I am rather fond of Fitzroy. So when E announced he was going to play with his ukelele group at the Fitzroy Market after he did the child care nursery bee, I decided that Sylvia and I would get there by public transport. I am sorry I took no photos of the lovely rows of terrace houses and autumn leaves. Instead I can show you this delightful parapet that reflects the shabby chic of Fitzroy.
E is less starry eyed than I - having discovered it at a more cynical age. He was most amused by this headline in one of the freebie newspapers yesterday. The article claims that dressing in vintage clothing makes people look poor but I disagree. And if you wanted to find some such retro clothing, you would certainly find it at the Fitzroy Market.
I am rather fond of a market that includes vegie sausages in the sausage sizzle. It doesn't often happen that Sylvia and I can have a sausage and tomato sauce wrapped in a slice of bread. We then had a lovely time browsing the stalls. I bought apricot chutney and an old book. Sylvia got adoll, a $2 pair of sunglasses and a funky necklace that was broken within the hour.
I was keen to find a place to eat on Brunswick Street after the market. When I plan where to go, we usually do quite well but when we wonder the streets, E and I have trouble agreeing on a place. I wanted somewhere a little different with fantastic food and E just wants cheap and cheerful. I would have loved to have eaten at Babka Bakery Cafe but like so many nice places on Brunny St, there weren't many free seats and even less space to fit a stroller. (In fact, they have a sign forbidding prams!) So we bought some bread and went next door to Django Django.
Django Django had a fairly standard Brunswick Street menu of eggs, pancake, big brekkie, salad, pasta, without being outstanding. Sylvia just wanted chippies. I wanted something sweet and chose a pancake with berries and marscapone. E chose the curry.
You may notice that there are only two dishes in this photo! It seems E's order got overlooked. After arriving at the market too late for a sausage (due to a scenic tour of Fitzroy's lanes and one way streets as he drove there) he was quite grumpy. Fortunately Sylvia's bowl of chips was huge and the chips were really good - crisp and well seasoned with salt and pepper. They came with gravy and aioli. I am not keen on marscapone and my pancake was just a little crisp but, these quibbles aside, I really enjoyed it.
Would I go back? Yes. Would it be my first choice on Brunswick St? Certainly not. The food was nice and the ambience pleasant. Less impressive was the service. If I stumbled across this place in the suburbs, I would be quite pleased but standards are high in Fitzroy. And lastly I leave you with a green clad giraffe that adorned the wall of Django Django. Now who doesn't love a suburb with such colourful walls!
Django Django
356 Brunswick St
Fitzroy, VIC 3065
03 9419 2482
You always have such lovely days out Johanna. You make out life sound boring. Such a lot of foodie places to try too.
ReplyDeleteThanks Jac - that is sweet - I have plenty of boring days so I love to write about the good ones :-)
DeletePoor E - I hate it when that kind of thing happens.
ReplyDeleteThanks Cakelaw - I hate it too but I would have insisted on getting the curry whereas he just couldn't be bothered once it had been overlooked
DeleteI was going to say I that I haven't been to Fitzroy and now want to, but then you mentioned Brunswick Street and I realised I have been there! Last time we were in Melbourne as a family, my Dad navigated us there for breakfast - I don't recall where we went but it was wonderful in setting and in food.
ReplyDeleteMoving on from me though, I am sorry about E's food but glad you had a nice day and managed to find some veggie sausages. And the giraffe seems very fitting!
Thanks Kari - you probably chose far more wisely than us but I always enjoy a walk around that area - hope you get to spend some more time there - and would be pleased if more sausage sizzles had veg options - makes it easier for me to find something 'healthy' for sylvia
DeleteI'm with you on not wanting marscapone, but I kinda like the sound of crispy pancakes :) Shame the necklace broke!
ReplyDeleteThanks Hannah - I don't really get the whole marscapone thing but the pancakes were rather good with the crispy edges - just not quite as pancakes usually are. Re the necklace - sylvia has had lots of fun with the beads
DeleteI've never seen a place that prohibits prams, that's quite astonishing! What a shame that E didn't get his curry, how annoying. Sounds like you had a fun time at the market with Sylvia.
ReplyDeleteThanks Mel - In the uk we came up against pubs that wouldn't have kids or babies in there but I haven't seen this sort of thing in Melbourne. At least at the market there was plenty of space and a kids playground because it was at the fitzroy primary school.
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