My Monthly Chronicles: December 2024

December was busy but feels an age away now.  I've had my Christmas and New Year holidays and been back to work for a week.  I've posted about Christmas lights and sights, Christmas food and in my December kitchen.  And I have even reflected on 2024.  It is amazing that I have anything left to say about last month.  And yet I do.  After all, there was much to do with enjoying the long days of summer (and the solstice), lunches while out about for the festivities, catch ups with friends I had meant to see for ages,   and I was on leave from wor from 24 December.

Nosh, CBD

Above is a photo of dinner from Nosh (52 Little Collins St, Melbourne VIC 3000) while on a trip to the city to see the festive lights.  In the photo, you can se the queues for Myer Christmas windows in the background.  I had a bowl of  festively named Miso Falalalafel.  The bowl had a nice helping of Miso beetroot falafel, spicy mayo, coconut turmeric rice, mixed baby leaves, edamame, pineapple, baby spinach salad.  I would have liked a few more vegies.  It was a nice healthy bowl that is both vegan and gluten free and I am delighted to find a place where I can buy a cheap and quick meal in the city until 8.30pm that is not just fried food.

Darebin creek

I got some good bike rides in before Christmas.  One was to Darebin Creek.  It is not that far from me so I am surprised this was the first time I have seen it.  Another time I might have more time to ride along the bike track by the creek.  After Christmas I had some quiet days but when I had a ride to Coburg Lake, with my friend Jo, on my e-bike the motor was not quite right so I am still waiting to hear back from the bike shop.  I really miss my bike.

Bar Idda, East Brunswick

We had a lovely lunch with my parents at Bar Idda at 132 Lygon Street.  After an excellent dinner there in 2018, I was not surprised that Bar Idda served amazing vegetarian Italian food that is not loaded with carbs.  it was lovely to order a few plates to share.  We had Herb and garlic focaccia, Arancino with smoked scamorza cheese, Baked eggplant, tomato and cheese (mulinciani), Cavatelli past with zucchini, chilli and mint, Gnocchi with pomodora and mozzarella, and Capunata with fried cauliflower, tomato, olives, capers, walnuts and parsley.  

It was all delicious with vegetables beautifully cooked and lovely flavours.  Sylvia had a refreshing mocktail and my dad enjoyed some wine while my mum and I just shared their drinks and enjoyed the sparking water on tap!  And the restaurant is beautiful with lots of green vines cascading over a cast iron lace verandah visible out the front window.

Esha Tewari gig, Richmond

I took Sylvia to an all ages gig at the Leadbeater Hotel in Church Road, Richmond to see Sydney singer songwriter Esha Tewari.  Great fun with dreamy music, friendly chatter and Sylvia getting a selfie with Esha afterwards!

Sammy J farewell from ABC 774 Breakfasts, Carlton

I have long been a fan of comedian Sammy J.  For the past 5 years he has been the voice of the ABC Melbourne breakfast radio.  I've enjoyed listening to him (when up early enough).  It is sad he is leaving but I look forward to seeing what he does next.  I cycled to see his farewell live show in December in the forecourt of the Melbourne Museum.  It was great fun to see him live and I loved that another former ABC radio favourite, Jon Faine (pictured with Sammy J) came to watch and got asked to chat with Sammy on stage.  Vale Sammy J.

Nikos, Fairfield

Just before Christmas, I had a lovely lunch with Kerin at Nikos (254-262 Wingrove St, Fairfield).  I enjoyed my Pumpkin filo scroll with a big bowl of Apple pomegranate coleslaw.  The leftover slaw was great in sandwiches at home over a few days.  And my sunset mocktail was beautiful and refreshing

I also enjoyed riding my bike to Fairfield which lovely ride along the Merri Creek and one I had dreamt of as I had driven the car that way the week before!  Such lovely tree lined streets to ride along on a warm day.

Brown Deli, Geelong

While visiting my parents to help put up the Christmas tree, Sylvia and I had a very satisfying lunch at Brown Deli (5 Cunningham St Geelong).  I had a simple Vegemite, seed and avocado bagel while Sylvia had a Breakfast egg bagel packed with  fluffy egg. haloumi, avo. tomato, lettuce. mustard, and BBQ.  We also had great drinks: strawberry iced matcha for Sylvia and Strangelove cloudy pear soda for me. It is only a small hole in the wall with a few outdoor seats in a laneway.  Our seats in the shady were appreciated on a warm day.

Blue Bag, CBD

One one of my last days at work in the city before Christmas, it was a crazy hot day and I decided I needed a big salad.  Not organised enough to do it at home, I bought a Greens and Grains Salad from Blue Bag (Madame Brussels Lane, 50 Lonsdale Street).  It was really good: rocket, farro & black barley, cucumber. spring onion. green beans, broccoli & edamame & pea mix, almonds, pomegranate, seed mix and mixed herbs with green goddess dressing ($16) though buying it on the way into work meant the food had not yet been set out so it took some time to make.  It was so filling that I only got half eaten at lunchtime before a 12.30pm meeting but I ate the rest afterwards al desko.

Bolo Bake, Airport West

Sylvia raved to me the first time she went to Bola Bake ( 22A Fraser St) in an old warehouse in an industrial street in the west of Melbourne.  So I took my friend Kathleen there to catch up.  She had the French toast and I had a Soba salad.  It was great to to see her and enjoy good food.  I was very impressed by their Christmas decorations and took lots of photos to show Sylvia.  She really wanted to see them for herself.

Bolo Bakes, Airport West II

A week or two later I went back to Bolo Bake with Sylvia.  The loved the decorations: the tree, the shiny deer on the tables, the table runners, the model of a snow covered church.  Getting into the festive mood, Sylvia had a gingerbread latte with lots of cream, cinnamon crumbles and a cherry on top.  She had the Breaky Sando with fried egg, hash brown, chilli relish, cheddar cheese, mayo, and substituted haloumi for the bacon.  I went for the Strawberry nutella shokupan french toast fritter generously topped with marscapone, ice cream and whipped cream.  That was too much dairy for me but it was delicious

Wicked at Sunset Cinema, Abbotsford Convent

Sylvia wisely booked tickets ahead of time to Wicked at the outdoor Sunset Cinema at Abbotsford Convent. We were so busy by the time it came around I might have cancelled it if we hadn't booked.  Instead of the planed dinner out at the former convent, we had minestrone at home and took some of Sylvia's baking (mince tarts and miso banana bread - see In My Kitchen) plus a cup of popcorn.  It was a magical movie to see outdoors although a tad long.  If it had been shorter they might have fitted the whole story into the movie rather than just part 1.  As the season at Abbotsford Convent has finished, I am very glad we went.

Abbotsford Convent jacaranda

One nice thing about outdoor cinema is that is about more that just a film.  It is about location and watching the sun set and the darkening sky.  You can see the beautiful convent building in the previous photo and the crowd sitting watching the screen.  We were glad we ordered bean bags as part of our tickets.  As we went home I took this photo of a jacaranda tree in bloom lit up by the lights below.  It captures the charm of the outdoors at night that is part of outdoor cinema.

Pure Pie, Carlton Farmers Market

I had my second visit to Carlton Farmers Market at Carlton North Primary School (6054/60 Lee St, Carlton North) to see my sister at her peanut butter stall (Frankly Raw).  She makes amazing peanut butter and it is fun to watch people taste it then try and chat to her!  

It is also a chance to check out all the wonderful stalls.  I bought a Mac and Cheese bite for lunch at Pure Pie (by the scotch eggs in the photo above). It was sooo good but really rich so I kept half to take home to Sylvia.  I also took her a canale because she loves them but they aren't about much.  Maybe I will get to Farmers Markets more often in 2025!

China Bar, CDB

On my last day before finishing up for Christmas I went for lunch with colleages.  It was pretty busy in the city.  It seemed everyone wanted a celebratory lunch!  We found a table at the China Bar (255 Russell St, Melbourne).  I have been past many times (often squirming at the shiny glazed whole carcases hanging in the window) but never been in before.  

I ordered the Mushroom and vegetable noodles soup.  It was nice but a bit bland.  When my colleague with the same order.  I also ordered a sour plum iced drink that was surprisingly salty.  I felt like a stranger to their menu but learnt some things to look out for next time!looked for some chilli sauce, we realised that we should have added some flavours from the extras list.  

Tylers Milkbar, Preston

I have had some great experiences with toasties at Tylers MilkBar (656 Plenty Road).  When we recently had lunch there, I was delighted that there was a new salad on the menu.  It was so good I begged one of the owners to keep it on the menu and was glad to hear it was popular.  

The salad was called the EPICCC Salad from a Jessica Prescott cookbook and had "roasted corn, chickpeas, sweet potato, smoked almonds, spinach, ricotta salata, coriander, pickled red onion with house-made chipotle dressing and lime."  I left my coriander on the side, could have had slightly less spiciness but enjoyed the smokiness of the optional coconut bacon.  

Meanwhile Sylvia had a cheese and coconut bacon toastie and we both had icy drinks,  We also tried some festive cupcakes and gingerbread but this place has so much good food and good vibes that it deserves its own post if only I can find time!

Carolina cafe and bar, Brunswick East

It felt right to finish the year with a visit to Carolina cafe and bar (11 Nicholson Street) at the top of the Carlton North shopping strip.  Sylvia had wanted to go there earlier a few times but they close at 2pm and we were always running too late.  This time, just after Christmas, we met my brother Paul at 11.30am and already the sweet baking was sold out.   

Sylvia was excited to finally get her "Bratcha" (a matcha latte with Brat written on it) with a breakfast burger with egg, haloumi and salad.  Paul had a coffee and tofu scramble on toast.  I had a fried tofu and salad sandwich with a can of Bobby soda.  I've never tried Bobby sodas before but was happy to find they have probiotics in them and aren't too sweet.  We all enjoyed our meals and loved sitting out in the leafy courtyard.  The cafe is in an old boot shop and is certainly worth a visit.

Readings Bookstore and the Nova Cinema, Carlton

It is always a delight to spend time on Lygon Street.  It was my local for many years of university and is a vibrant place today.  I especially love the Cinema Nova and managed to go twice on a Monday in my holidays.  It is not as cheap as it was in 2002 when E and I could have dinner and a movie for $15 each on a Monday.  Tickets are still much less than many other cinemas.  The lure of $7 tickets during the day made me book Wallace and Gromit: Fowl Revenge" to see with Sylvia even though I was already seeing a Better Man (about Robbie Williams as a monkey) in the evening for $10 each. 

Both movies were really enjoyable.  Every bit as entertaining was this movie goer review of Wallace and Gromit on the cinema wall (where people write their reactions on cards)."This movie has inspired within us a deep analysis of our modern world.  Undoubtedly an icarian allegory for capitalism, the unregulated rise of Artificial intelligence and the role of the powerless citizen".  Beatrice and Francesca need their own movie review show!   Every bit as fun was browsing in Readings Bookstore (above) after the movie.  I want to live in this shop and spend my time in window seats reading all the books!

Ti Amo, Carlton

We love a movie and a meal.  So I ate well.  Sylvia and I went to TiAmo (303 Lygon St) and finished 2024 with a similar meal to the one I had overlooking the Colosseum in Rome during our trip early in the year: pasta, salad and bruschetta.  I really loved the rocket, parmesan and walnut salad.  Sylvia loved the ravioli in truffle cream.  Even better we both had room for their amazing dessert.  She had tiramisu and I had the Baileys cheesecake with berry sauce.  And then I had a delicious eggplant parma with chips and slaw at the Green Man's Arms after seeing Better Man in the evening.  A fine end to a year of eating awesome meals at cafes and restaurants both locally and abroad..

News and Weblinks:

Rage, race and good looks: the forces behind the lionization of a murder suspect: Reaction to Brian Thompson’s killing shocked pundits but a polarized US is united in contempt for health system, in The Guardian, 16 December 2024.

Notre Dame rises from the ashes at last: world leaders join embattled Macron for grand reopening, in The Guardian, 8 December 2024.

Victoria prepares for worst fire conditions since black summer as Grampians bushfire rages, in The Guardian, 23 December 2024.

A giant is felled: Woolworths 0, workers 1: After staff rebelled against a punitive, algorithm-driven regimen introduced by the huge supermarket chain, they demanded — and got — safety over speed, by Stephen Long in The Politics, 10 December 2024.

The trouble with friends: The wonder, and the curse, of friendship is choice, by Weike Wang in The New Yorker, August 17, 2024.

As an oncologist, I learn from my patients what matters most in life, by Ranjana Srivastava in The Guardian, 18 December 2024.

Why AI is a disaster for the climate, by John Naughton in  , 24 December 2023.

Being glue (About people with the "other skills" - ie non-technical - at work that make a project succeed or fail), by Tanya Reilly in No Idea Blog, 2019.