Domain Review

Since the turn of the last decade, an abundance of new cafes and bars gradually edged their way into the suburb, which is now a melting pot of people young and old, grounded by the area’s rich Greek and Italian history.

The Yarra Valley has outgrown its day-trip status. Here’s why you need to stay longer.

"I really am a fish out of water doing comedy," she says. "But I love to explore something new. I’m the sort of person who will give anything a go."

Recommend this place to your friends and take commission in carbs.

A jewel in the crown of Melbourne’s northern suburbs, it just teams with life, with a vibrant mix of people picnicking around playgrounds while children scream joyfully on the massive slide or on the flying foxes.

In this unexpected setting, artists, sculptors and fashion designers are rubbing shoulders with welders, boilermakers and mechanics. Slowly, over the years, the road has evolved into an artistic hub.

"It's just been a case of happy accidents, I guess," says Armstrong of his path to Aunty, which has led to even more opportunities.

A two-hour train trip, or 90-minute drive, to the regional city of Bendigo is the perfect segue to a slower pace of life, and now it comes packed with plenty of perks.

A few days after the 138-year-old pub reopened in March 2020, COVID patient 16 disembarked a plane from Singapore and promptly attended one of the venue’s first events. It shut for two weeks, reopening just in time for the restaurant lockdown. Things are definitely on the improve.

Known for its heritage buildings, luxury boutiques and dining, the area now has a new precinct where late-night bar-hopping, high-end retail and spontaneous good times give us reason to look up and smile.