I love this little shop! We don't have places like this in America. So charming and quaint. You…read morewalk in and you've been transported into a beautiful bakery. Everything is homemade and delicious. I would eat here every day if I lived here. A wonderful selection of breads, desserts, lunch items and much more! I would definitely rate this as a must stop if you are visiting or live here!

Think Fitzroy Street is nothing but bogans and backpackers? You've clearly never been to the…read moreamazing Bakery D. Chirico! Everything is made fresh in-house -- I should know because I lived upstairs and had to suffer the smells of heavenly pastry prep each night. Prepare for a long wait if you venture in on a weekend -- this local hot spot is always busy. Always. The inside seats all of about two patrons, but there are plenty of tables outdoors, rain or shine. The plain croissants are a perfect hangover cure, totally worth the crowd. Next time you're in the beach 'burb, you'll definitely want to stop by this incredible lil artisan bakery.

It's not often that I venture too far from the CBD when dining out for dinner, I mean let's face…read moreit, you have every country covered, and it seems on every corner there's a celebrity chef waiting to wow you with his interpretation of the next fusion fad (and it helps that I can walk home with no drama or an uber driver pushing free bottles of water on me. ) But Friday night changed my mindset on where I dine and hit me in the face with a bang. Typhoon restaurant, on Highett rd Highett is a Vietnamese restaurant that packs a punch. For what it lacks in size it certainly makes up for it in flavour. Admittedly I was dragged out of my comfort zone by a friend who'd be begging me to come with her to experience Typhoon and I'm glad she did. When we arrived the place was buzzing and there was a Chin Chin-esq line out the door of eager dinners waiting for tables. We were greeted by the owner Steve, who said the wait shouldn't be long and we were welcome to sit in the bar next door and he would come and get us when a table became available. It wasn't long and as promised Steve bounced in and guided us to our table explaining his inspiration behind Typhoon along the way. Once at our table we were greeted by our waitress who happily went through the menu with us and making recommendation. We decided to order a few dishes to share for starters. First off let's talk about the chicken ribs, these were amazing. Marinated with authentic spices with the right amount of heat, juicy and tender, I can't highly recommend these enough, by far the best chicken ribs I've eaten, I'd be happy just eating these all night. Then we had the beef wrapped in mustard leaves. Wow I loved theses as well. The flavours are intense, but I must warn you if you don't like hot spicy food don't order these, they pack a punch. The beef was tender and seasoned well and the dipping sauce was like a marriage made in food heaven. Next to arrive was the betel leaf with beef. Another winner. These took me back to when I visited Vietnam, but what I loved about Typhoon's version was there wasn't a overload of fish sauce in them that some chefs seem to do. We then ordered two mains to share, the slow braised beef with rice and the braised chicken. The beef I loved, it was tender full of flavour and just melted in your mouth. The chicken was good also but the beef was by far the better dish. So overall as you can see I really enjoyed Typhoon. The food and service both exceptional, and it was such relief to be greeted by an owner operator who had so much passion for hospitality and quality food. If, like me you have a fear of going out of your comfort zone, then I would highly recommend a visit to Typhoon.

Living in L.A, it was an absolute pleasure to come home to Melbourne and indulge in one of…read moreMelbourne's best food treats.. real bread!! All the breads are baked on location and are absolutely delicious fresh or toasted the next day. There is a list of ingredients above on chalkboard so you know exactly what is in the breads. The prices are not listed which would be very handy but the loaves seem to be around $6 or $7 each. Pricey yes but you get what you pay for. Especially considering a loaf of mass produced bread in the supermarket can be almost the same price. The girls serving are lovely and friendly. Parking is easy right on the street out front. (non metered one hour parking)

My son calls this place, "Down the hill" as we are up the top of the hill on Barkly St. For his…read morebirthday he picked this bakery to go to for his breakfast pastries. I didn't realise how new this place was, but I have to admit, even if the pickings were sparse, they were delicious. We decided upon some croissants (both plain and chocolate) and a muffin, along with a few hot chocolates and coffees. The guys that are working like crazy behind the counter are friendly and you can tell they are well invested in the place. If you are on in the area, stop by here and taste the goods, you won't be disappointed.

My favorite Sunday brunch....Fresh ingredients, great coffee, very nice staff.....fairly new…read morerestaurant so there are a few kinks being worked out. They can't serve alcohol til 10a due to city restrictions but I still think they're food ingredients and chefs are top notch!....

Lovely breakfasts and pleasant staff make this restaurant- with its amazing location - a helluva…read moredeal. My wife and adult daughter agree.

As the name implies, I was walking past this outlet on yet another clothes shopping trip, and I…read morestarted to feel a bit hungry and was craving a foccacia of some sort. I opted for a vegetarian one which came with sun-dried tomato, eggplant and pesto from what I can recall. I took a bite and the focaccia was crunchy and soft to the touch. And the staff provided prompt and efficient service. The sandwich was also at the right temperature without that hot flush kind of feeling. And it was great to observe that the establishment was clean and well presented which gave me an extra vote of confidence to buy my lunch here. The art of making an almost (if not) perfect foccacia was evident at this establishment and worth the investment for lunch that day. This establishment is also quite inviting - maybe even hypnotising as I was in a trance like state from the amazing bargains I scooped up for my wardrobe perhaps; and I did not experience that bready and floury aftertaste which can be the case with focaccia's at times. What a great place to eat out. However in future it might be a good idea to be a customer in a more awake state next time - just joking.

The latte art was beautifully made and the coffee tasted just perfect :) would definitely come here…read moreagain and possibly to get some pastries/sandwiches next time as well.

Convenient spot for a nice coffee if staying at the Sheraton as this is just steps out the door…read more Had a lovely iced coffee delivered to the table with a scoop of ice cream on top! Also enjoyed a mushroom feta bagel sandwich and their outdoor seating.

Really nice afternoon tea / cake shop. Just to sit around soak up the atmosphere with watching…read moretourists discover Southgate... We tried the Black Forest and passion fruit cakes. Both were fantastic. Loved the Black Forest the most. Moist and chocolately without the sugar high!! coffee and hot chocolate were ok but not the worst I've had :)

You really need to be in the mood for something super sweet when you come here. Service is…read moreexcellent and lots of dessert choices from cakes, waffles, crepes, sundaes, macaroons and chocolates. It's quite pricey but they have recently had some specials on Scoopon that have been super popular and you really need to book. We tried the Scoopon $29 dessert platter for two. This consisted of a choice of 4 crepes, chocolate covered strawberries and a milkshake, tea or coffee. I had the salted caramel and banana crepe with salted caramel icecream. It was delicious but very rich. I also had the mint milkshake which was tasty. My partner had the chocolate and strawberry crepe but he wasn't overly impressed. They also have savoury options and high tea experiences. We tried the Raspberry and Rose High Tea. It was a lovely experience, service was great, but it was not the best high tea I have been to. I quite enjoyed the rose flavoured tea and Lavender macaron.

Been a little while since I last came to this gem. Situated in the Intercontinental, offered simple…read moretasty Italian fare. Part of being at work is also taking time out for friends. A glass of wine, some carbs and meat ensure that no snacking is required during the day. Fried cuttlefish / grilled rockling / braised goat / green beans = delish The braised goat is a little salty for not having anything else to go with. The fried cuttlefish was simple and tasty.

Here's the rub; the food at Merchant of Venice is really rather great. The portions are generous…read morebut not wastefully enormous, the flavours well-considered and the menu is quite authentic. They even handled my gluten-free situation with aplomb. The service on the other hand is nothing short of dismal. I dined in a group of three. We were seated in what seemed to be a walkway, in a spot that was quite draughty. So much so, that on a chilly night and wearing four layers, I kept my coat on (which the staff did not seem to notice). Approximately 20 minutes after arriving, three Bellini cocktails that we did not order were brought to our table with no explanation beyond a mumbled 'Bellini'. (It didn't appear on the bill, we still don't know what the story was there!). It took 90 minutes for us to receive our entrees. The staff seemed unable to anticipate any requirement - we asked for bread, we asked for side plates, we asked for butter, we asked for a drinks menu... you get the idea. On the whole, I wanted to love this place, and the food almost makes it worth returning. Just anticipate poor service and hopefully you'll be pleasantly surprised.