DRINK > V Wine Salon, Melbourne

V Wine Salon is located in the slightly unlikely West End of Melbourne's CBD. For those who are less familiar with region it is close to the Southern Cross Train Station which tends to make it an area less obvious as a destination for fine dining or fine wine-ing. But…

ByEd ItorMay 28, 20240Comments

EAT > MELBOURNE

EAT > Carlton Wine Room, Melbourne (16/20)

There is something so completely Melbourne about the Carlton Wine Room. I cannot imagine a bar or restaurant quite like it anywhere else in the world. The combination of wood, light, food, service and wine. A wonderful mix that comes from our cosmopolitan population and the wonderful venues that have…

ByEd ItorMay 20, 20240Comments

EAT > KYOTO

EAT > Wajoryomen Sugari, Kyoto

Ramen. You love it, or you don’t. Hot, spicy, full of flavour. The best ramen is something of a work of art (see the quote below from the incredible 1985 movie Tampopo). Sugari has something of a following in a classic Matcha house, hidden on a narrow lane off a side street,…

ByEd ItorApril 6, 20240Comments

EAT > TOKYO

EAT > Fujimaru, Osaka

Osaka is well known for its street food, with 222 listings in the Michelin Guide (3 for 3 star, 9 for 2 star and 80 for 1 star) you know that they are serious about food. But what about wine, well that is a little harder to find, especially if like us on…

ByEd ItorApril 4, 20240Comments

CAFE > TOKYO

CAFE > Verve Cafe, Roppongi Hills

Over in Roppongi Hills right next door to the excellent design store ‘Living Motif’ you will find an outlet for the popular Verve Coffee (and roasters) chain. Here they do an excellent range of pour over coffee’s (some of them are quite specialised and they are priced in line ~¥1,500 for a…

ByEd ItorApril 1, 20240Comments

DRINK > TOKYO

DRINK > Mikkella Bar, Shibuya

Sharing the same space as the About Life Cafe (read our review here) in the evening they pull down some venetian blinds that cover the coffee shop and pull up the venetian blinds that open the bar. The rest of the space is the same… It is tucked in a back street of…

ByEd ItorMarch 30, 20240Comments

EAT > MELBOURNE

EAT > Bistro Gitan, South Yarra

It had been more than a year since our last visit to Bistro Gitan, a restaurant that was our local for so long, was suddenly not so local given our move across the city and living more of our lives in the country. Bistro Gitan is one of a group of restaurants run by the…

ByCrispyMarch 25, 20240Comments

DRINK > TOKYO

DRINK > Gen Yamamoto, Tokyo

You have eaten an omakase (degustation course) before but have you experienced an omakase cocktail bar? Probably not. With only 8 seats this bar has a slightly reverential experience as cocktails are elevated beyond mere libation to fine palate experiences. You have to make a reservation (at least a week in advance) as…

ByEd ItorFebruary 15, 20240Comments

CAFE > MELBOURNE

CAFE > Wall Two 80, Balaclava

Known to most as simply ‘The Wall’ the cafe opened in 1998 as a simple hole in the wall. A place where people largely consumed a latte or flat white sitting on the pavement and eating turkish toast with the always delicious ‘jam lady jams’ and fought over the newspapers. Fast forward twenty…

ByEd ItorFebruary 6, 20240Comments

CAFE > SYDNEY

CAFE > Paramount Coffee Project

When it comes to coffee royalty Mark Dundon of Seven Seeds is pretty close to the top. He started with St Ali in South Melbourne (a coffee roaster, cafe that has grown significantly) and then Seven Seeds a coffee roaster and cafe, Brother Bada Budan, Traveller and the Paramount Coffee Project which has…

ByEd ItorFebruary 6, 20240Comments

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