Shopping and Eating
Eating
There’s a café or restaurant for just about every one of the hundred or more ethnic groups living in multicultural Melbourne. And you can buy the ingredients and produce that you use to cook at home all over Melbourne.
There’s a little piece of home everywhere you look.
Cafes and restaurants
International students coming to Melbourne have added even more variety to Melbourne’s smorgasbord of cuisines. There is a great variety of restaurants, bistros and cafes where you’ll find a Melbourne take on modern European cooking, with added Asian and Middle Eastern flavours.
In the past fifty years, migration, especially from Italy, China, Greece, Lebanon, Vietnam, Turkey and the Middle East broadened the variety of eating places and availability of ingredients in Melbourne.
But in the past few years the influx of students especially from India has seen South Asian food take over from Thai as the most popular cuisine in Melbourne!
Try a heart-warming Pho at the many Vietnamese restaurants in Victoria Street Richmond and Footscray … felafel or baklava at Brunswick’s Middle Eastern eateries… yum cha in the laneways around Chinatown ….Greek in Lonsdale Street and Richmond… or borscht and pirogi at Polish and Russian delis and restaurants around East St Kilda.
The daily newspapers have weekly food and dining sections on Tuesdays.
Markets
Queen Victoria Market is Victoria's premier open-air market.
The vibrant, cosmopolitan atmosphere of this historic site has endeared the Market to Melburnians for 130 years and draws millions ovf visitors every year.
Almost 50% of the Market area is dedicated to the sale of fresh produce, including fresh fruits and vegetables, meat, chicken, seafood and delicatessen products.
The remainder of the Market is used for variety and speciality goods, with Sundays being the most popular day for this category.
The Queen Victoria Market is open Tuesday, and Thursday – Saturday from 6am and Sunday from 9 am.
Shopping
Melbourne is renowned as the shopping capital of Australia, with everything from craft markets to international designer shops, and everything in between. Try the big department stores in the city centre, the Queen Victoria Market for fresh produce, clothing, and just about everything else and unique shops in Melbourne’s arcades and laneways and village neighbourhoods.
There are many weekly suburban markets specialising in vintage items, antiques, clothing, furniture and bric-a-brac. Melbourne’s most famous is Camberwell market.
Melbourne is in the grip of a handmade revolution, from toys to clothes and quilts. Look in your local paper or online for craft/makers’ markets that sell exquisite gifts and treats, such as the Arts Centre Market on Sundays at Southbank; and Magnolia Square, which specialises in childrenswear and crafts.
See www.visitvictoria.com/ Melbourne and Victoria’s official site for a guide to shopping guide.
Trading hours
General shopping hours on weekdays are from 9am to 5.30pm.
Many shops open for extended hours on Thursday and Friday – usually until 8 or 9pm.
Most stores are open on the weekend and many supermarkets, fast-food stores and petrol stations are open 24 hours.
Bargaining
Bargaining or haggling is not the norm in Australia - unless you're buying second hand goods from a market, or a car. It is acceptable to ask for a discount if paying cash for a large purchase such as a fridge or washing machine, or if you’re buying several items.
Tipping
You won’t be hassled for a tip in restaurants or cafes. If you wish to reward good service, the usual amount is 10%. Taxi drivers always love it if you leave the change.
