I could only order what was available as yum cha was outsourced. The wine list consisted of a few low to mid range wines and I settled for a glass of '2013 Mike Press Pinot Noir Adelaide Hills' and my husband settled for a glass of Pimm's. As for additional food, we were told told that the only food available was from the pizza menu. Husband came back with the drinks from the bar and it took approximately 30 minutes for the Tasting Platter to arrive upon questioning it's whereabouts. The slightly rude personnel behind the counter had the nerve to say 'It is because we are busy', when we politely questioned as to how much longer it would take. Made a mental note to not spend a penny more than what the voucher would cover and to take our dinner bill elsewhere. The cold cuts, prosciutto and the salami tasted funny, the cheese was alright, the water crackers were soggy and who the hell serves Peckish Crackers. I could have made a better platter at home. I wish restaurants would stop existing for the sake of existing and actually do justice to the culinary art. Absolute disappointment!

This was my breakfast choice. I'm more of a muffin gal than Husband who is more of a donut guy. I…read morechose the orange poppyseed muffin. It was good. Tasted fresh. I also had a hot latte with it which was good. We ate in the restaurant. Lots of big tables to choose from. It was nice eating at a table than trying to balance on a chair at the gate. Good stop.

This brewery was right near my gate (3) at the airport! I wanted to go to the one in Collingsworth…read moreduring my stay but I didn't have the time. Talk about luck. It may have been 7am local time...but that didn't stop me from a local brew. I had their house lager which was crisp and delicious. For breakfast I had a fried egg and bacon sandwich on a milk roll with brown sauce. Being American I wasn't sure what a milk roll or brown sauce was...but why not? The sandwich was absolutely delicious! All the flavors of everything had a wonderful marriage together. I'm still not sure what brown sauce is...but it kinda tasted like a bbq sauce. The milk roll was like a regular roll that I'm used to in the states. It was also nicely toasted. Definitely had a delicious breakfast! An egg sandwich and a beer? You can't go wrong. Truly is the breakfast of champions!

I really love everything about this place, the atmosphere the service and wine. It's a great place…read moreto go of an evening and chill out with friends

Fine wine, sneakily good beer selection and a casual atmosphere makes Strange Loves Bar a good…read morefriend of mine. With 3 areas to seat yourself, I've never had any issues finding room to relax here. If with friends I like to sneak upstairs for a comfy seat. In a more intimate situation or when I'm by myself I tend to enjoy front row seats and people watch. Typical of the area there is no real food served here. If you need some fine dining to go with a fine wine you'll be handed a book with local restaurants who will deliver to your table. And even bring an eftpos machine if needed. The staff here had reasonably honest and broad knowledge of wines and beers. The beer selection varies more often than the wine. For a wine bar there isn't a huge variety by the glass and some of the bottles are rather overpriced. Considering that there is fair competition within walking distance with other venues offering similar service. Still a great spot for post dinner drinks or two.