Friday night and I’m just helping my neighbour, Rob, see the world differently through a few beers.
The Dogs Bar (54 Acland St, St Kilda, 3182 +61 3 9534 3075) is my local, a hundred or so yards down my street and left into Acland. It is not just a St Kilda institution but a Melbourne one also being the first proper bar in the City at a time of draconian drinking laws.
The best thing about this place in a part of town that increasingly caters to tourists, is that the Dog is about the locals. It is populated by local actors and artists and just one of those cool places to hang out. In the summer you can spend balmy evenings outside on Acland Street enjoys the views of a particularly nasty example of 1970s (?) McDonalds architecture. In the winter, the bar is punctuated with a log fire on either side.
Tonight we occupy a sought after corner of the underlit marble bar. The staff pour Becks properly, first washing the glass. The wine list is both well chosen and priced.
This wasn’t a night for eating although I chose their excellent Calamari salad, which comes with rocket and chunks of watermelon.
Often we’ll pop down the road mid-week for a bowl of pasta, or on a cold winter’s night bangers and mash.
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
making me thirsty man. our office is in elsternwick and i grew up around there (down rye at moment) but dogs bar doesnt change, and damn they know how to pour a beer… great blog btw (what does the m at the end of tomato mean ?) best ben
Cheers. It’s worth it just to have beer poured properly isn’t it. The M? it means that the tomato domain was taken but I also occasionally put out a food zine called tomato so the M also means magazine. And the company I put all my work through is Tomato Media, another M. BTW welcome to Apple. I’m just about to trade up from my imac G4 to the 20″ G5.