Qantas A330 to MEL - Yarra Run, Tapas with Friends, and Steak at Rockpool Bar & Grill

[CarbonMan]

That's a really nice piece of cow.

Super great TR, yflyer. Excellent pics! Thanks!

[yflyer]

I would actually recommend Town Mouse or Hell of the North.

Maybe Chin Chin or Mamasita just for the fun of it.

Gazi or Jimmy Grants (for a fuss free meal).

Thanks very much for the recommendations, zilchster!

I actually did go to Gazi...a very busy place with tasty Greek food...only one photo of the unique ambience in the restaurant, as this was a business dinner and I couldn't do my usual photoshoot...



...need to head back to Gazi to cover it properly next time I am in MEL...

[yflyer]

That's a really nice piece of cow.

Super great TR, yflyer. Excellent pics! Thanks!

Thanks, CarbonMan!

Yes, would definitely recommend dining at Rockpool Bar & Grill if you are in MEL or SYD. Apparently they have recently opened a branch in PER too, but I have never been to that one.

[sinequanon88]

the first time i dined at Rockpool in Melbourne, i was floored by the ambience. the use of dark wood, the dim lights and the (somewhat) good view of the river besides.. it was very atmospheric!

However, i found the steaks very expensive. given i could get very good and cheap meats at the south melbourne market/qv markets...even if its in a different context altogether.

nonetheless, i still recommend rockpool at least once! have never tried their sydney grill counterpart, but i did liked sydney's rock pool 1989 (which has since closed).

in melbourne, i also love mamasita and cumulus inc!

great trip report btw yflyer!

[Kyo]

It was a pleasure to see you again, and our dear friend SQ28!

But may I ask why you didn’t opt for the 60 day vintage dry aged steak? May I also recommend another place the next time you’re in Melbourne - I’ll take you there when you have steak cravings, towards the East. And I enjoyed Hellenic Republic Too.

[yflyer]

the first time i dined at Rockpool in Melbourne, i was floored by the ambience. the use of dark wood, the dim lights and the (somewhat) good view of the river besides.. it was very atmospheric!

However, i found the steaks very expensive. given i could get very good and cheap meats at the south melbourne market/qv markets...even if its in a different context altogether.

nonetheless, i still recommend rockpool at least once! have never tried their sydney grill counterpart, but i did liked sydney's rock pool 1989 (which has since closed).

Agree the steaks at Rockpool are quite expensive...a very occasional treat for me, and definitely not day-to-day dining! But given their quality and unique taste, worth the price!

I quite like the ambience at the MEL restaurant too, although for me, the ambience in the SYD outlet is even more distinctive.

I have many fond memories of dining at the SYD Rockpool Bar & Grill, including one memorable, and unplanned, dinner there, when I was supposed to fly home from Auckland to SIN on SQ. Because of volcanic ash from a South American volcano, my flight was cancelled. However Air New Zealand was still operating flights. I found a spare seat on on an Air New Zealand 744, in the Business Class herringbone nose section, which flew at a lower-than usual altitude to SYD, where I had dinner at Rockpool Bar & Grill, before flying home the next morning on an SQ SYD-SIN flight.

Sadly, I never got to try the Rockpool restaurant (Different from the Bar & Grill) in Sydney before they closed. I am sure it was a wonderful experience!

in melbourne, i also love mamasita and cumulus inc!

I've not eaten at those places, but will add them to my to-do list!

great trip report btw yflyer!

Thanks, sinequanon88!

[yflyer]

It was a pleasure to see you again, and our dear friend SQ28!

It was great to have dinner together in the middle of a busy work week!

But may I ask why you didn’t opt for the 60 day vintage dry aged steak?

Hmmm...good question...I deliberated for some time over the two choices of dry aged Cape Grim: 36 month old or 60 month old...I asked the waitress and she said the 60 month had deeper flavour, but wasn't as tender as the 36 month, so I went for the 36 month. Would want to try the 60 month steak too at some point in future, though.

May I also recommend another place the next time you’re in Melbourne - I’ll take you there when you have steak cravings, towards the East. And I enjoyed Hellenic Republic Too.

On! Next time I am there...

[SQ218]

ohh I missed a MEL gathering

[yflyer]

ohh I missed a MEL gathering

Will PM you next time we get together, SQ218!

[yflyer]

Continuing with the TR...

Given that I was in MEL for a whole week, I did need an Asian/Oriental food fix at some point...and that was an easy thing to do in Melbourne...

After work on one day, I took a stroll to Mekong restaurant along Swanston Street for a bowl of their popular pho...



This place was very popular...we got a table right away in the early evening, but apparently at the lunch hour peak, there were often queues out the door...



I scanned the well worn laminated menu...pho with all possible variations of toppings, as well as a long list of side dishes...



I zero'ed in on number 8: the beef special, and was not disappointed...



As in Vietnam, it came with a side platter of greens, which you could put into your noodles according to your taste...



Quite delicious. This was as good as any I had eaten, whether in Australia, Singapore or even Hanoi...

[yflyer]

On the morning of the last day of my stay, I headed out for one final run along the Yarra River before heading to the airport.



It was a beautiful Saturday morning, and there were many boats on the Yarra River, where rowing is a very popular sport there, with regular Regattas.



After an invigorating run along pretty much the same route as my Yarra run earlier in the week,I headed back to the hotel to shower and check out, and then caught a taxi to Tullamarine Airport to catch QF35 to Singapore...

[yflyer]

Check-in was quick, and the security and immigration queues were ok as well, especially with the automated passport checking system now in place.

I didn't spend a lot of time in the large duty free shopping zone, and instead headed straight to the Qantas Business Lounge...



The lounge was located one floor below the gate level where the flights to Singapore departed, and it was located not far from the SQ SilverKris Lounge.

If anyone thinks SQ has the monopoly on lounges sited in dark windowless basements, think again: this QF Lounge suffered from exactly the same predicament. Perhaps the design of the terminal left the airlines no choice. It is possible to mitigate a basement location with the right interior design, but no that much of an attempt to do so appears to have been made here. No matter how pleasant the decor and amenities, this still felt like a windowless basement. I suspect the other lounges in this part of the MEL terminal were no different.

The lounge decor itself was ok, with several large seating areas...







I might have arrived there just after the morning rush/peak...thing were slightly less tidy than I would have expected, but that's probably the case for all lounges after a wave of morning flights have departed.

There is a work zone with computers available.




There is at least one shower room in the lounge...

[yflyer]

Fresh fruit and snacks...



The dining area...



An inviting hot breakfast selection...



Automatic pancake machine...



They were just changing over to the lunch menu when I was there...

[yflyer]

There is also a separate wine bar / dining area, which looked very classy...



Some of the wines on offer...





Elsewhere in the lounge, there was a full self service bar...





...and Seppelt sparkling Chardonnay Pinot Noir...

[yflyer]

Overall, I would say the QF Melbourne Business Lounge is a decent but unremarkable lounge, especially compared to the very impressive Qantas lounge facilities available in SYD, HKG and SIN, to name just three other QF lounge locations.

I had previously visited this QF MEL lounge several years prior, and was surprised to find little changed on this most recent visit. I wonder why QF appears to have neglected to upgrade or revamp this lounge. It is not a bad lounge, just not up to the amazing standard of the other QF lounges I have visited, and due for a refresh.