Author: Zaya Altangerel

Melbourne’s sustainable “GoBoat” lets you captain your own floating eatery

Over the last few years, Melbournians have increasingly utilised the Lower Yarra River as a major social and gastronomic hub. And if the popularity of venues like the Arbory Afloat and Supafish are anything to go by, the idea of floating on the iconic river is forever appealing to the masses. If only you could…

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Food Review: Going all in at Melbourne’s Grand Lafayette in Prahran

At first sight, with its minimalistic interior design complete with cool pastel walls and plywood furniture, the Grand Lafayette feels just like any other Melbourne café. And in many ways, that’s exactly what it is. The breakfast and lunch menus consist of popular western dishes infused with Asian flavours and ingredients, resulting in dishes like…

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TuanTuan Chinese Brasserie expands from Manila to Melbourne

Hot off the heels of its ever growing popularity in its hometown of Manila, the very first Australian branch of TuanTuan Chinese Brasserie  has now opened its doors in Melbourne. And if you’re into the crisp atmosphere of brunch at one of the city’s hundreds of European style cafés, but tired of the same old smashed…

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Review: Andy Harmer takes the reigns at QT Melbourne’s Pascale Bar & Grill (Melbourne)

Ambience wise, QT Melbourne’s Pascale Bar & Grill hasn’t changed much since its opening back in 2016. The venue still has the same luxuriously cheeky vibe that intrigued me so much on my first visit. However, with Andy Harmer having recently taken the reigns as executive chef, the culinary offerings at Pascale Bar & Grill…

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Review: Working through Tetsujin’s new lunch menu by Masahiko Yomoda (Melbourne)

This autumn, Tetsujin, one of David Loh’s (Rice Workshop, Dessert Story) most successful venues, invited Michelin starred chef Masahiko Yomoda to create a brand new lunch menu. And we were lucky enough to score a seat at the preview table with Yomoda himself. To start things of, Yomoda, who describes his style of cooking as French-based…

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Review: A Girl Called Jayne has big shoes to fill in Elwood (Melbourne)

Yannick Beaucaine’s A Girl Called Jayne, has a lot to live up to as the replacement of Elwood’s beloved Turtle Café. Located on the bustling corner of Ormond and Glen Huntly Road, A Girl Called Jayne is a bright and spacious modern café with a minimalistic interior design. Inspired by Beaucaine’s years of experience working…

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Review: Juliet is Melbourne’s romantic new speakeasy celebrating women in winemaking

Ask any Melbournian about a wine bar worth visiting, and Punch Lane is sure to be mentioned a couple of times. Located above Little Bourke street, in the heart of the CBD, Punch Lane has become a Melbourne institution during its two decades of operation. However, this month, owner Martin Pirc decided to target a…

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QT Melbourne’s Pascale Bar switches up their cocktail menu with winter classics (Melbourne)

It’s been almost a year since the last time we first walked through the glossy brass doors of QT Melbourne, and up the sapphire blue stairs to Pascale Bar & Grill. While our last visit focused on the luxurious venue’s food offerings, this time we decided to sample their seasonally updated cocktail menu. Built adjacent…

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The Long Room transforms into The George on Collins

The iconic George building’s basement bar, The Long Room, recently underwent a huge $4million transformation to become The George on Collins. During its 12 years of operation, the bar was a hotspot for after work drinks for many of Melbourne’s young corporate hustlers. But owners Greg Kahan and Simon Jones decided it was due time…

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Seoulja Boy: Where the urban west meets the flavours of the east (Melbourne)

Since its opening earlier this year, Seoulja Boy has managed to maintain a large and steady hype across social media. And with a menu full of affordable, photogenic cocktails, bright neon signs, and an in-house DJ spinning a mix of current and old-school hip-hop and R&B music, it’s easy to see why the Korean fusion…

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Review: MOMO Dumplings + Tea is bringing Szechuan to Prahran (Melbourne)

Situated just around the corner of Clifton and High street, MOMO Dumpling + Tea is a relaxing new addition to Prahran’s hospitality precinct. Since their official opening in late April, the bright and spacious restaurant has been slowly diversifying their extensive food menu with a variety of traditional Szechuan cuisine. Every week, a new list…

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Piccolino celebrates their 25th anniversary with a huge rennovation (Melbourne)

After undergoing a massive renovation, Piccolino, one of Mount Waverley’s favourite classic Italian restaurants, have once again opened their doors to the public, just in time to celebrate their 25th anniversary. First opened in the early 90s by John Dib, Piccolino started off as a humble take-away store on Mount Waverley’s Blackburn road, serving up…

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Review: Tommy Ruff proves there’s more to affordable seafood than just fish’n’chips (Melbourne)

In February, following their success in the suburbs of Elsternwick and Mordialloc, John and Helen Stamoulis opened their third Tommy Ruff Fish Bar in Windsor. Located on Chapel street, the newest Tommy Ruff joint is a bright and relaxing addition to one of the busiest hospitality precincts in Melbourne. Despite its overall physically narrow structure,…

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Review: Introducing Souk, Melbourne’s newest secret laneway gem

Situated just off Flinders Lane, Bligh Place’s newest resident Souk has completely transformed the atmosphere of what used to be a quiet and simple little street, into an eye-catching retro entrance into Melbourne’s newest late-night laneway getaway. At first glance, with a large pink neon sign splashed across its industrial front door, the Middle Eastern…

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Top 10 events to look forward to at the 2017 Melbourne Food & Wine Festival

Held from 31 March – 9 April, the upcoming 2017 Melbourne Food & Wine Festival (MFWF) sounds as if it will be the long-standing festival’s biggest yet. Currently in its 25th year, the annual festival has come a long way from its humble beginnings as a small 12 event program back in 1993. Nowadays, the…

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Review: Hopscotch is a new craft beer favourite along the Yarra River (Melbourne)

Situated along the Yarra River, in the heart of Southbank’s busy hospitality precinct, Hopscotch is Melbourne’s newest downbeat bar with a strong focus on a wide range of locally brewed and imported craft beer (30 on tap and 20 in bottles, to be precise). The first thing you’ll notice upon entering Hopscotch are the colourful…

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Finalists of the 2017 Queensland Music Awards announced

Recently, the finalists running for the annual 2017 Queensland Music Awards (QMA) were officially announced. With the aim to recognise the achievements of some of the best emerging and established Queensland musicians, the QMA consist of 14 different categories including; jazz, world, video, schools, regional, and indigenous. Chosen by a panel of over 60 music industry professionals, the…

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The AIR Awards relocating to Adelaide for the next three years as part of new industry partnership

A huge coup for the South Australian music industry, the renowned and revered AIR Awards – normally held in Melbourne – have been relocated to Adelaide from this July.  Now set to be part of the ever-growing South Australian calendar of live music events, the AIR Awards will be headlining the annual Umbrella: Winter City Sounds series…

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ORiGin Music and APRA AMCOS announce Pan-Asian Digital Licensing Agreement

On February 15th, APRO AMCOS announced Sydney-based independent music publisher ORiGin Music as their fifth and newest participant of their Pan-Asian Digital Licensing and Administration initiative. Launched in July 2013, APRO AMCOS’ Pan-Asian Digital Licensing and Administration initiative works to represent the publishing catalogues of select global publishers throughout Asia, including India and China, playing a key role in licensing the participating companies’ collection of…

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$10,000 grant on offer for aspiring hip hop and soul artists with the 2017 Hilltop Hoods Initiative

The Hilltop Hoods Initiative is back for another year, with emerging Australian hip hop and soul artists encouraged to get involved for their chance to land a $10,000 grant courtesy of the Hoods and APRA AMCOS. Now in its 12th year, the Initiative has supported the work of the likes of Sarah Connor, I AM D and Jimblah – three…

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The 2017 American Music Prize finalists include Whitney, Son Little and Margaret Glaspy in its sophomore year

Twelve finalists for the second annual American Music Prize (AMP) for “Best Debut Album” have recently been unveiled. Founded in 2016 by Scott Murphy, the pioneer of the coveted  Australian Music Prize, the AMP’s “Best Debut Album” award aims to celebrate the album format of music delivery, and discover, reward and promote brand new artists. Last year’s inaugural AMP “Best Debut Album” award was…

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Flume takes out Best Dance/Electronic Grammy ahead of new music coming this week

Australian EDM powerhouse Flume has just won big time in the US, taking out his first ever Grammy for his acclaimed album Skin. Winning the Best Dance/Electronic Album Grammy, Flume beat out the likes of Tycho and Jean-Michel Jarre to take the golden gramophone. Timely is his win, as a brand new release from Flume in theSkin Companion…

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Indie Week 2017 opens up expressions of interest

The Australian Independent Record Labels Association (AIR), Sounds Australia, and the Phonographic Performance Company of Australia Limited (PPCA) are teaming up once again to lead a group of ten Australian independent record label representatives to Indie Week 2017, held in New York from 5-9 June. Tailored towards independent record labels and service providers, Indie Week is an invite-only conference organised by the American Association of Independent Music (A2IM), focusing on the…

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Tommy Ruff fish bar opens in Windsor (Melbourne)

After making a name for themselves in the Melbourne suburbs of Mordialloc and Elsternwick, Tommy Ruff are kick-starting the new year by branching out their popular fish bar to the Windsor end of Chapel Street. Designed by Studio Equator, the latest venue to the growing name features pastel coloured walls reminiscent of the beach and oak-wood…

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Music Victoria targeting independent promoters and live music venues with new mentorship program

Late last week, Music Victoria announced the launch of Live Music Professionals, the organisation’s brand new 100% free mentorship program targeted towards independent promoters and live music venues within the Victorian region. Focused on helping create a strong and sustainable live music economy in Victoria, the new program will match a total of 20 successful applicants with some of the state’s most…

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First lineup of Primavera Pro 2017 conference speakers includes Australia’s Vanessa Picken

Tailored towards music industry professionals and independent artists from all over the world, the eighth annual Primavera Pro conference will be returning to the city of Barcelona from 31 May – 4 June 2017. Held at the Centre de Cultura Contemporània de Barcelona, the 2017 conference is set to revolve around the themes of originality as a creative motor, the challenges of artistic independence,…

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James Power and Jesse Barbera launch new full service booking agency, Social State Entertainment

Australian music industry veterans James Power and Jesse Barbera, have announced the launch of Social State Entertainment, a new full service national venue booking agency that will provide a time efficient and high quality booking service, tailored to each individual performance venue’s unique identity and brand. According to James Power, whose music industry experience includes everything from…

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2017 Leaps and Bounds Music Festival dates and new creative team

This year, the fifth annual Leaps and Bounds Music Festival will be held from 13-23 July. Commissioned by the Yarra City Council, the winter music festival aims to support local live music venues, musicians, and small businesses throughout the relatively quiet winter period. The 2017 Leaps and Bounds Music Festival will feature around 900 different musical acts from a wide range of genres, performing…

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Keep Sydney Open announces new rally date for February

Last Friday, the Police Commissioner of NSW filed a last-minute lawsuit against Keep Sydney Open, resulting in the Supreme Court issuing a prohibition order against the organisation’s application for a night rally, scheduled for Saturday, January 21st. However, organisers refuse to give up, with Keep Sydney Open announcing their third rally against Sydney’s controversial lockout laws on 18 February 2017….

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Australian musicians and authors team up to defend their creative rights

Indie musicians Montaigne, Taka Perry, and Sam Margin (The Rubens) have teamed up with best-selling Australian authors Matthew Reilly, Jackie French, Anna Funder, and Alice Pung to feature in the latest series of videos in the “This Book/Song Changed My Life” social media campaign. Created by Copyright Agency and APRA AMCOS, the new  campaign highlights the possible negatives of the recently proposed changes to Australian copyright law,…

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