Conversations
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Laura Boulton at Heide Kitchen
I drove out to Heide Museum of Modern Art on one of those moody Melbourne days where the sky feels low and the landscape seems to have been arranged by a painter. Which, at Heide, it sort of has. Sitting out the back in the museum office, looking out the window, the view felt like…
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Shane Reeves at The Gilroy
I sat down with Shane Reeves at The Gilroy on Bay Street in Port Melbourne, a place I could easily walk to, given I live just down the road, but one that’s absolutely worth the drive or the ride on the 109 tram. Tucked into a quieter stretch of the street, The Gilroy is a…
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Jithin Pattiyal at Babaji’s Kerala Kitchen
Seated outside at Babaji’s Kerala Kitchen, beside the warmth of the fire pit and surrounded by the hills of Warburton, I first spoke with owner Billy Crombie. As the conversation continued, chef Jithin Pattiyal joined me, sharing his journey from Kerala to Australia and offering insight into the authentic, carefully crafted approach to cooking that…
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Billy Crombie at Babaji’s Kerala Kitchen
Billy Crombie and husband Max (Mohammed) Kamil Hassan don’t run a typical regional restaurant. At Babaji’s Kerala Kitchen, set in a restored 1936 cabaret hall on the edge of Warburton in Victoria’s Yarra Valley, they have built something closer to a cultural bridge, and, for many Southern Indians, a portal back home. In this conversation,…
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Mauro Callegari
There’s a particular kind of welcome you only find in places built slowly and with intent, and that’s exactly what I walked into at The Independent in Gembrook. Mauro Callegari has shaped this former mechanics’ garage into something unmistakably his; part restaurant, part gathering place, part expression of a life spent cooking and travelling across…
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Franck Sammut at Upper Middle
I sat down with Franck Sammut, the quietly charismatic force behind Upper Middle in South Melbourne, a new baguette‑and‑pizza spot that already feels like a neighbourhood favourite. Franck has spent his whole life in hospitality, from working in his dad’s restaurant as a teenager to decades on the floor in some of Melbourne’s most iconic…
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Justin North at The Angel Of Malvern
There’s a lovely kind of magic when an old neighbourhood pub finds its heartbeat again, and that’s exactly what’s happened at The Angel of Malvern. After three quiet years, the doors are open, the locals are back, and the buzz is real. Downstairs it’s all about elevated pub classics done properly: brined schnitties, light calamari,…
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Liam Lee at Ronin Omakase
On a wet, gloomy Melbourne day, Ronin Omakase was unexpectedly warm. Despite its concrete walls, brutalist lines and high ceilings, the room is inviting with shelves lined with house made ferments; persimmon for desserts, wombok and white kimchi, citrus cheong and fruit vinegars quietly developing behind the counter. Liam Lee cooks directly in front of ten diners,…
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Viveik Vinohoran at Dutch Rules Distilling Co.
This week I got the train to Mitcham to visit Dutch Rules Distilling Co., a retro‑styled bar, working distillery and sat down with rising star chef Viveik Vinohoran, this year’s Young Chef of the Year. Surrounded by vinyl records, warm timber, and the quiet hum of a still out back, Viveik talked about shaping a…
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Michael Conlon at O’Connell’s Hotel
When I sat down with Michael Conlon at O’Connell’s in South Melbourne, the paint was still fresh. There’s been a substantial refresh. New carpet, new upholstery, commissioned artworks, and a dining room that feels intentionally set apart. More like a restaurant you arrive at, even though you’ve come through the pub. But the bigger shift is…