Posts Tagged ‘Coffee’

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McIvers Coffee Merchants, Queen Victoria Markets, City

May 2, 2008

A quick homage to my favourite coffee grinder: McIvers @ the Queen Victoria Markets. 

A huge range of teas, including some odd herbal teas, plus a highly eccentric array of tea and coffee pots for sale. Some need to be seen to be appreciated but odd shapes, sizes and artwork are promised.

The essential purchase for me at McIvers is the organic fair trade coffee: being socially aware never tasted so good as the Papua New Guinean dark organic fair trade roast.   It is one of the most full bodied, piquant and yet not overly astringent coffees I’ve had the pleasure and luck to savour.

And excellent news for the remote and or the slothful: McIvers are now on line and you can order coffee drect from them via paypal.  It doesn’t have the sensory magic of choosing your grind type and smelling the coffee as it is bagged for you, but certainly provides a solution for those who can’t or don’t make it to town. 

The downside: they don’t serve coffee, just grind it.  You’ll have to wait until you get home to find out how good it really tastes. 

Details:

Shop 101/102 Dairy Produce Hall (on Therry St.)
Queen Victoria Market
Melbourne 3000
AUSTRALIA 
Phone:

Ph: +61 3 9329 8911
Fax: +61 3 9600 9078

 

 

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Victor’s Bar- Drummond Street, Carlton

February 17, 2008

What do Siegfried and Roy, Liberace , Burlesque and Vince Noir from The Mighty Boosh have in common?

 The over-the-top love of glitz and a camp theatricality which dominates any screen or room they happen to inhabit.  Well, all of these characters – and possibly you too – would feel right at home at Victor’s in Drummond Street, Carlton.Part 20s cabaret salon, part reject-sets from a Fellini film, part props from a Las Vegas casino, Victor’s is a sight to behold.  In fact, it’s almost too much to behold at once, with Betty Boop, De Lempika prints, rococco chandeliers even Franco Cozzo couldn’t dream up, statuery only at home in a Las Vegas showgirl set or a Siegfried and Roy spectacular, over the top mirrors, zebra print, flock wallpaper,  mauve homoerotic grecian prints Uncle Monty from Withnail would be proud of… you name it: if it’s camp, glitzy, ribald, kitsch, burlesque and loud Victor’s may well have it adorning the walls.

Billed on their brochure as ‘brought to you by Victor La Greca, the founder of Melbourne’s famous Hypdrome Night Club in King Street’,  Victor’s is a late night place, open until midnight at least on Friday and Saturday nights, so the perfect place to land after a movie or dinner in Lygon Street to get your fix of eye candy (of a sort) plus whet your whistle with a coffee or alcoholic beverage of choice.   I was quite impressed by the quality of their caffeine (their short black passed my exacting standards) but havent’ explored the alcoholic menu. I was too busy admiring the grecian ‘frieze’ of young naked lads climbing into the boat complete with pert painted cheeks.   The other patrons varied from the italian nuovo-riche to studenty looking young couples. Myself and my coffee-trialing partner in crime both gave the thumbs up to the decor, the coffee, the service (a charmer on bar, I must say) and also to the World History Encyclopaedia set which awaited our attention. 

The best thing about Victor’s: it is totally unique. So much so that it seems noone has adequately captured it on camera (although I will keep looking for shots of it, I suggest you pay a visit yourself. No mere photo could do it justice.

The downside: sometimes one is only in the mood for something this garish in the wee hours: closing at midnight is indeed generous compared to some cafe’s but I would be pushing for a 3am close.

 Details:Victor’s  on Drummond:  303 Drummond Street Calton. ph  9347 1811. No website.

BONUS SCORE: The as yet unrated Victors 2 on Faraday Street!  188 Faraday Street, Carlton 03 9349 1111 

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Gelo Bar 74 Lygon Street, East Brunswick

January 5, 2008


Well, it ain’t half hot, mum!  It’s summer in Melbourne and anyone with a milligram of energy left considers a gelato reward an adequate reason to brave the unremitting heat.   These days Melbourne suffers from the tyrrany of choice regarding gelati purveyors, with staple Lygon Street now competing with Brunswick street and the city at the very least for sweet fruity chocolatey cones of goodness. 
 
However, one name amongst the myriad never fails to please and – important for those sleepless nights – provides cooling treats late into the night on weekends.  That name is Gelo Bar.   Situated at the top end of Lygon street in East Brunswick,  Gelo Bar is your no-longer-but-once-typical laminex tabled old fashioned Italian looking bevande.  They make Gelati on premises and their website even lists the types which are constantly and intermittently available.  It’s an impressive list:  
 
the constants:  
 
Torrone, Nocciola, Caffe, Zabaione, Bacio, Cioccolato, Vanilla, Limone, Orange, Fragola, Mango, Pistacchio, Yoghurt, Amarena Cherry, Tiramisu, Chocolate & Cream, Gelobar

 

 some of the intermittents: 
 
Coconut, Caramel, Rum’n’Raisin, Apple Pie, Apricot, Tropical, Roscher, Blackberry, Panna Fragola, Rum Crunch, Cointreau, Peppermint, Banana, Watermelon, Green Apple, Cappucino, Pineapple, White Chocolate, Cassata, Mud Cake, Raspberry, Straciatella, Guava, Butterscotch, Dolce Latte, Licorice, Marrans Glace, Frangipane, Pear, Florentine, Rum Fudge, Cremino, Caffe Bianco, Crema Lima, Passionfruit, Nutella, Pesca
 
 
While it’s further out of the way than most Gelati places, Melbournians who know their food make the journey and on a hot night the place is usually packed so don’t go expecting to get a table and psyche yourself up for a bit of mayhem.  I can’t stress enough that once you get your cup or cone of their fresh sweet ices you’ll have no regrets about the journey.  
 
 
The best thing about Gelo Bar:  
 
the range and freshness of the flavours.  Personal highlights are the cherry and berry varieties, but even staples like good old fashioned lemon and chocolate are brilliant. There are so many to try that I haven’t had a chance to sample, high on the list being frangipani and pear.
 
The downside: as much as I’d say psyche yourself up for the jam-packedness of this place on a hot night, being warm can make one impatient.  Waiting in line for your own cool coppa can seem unbearable with the rowdy children and bodyheat between you and the cool cool refridgerated counter.   But I’d rather this than some chainstore who don’t make their own any day.  
 
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