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Bogan Bombshell

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On Friday night we were welcomed into what felt like Janeen from Clarinda’s lounge room where she told us of her exploits from scrubbing bathrooms as a Sanitation Engineer – with her secret weapon BAM, through an ill-fated attempt at burlesque dancing (where she ‘couldn’t get them out’) to finally playing the role a phone sex operator – all to raise money for her McDonalds Preston manager husband, Johnno’s bail. 

Hares and Hyenas was the perfect setting for this show, it felt intimate and personal. At one stage a lucky door prize was drawn, and the winner awarded a family-sized Aero bar which was then passed around the audience, everyone sharing chocolate to the aptly named song ‘An Aero Comes Along’ – definitely a fun vibe, unpretentious and all-inclusive.

Susie McCann brought a huge amount of energy to one-woman role of Janeen, and the songs were pretty darn catchy to boot – the tunes of some of your old favorites, matched with witty, ironic bogan pride lyrics. Ultimately a winning combo.

If you are a fan of true blue Aussie humour with touches of Kath and Kim mixed in with a splash of Housos, you’ll get a kick out of Bogan Bombshell. 

Did she end up raising the bail money?  You’ll have to head along to one of her 3 upcoming Melbourne shows to find out.

Visit the website here

Cadbury Treat Street

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Remember that scene in Willy Wonka where Mr Wonka, shows off his magnificent chocolate room with oversized gummy bears, candy cane trees and a giant river overflowing full of chocolate? Well, imagine if you could experience something just like that right here in Melbourne.

This Halloween, Cadbury are going all out and transforming one (very) lucky street in Glen Iris to a street party full of treats. Cadbury Treat Street will feature non-stop entertainment, party games, a community BBQ and thousands of Cadbury chocolate treats to be given away.

Paul Chatfield, Marketing Lead at Cadbury, said: “Halloween is a great occasion to bring neighbours and communities together and Maitland St in Glen Iris has been championing this for a long time. We wanted to highlight what they do every year and inspire other communities to do the same. We’ll be creating a joyful spectacle on the street that we hope will be a memorable occasion for everyone who joins us on the day. We encourage local Melbourne residents to come down to the Cadbury Treat Street and join us for some fang-tastic fun!

Where: Maitland St, Glen Iris

When: Halloween (October 31st) from 4:30pm-6:30pm

Night Noodle Markets

Good Food Month

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Prepare yourself for a month long celebration of the tastiest and most flavoursome foods from Melbourne’s hottest chefs!  From fine dining, to one off dinners and night markets, November sees the return of The Age Good Food Month. Here are our top picks to mark in your foodie calendar.

Night Noodle Markets – 12-29 November 

Birrarung Marr, Melbourne
Everyone’s favourite outdoor markets are back with 56 stalls and three bars. The Asian Hawker style market will feature old favourites like Longrain, Red Spice Road and Wonderbao along with newcomers, Din Tai Fung, Delhi Streets and Hawker Hall.

We Know Melbourne exclusive offer: Receive a free yummy treat at the Red Spice Road/Burma Lane stand. Find out here.

Sweet Fest – 28-29 November

Meat Market, 5 Blackwood St, North Melbourne

If you’re after the ultimate sugar high, this is the event for you. There’ll be masterclass presentations from dessert giants, Katherine Sabbath (Sydney); thee American heroes of soft-serve, Big Gay Ice Cream (New York); dessert queen Philippa ‘Snickers Dessert’ Sibley; king of dessert-for-dinner degustations Pierre Roelofs (Melbourne) and the cocktail wizards from Melbourne’s internationally renowned Black Pearl.

Ramen Rave – 28 October 

Supernormal,  180 Flinders Lane, Melbourne

The ultimate foodie event, if you haven’t swooped on tickets for the ramen rave you’re going to have beg, steal, bribe your friends for a ticket as it is now sold out. Ramen king Ivan Orkin will be serving up the delicious bowls of noodle goodness at one of our all time favourites,  Supernormal. DJs Andras Fox and Zach PM will be banging the beats and Lucky Peach editor Chris Ying will be introducing Orkin’s book Ivan Ramen. To top it all off, foodie giant Andrew McConnell will be serving signature snacks and karaoke beats in the basement. We told you’ll want to beg!

Tamil Feasts- 3, 10, 17, 24 November 

Ceres, Cnr Stewart & Roberts Streets, Brunswick East 3057

Experience the vibrant colour, spice and flavour of authentic Tamil cuisine that’s rarely found outside Sri Lanka. Feast on a traditional vegetarian banquet of curries, chutneys, bhajis, dahl, kormas and masalas. The feasts  aims to raise community awareness of the issues facing asylum-seekers. Feast for a good cause!

Kaiseki Dinner by Kappo- 1, 3, 22 Nov

A secret location

Seven courses, artistically arranged, balancing, taste and textures. Simon Denton’s Kappo restaurant, will be doing an exclusive kaiseki dinner with matched drinks in a mystery location just to up the ante.

Battle of the Pans – 10 November

Ms Collins, 425 Collins Street, Melbourne

Chefs, Daniel Wilson (Huxtable) and Daniel Ponyer (Ms Collins) will fire up the stoves and prepare their pans for the ultimate cook off at Melbourne’s Ms Collins. Eat, drink and vote for your favourite Master Chef over 6 plates including desserts and matched wines.

Burma vs Thailand – 11 November 

Burma Lane, 37 Artemis Lane, Melbourne

Enjoy an eight-dish banquet of mouth-watering Burmese and Thai flavours, expertly prepared by chefs John McLeay and Johan van der Walle.

When: November 1 – 30

Where: Various locations around Melbourne and regional Victoria

Visit the website here. 

Want to find out more about what’s happening in Melbourne? Sign up to the We Know Melbourne mailing list here to stay in the loop.

Good Food Month

Battle of the Pans

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This November, two of the top Melbourne Foodie giants will battle it out for the ultimate foodie showdown for The Age Good Food Month. The two chefs will fire up the stoves and prepare their pans for the ultimate cook off at Melbourne’s Ms Collins with  Daniel Wilson (Huxtable)  on the Pan Asian flavours and Daniel Poyner cooking up the modern Australian flavours. Who will be your vote for the top dog? Snap up a ticket before they’re all gone.

Get your tickets for $125 per person which includes  6 plates (2 mains + 1 dessert from each chef) plus matching wines!

When: Tuesday 10 November

Where: Ms Collins.

Visit the website (and buy tickets here). 

menu

battle of the pans

The Village Festival

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Celebrating it’s 10th birthday, The Village Festival returns to Edinburgh Gardens this October. Part old-school circus, part village carnival, and part edgy arts festival, the festival is the perfect one to welcome in the summer festival season.

The birthday festivities will feature  four days and nights of creativity, curiosity and craziness. With a program full of interpretive dance, theatre, and kids performances, this is truly an event with something for everyone (and their dog!).

When: 29 October – 1 November 2015

Where: Edinburgh Gardens, Fitzroy North

Visit the website here. 

The Coburg Drive-In Food Truck Festival

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The Coburg Drive-In Food Truck Festival returns this week and this time the food trucks on rotation are Sliders on Tyres, Taco Truck, Smokin Barrys, Real Burger, Flamin Lamb Spit, Nem N’ Nem, Korean Fried Chicken, Brazilian Bites, Manny’s Donut Café plus more! Round up the gang and catch either The Walk or 2D Burnt! The perfect way to spend a warm Spring evening.

When: Wednesday, October 21 & Thursday, October 22. 

Where: Coburg Drive in

Visit the website here

Fitzroy’s 127 Brunswick Street

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Opening just in time for summer, 127 Brunswick Street is the newest dining spot on the ever popular Brunswick Street. Taking over the old man’s pub, the Old Colonial Inn, the newly revamped 5 story venue, 127 Brunswick Street is the works of Vince Sofo and Paul Adamo, owners of St Kilda’s Esplanade Hotel.

Exploring the venue this week, there’s several spots from which to choose to dine or drink. There’s Ichi Ni Nana Izakaya on the bottom floor, Village People Hawker Food Hall on the next floor up, and Upside Rooftop and Bar, of course on the top floor. Each has their indoor and outdoor dining space, making them the perfect place to enjoy dinner on a balmy summer’s evening.

We opted for Ichi Ni Nana Izakaya after a couple of wines at Upside Rooftop. We had heard such positive reviews of Ichi Ni (in St Kilda) so are our expectations were high, and we’ve got to say that it lived up to all the hype. Offering up a tapas-style menu, we had difficulty trying to pick our dishes as they all sounded delicious. The highlights would have to be the Dragon Roll sushi which was fresh and flavoursome, with just the right amount of Siriacha; and also the karaage chicken which was coated in a delicious marinade and fried to perfection, while still remaining tender and juicy on the inside.

We loved watching the friendly sushi chefs in action from our booth and the overall vibe of the place. The restaurants are still relatively quiet so we managed to get a giant booth for just two people, but we think as soon as the word gets out, the dining areas will be heaving. Luckily the dining areas take bookings!

We Know Melbourne tip: Make a booking now!

Where: 127 Brunswick St, Fitzroy

When: Ichi Ni Nana open every day7am-late; Village People Hawker Foodhall open Mon-Thu from 5pm; Fri-Sun from noon.

Visit the website here 

Want to find out more about what’s happening in Melbourne? Sign up to the We Know Melbourne mailing list here to stay in the loop.

The Changing Face of Victoria

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Take a step back in time and discover the people, places and events that have shaped Victoria.

From Ned Kelly’s original armour, to letters from World War One and images of Coles 100 years ago, the Library’s historic collections of photographs, personal accounts and artefacts will delight and amaze.  New items and stories are added to this exhibition twice yearly, revealing different aspects of the Library’s historic collection.

Visit The Changing Faces of Victoria exhibition in the octagonal, fifth-level balcony of the State Library’s Domed Reading Room.

When: 1 Jan 2014 – 31 Dec 2016

Where: State Library of Victoria

Visit the website here. 

Federation Bells

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Birrarung Marr’s Federation Bells are a set of 39 bronze bells that chime out more than 30 compositions three times and the City of Melbourne with Arts Victoria are giving the public the opportunity to  compose the music for Melbourne’s Federation Bells.

Head to  www.federationbells.com.au, where you can create a virtual multi-track masterpiece using the 39 distinctive bells. Publish your composition and you can hear it played on the Federation Bells installation in Birrarung Marr.

Listen out for the bells ringing each day between 8am to 9am, 12.30pm to 1.30pm, and 5pm to 6pm.

When: 22 Jan 2014 – 20 Nov 2016

Where: Birrarung Marr

Visit the website here.

Unset Typologies

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‘Unset Typlogies’  by Izabela Pluta, explores how the nature of photomural wallpaper enables observers to hypothesise the existence of a past and glimpse the possibility of a future while inviting us to contemplate the relentless renewal of the CBD over time.

Commissioned by the City of Melbourne Public Art Program, her photomural banner depicts a transitional site, where light fittings, ceiling panels, vents and lights are suspended as a result of a building’s transformation.

When: 30 Jan 2013 – 30 Dec 2015

Where: CitiPower Substation, 620-640 Little Bourke Street, Melbourne,

Visit the website here.