A Neighbourhood Guide To Gertrude Street, Melbourne

Brimming with independent boutiques, galleries, bars and restaurants that channel a strong creative spirit, this storied street in Melbourne’s oldest suburb embodies what makes the city such a compelling place to explore.

You can trace the history of Melbourne’s oldest suburb through the story of Gertrude Street, which stretches through Fitzroy for one kilometre. Today it is a microcosm of all that is exciting about this inner-north enclave, with its kaleidoscope of businesses united by a fiercely independent creative spirit.

Gertrude Street was first developed on the land of the Wurundjiri people in the 1850s as a respectable residential and commercial precinct wrought in timber, bluestone, iron and brick thanks to the gold rush building boom. By the 1860s its range of shops and businesses included bakers, butchers, bootmakers, drapers, tailors, grocers and wine merchants, as well as a number of printers, saddlers and stores known as ‘fancy repositories’ selling everything from embroidery wools to wax flowers. But the street fell on hard times during the Depression of the 1890s, when the seeds of an infamous reputation that would last for decades would be sown: its 14 hotels operating along its length attracting characters of ill-repute.

Like Fitzroy itself, by the end of the First World War it was an area synonymous with trouble. But its spirit never waned. Post-Second World War migration enlivened the area, brought back a sense of community and saw fruit shops, tailors, groceries, fish and chip shops, cafes and clubs proliferate. By the early 21st century it was becoming fashionable again and in the last 10 years in particular it has evolved to be one of Melbourne’s most on-trend destinations. It retains its independent spirit and slight air of rebellion – no cookie-cutter chain stores here, please – and a proud, creative and supportive community whose people are passionate about their patch.

While the beauty of Gertrude Street is in discovering its gems for yourself – carve out plenty of time to explore – here are a few to kick off with.

Aesop Fitzroy

No two Aesop stores are the same, each subtly weaving itself into its neighbourhood, and Fitzroy’s pays homage to the history of its location in Melbourne’s first suburb. Odes to domestic rituals are found throughout and the basin, a signature of the locally born skincare brand, is rendered in concrete and inspired by the laundry troughs found in lean-to structures behind the area’s older houses.

Aesthetic Aesop. — The aesthetic Aesop store boasts a chic brutalist design.

Marion

Once you’ve established your local cafe, you’ll want to seek out your local wine bar. Look no further than Marion . Snag a seat at the window to watch the street life outside as you choose from a serious curation of drops sourced locally and from around the globe. Go for a glass and stay for a bottle and be sure to tuck into the seasonal menu of small plates and sharing dishes, from oysters to cheese to roast half chicken. Next door, and also in the Andrew McConnell stable, is fine diner Cutler & Co.

Archie’s All Day

Between its street-side seating where friends gather for brunch on weekends, suitably cool interior where creative freelancer types tap away on laptops, all-day menu and impeccable coffee by Proud Mary, Archie’s All Day is exactly the kind of cafe you’d expect to find in Melbourne. Make it your local, too, by ordering your caffeine fix of choice alongside a helping of smashed avo with Meredith Dairy goat’s cheese or huevos sucios (dirty eggs) complete with tater tots, jalapeño-spiked Monterey Jack, salsa and black beans.

APW Gallery

Pop into the Australian Print Workshop (APW) Gallery for a showcase of limited edition fine-art prints that represent the best of contemporary Australian printmaking, and for a window into the heart of Gertrude Street creativity. Celebrating 40 years in 2021, APW has witnessed the many evolutions of this cultural precinct in its dynamic role as a world-class printmaking workshop.

Australian Print Workshop Gallery showcases original limited edition fine art prints.

The Everleigh

This intimate cocktail bar inspired by the golden era of fine drinking is where you’ll want to cap off your day’s exploring on Gertrude Street. Hidden away, speakeasy-style (above Belle’s Hot Chicken, another go-to spot), this is – just quietly – not only one of the best bars in Melbourne, but in the world, as international awards attest. Slip into a booth in this sultry space and sip on a classic cocktail – an Old Fashioned or Moonlight, perhaps – crafted to exacting standards.

The Eveleigh is one of Melbourne’s favourite classic cocktail bars.

Morning Market

If there’s a silver lining to Melbourne’s long series of lockdowns, it’s the emergence of neighbourhood spots like Morning Market that began life as pop-ups and became permanent fixtures. Next door to Marion and Cutler & Co., Andrew McConnell’s one-stop shop for pantry staples and specialty grocery items also sells salads and sandwiches, cakes, pastries, pies and coffee; if it’s a sunny day, pick up provisions and walk five minutes to the top of Gertrude Street to Carlton Gardens for a picnic.

SMART, Alec Hatters

Catering to discerning gentlemen and progressive punks alike, Michael Albert will defy anyone to step inside his store and declare themselves ‘not a hat person’. Say the word and he’ll pluck a style from his eccentric collection to suit you: fedoras, boaters, bowlers, berets, trilbies – you name it. The dapper store owner and hatter is passionate about rehabilitating this ‘forgotten accessory’ and his charm, style and sharp eye will have you sold.

Builders Arms Hotel

The Builders Arms Hotel is a Fitzroy landmark and one of Melbourne’s oldest pubs, whose stones were first laid in 1853. It has seen it all since and remains at the heart of the community today under the aegis of (you guessed it) chef Andrew McConnell. Head here for a Sunday roast, Charcoal Chicken Tuesday, or perhaps for the best vegan cheeseburger you’ve ever eaten. Or simply sit outside with a Victorian pale ale and imagine all the lives that have walked by here over the years.

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Abandoned mills and forgotten paper plants are finding second lives – and helping redefine a city long underestimated.

Just 15 years ago, Federal Mills was a very different place. Once among the most significant industrial sites in Victoria, the historic woollen mill was one of a dozen that operated in Geelong at the industry’s peak in the mid-20th century, helping the city earn its title as ‘wool centre of the world’. But by the 1960s global competition and the rise of synthetic fabrics led to the slow decline of the industry, and Federal Mills finally shuttered its doors in 2001. Within a few years, the abandoned North Geelong grounds had become makeshift pastoral land, with cows and goats grazing among the overgrown grass between the empty red-brick warehouses. It was a forgotten pocket of the city, all but two klicks from the bustle of the CBD.

Geelong cellar door wine bar — Geelong has shed its industrial identity to become an innovative urban hub with reimagined heritage spaces. (Image: Ash Hughes)

Federal Mills: from forgotten factory to creative precinct

Today, the century-old complex stands reborn. The distinctive sawtooth-roof buildings have been sensitively restored. An old silo is splashed with a bright floral mural, landscapers have transformed the grounds, and the precinct is once again alive with activity. More than 1000 people work across 50-plus businesses here. It’s so busy, in fact, that on a sunny Thursday morning in the thick of winter, it’s hard to find a car park. The high ceilings, open-plan design, and large multi-paned windows – revolutionary features for factories of their time – have again become a drawcard.

Paddock Bakery andPatisserie — Paddock Bakery and Patisserie is housed within the historic wool factory. (Image: Gallant Lee)

At Paddock , one of the precinct’s newer tenants, weaving looms and dye vats have been replaced by a wood-fired brick oven and heavy-duty mixers. Open since April 2024, the bakery looks right at home here; the building’s industrial shell is softened by ivy climbing its steel frames, and sunlight streams through the tall windows. Outside, among the white cedar trees, families at picnic benches linger over dippy eggs and bagels, while white-collar workers pass in and out, single-origin coffee and crème brûlée doughnuts in hand.

Geelong: Australia’s only UNESCO City of Design

Paddock Bakery can be found at Federal Mills. (Image: Gallant Lee)

“A lot of people are now seeing the merit of investing in Geelong,” says Paul Traynor, the head of Hamilton Hospitality Group, which redeveloped Federal Mills. A city once shunned as Sleepy Hollow, and spurned for its industrial, working-class roots and ‘rust belt’ image, Geelong has long since reclaimed its ‘Pivot City’ title, having reinvented itself as an affordable, lifestyle-driven satellite city, and a post-COVID migration hotspot.

And the numbers stand testament to the change. In March 2025, and for the first time in its history, Greater Geelong became Australia’s most popular regional town for internal migration, overtaking Queensland’s Sunshine Coast. Current forecasts suggest Geelong will continue to outpace many other Australian cities and towns, with jobs growing at double the rate of the population.

Tourism is booming, too. The 2023-24 financial year was Geelong and The Bellarine region’s busiest on record, with 6.4 million visitors making it one of the fastest-growing destinations in the country. It’s not hard to see why: beyond the city’s prime positioning at the doorstep of the Great Ocean Road, Geelong’s tenacity and cultural ambition stands out.

As Australia’s only UNESCO City of Design, Geelong is swiftly shaking off its industrial past to become a model for urban renewal, innovation, sustainability and creative communities. The signs are everywhere, from the revitalisation of the city’s waterfront, and the landmark design of the Geelong Library and Heritage Centre and Geelong Arts Centre, to the growing network of local designers, architects and artists, and the burgeoning roster of festivals and events. That’s not even mentioning the adaptive reuse of storied old industrial buildings – from Federal Mills, to Little Creatures’ brewery ‘village’ housed within a 1920s textile mill – or the city’s flourishing food and wine scene.

The rise of a food and wine destination

Restaurant 1915 is housed within a restored former boiler house. (Image: Harry Pope/Two Palms)

Traynor credits now-closed local restaurant Igni, which opened in 2016, as the turning point for Geelong’s hospo industry. “[Aaron Turner, Igni’s chef-patron] was probably the first guy, with all due respect, to raise the bar food-wise for Geelong,” he says. “People now treat it really seriously, and there’s clearly a market for it.” While Igni is gone, Turner now helms a string of other notable Geelong venues, including The Hot Chicken Project and Tacos y Liquor, all within the buzzy, street art-speckled laneways of the CBD’s Little Malop Street Precinct. Many others have also popped up in Igni’s wake, including Federal Mills’ own restaurant, 1915 . Housed within the cavernous boiler house, 1915’s interior is dramatic: soaring, vaulted ceilings with timber beams, exposed brick, a huge arched window. The share plates echo the space’s bold character, playing with contrast and texture, with dishes such as a compressed watermelon tataki, the sweet, juicy squares tempered by salty strands of fried leeks, and charred, smoky snow peas dusted with saganaki on a nutty bed of romesco.

The Woolstore , one of The Hamilton Group’s most recent hospo projects, opened in February. It occupies a century-old riverside warehouse and exudes a more sultry, fine dining ambience. Much like Federal Mills, the blueprint was to preserve the original brickwork, tallowwood flooring and nods to the building’s former life. That same careful consideration extends to the well-versed, affable waitstaff as well as the kitchen. Head chef Eli Grubb is turning out an eclectic mix of ambitious and indulgent mod Oz dishes that deliver: strikingly tender skewers of chicken tsukune, infused with hints of smoke from the parrilla grill, and glazed with a moreish, sweet gochujang ‘jam’; nduja arancini fragrant with hints of aniseed and the earthy lick of sunny saffron aioli; and golden squares of potato pavé, adorned with tiny turrets of crème fraîche, crisp-fried saltbush leaves, and Avruga caviar, to name but a few stand-out dishes.

Woolstore menu — Woolstore’s menu is designed for sharing.

Breathing new life into historic spaces

On the city’s fringe, hidden down a winding side road with little fanfare, lies a long-dormant site that’s being gently revived. Built from locally quarried bluestone and brick, and dating back to the 1870s, the complex of original tin-roofed mill buildings is lush with greenery and backs onto the Barwon River and Buckley Falls; the audible rush of water provides a soothing soundtrack. Fyansford Paper Mill is one of few complexes of its time to survive intact. It feels steeped in history and spellbindingly rustic.

“We were looking for an old industrial place that had some charm and romance to it,” explains Sam Vogel, the owner, director and winemaker at Provenance Wines which moved here in 2018. When he first viewed the building with his former co-owner, it was in such a state of disrepair that the tradie tenant occupying the space had built a shed within it to escape the leaking roof and freezing winter temperatures. “To say it was run down would be an understatement,” he notes. “There was ivy growing through the place; the windows were all smashed. It was a classic Grand Designs project.”

Provenance Wines moved to Fyansford Paper Mill in 2018. (Image: Cameron Murray Photography)

The team has since invested more than a million dollars into their new home. Where paper processing machinery once sat, wine barrels are now stacked. Vaulted cathedral ceilings are strung with festoon lights, and hidden in plain sight lies a shadowy mural by local street artist de rigueur Rone – one of only three permanent works by the artist.

While the award-winning, cool-climate pinot noir, riesling and chardonnay naturally remain a key draw at Provenance, the winery’s restaurant is a destination in itself. Impressed already by whipsmart service, I devour one of the most cleverly curated and faultlessly executed degustations I’ve had in some time. It’s all prepared in a kitchen that is proudly zero-waste, and committed to providing seasonal, ethical and locally sourced meat and produce under head chef Nate McIver. Think free-range venison served rare with a syrupy red wine jus and a half-moon of neon-orange kosho, shokupan with a deeply savoury duck fat jus (a modern Japanese take on bread and drippings), and a golden potato cake adorned with a colourful confetti of dehydrated nasturtiums and tomato powder, and planted atop a sea urchin emulsion.

handcrafted pieces — Bell’s handcrafted functional pieces on display.

The complex is home to a coterie of independent businesses, including a gallery, a jeweller, and its latest tenant, ceramicist Elizabeth Bell, drawn here by the building’s “soul”. “There’s so much potential for these buildings to have new life breathed into them,” says Bell, whose studio is housed within the old pump room. “Even people in Geelong don’t know we’re here,” she says. “It’s definitely a destination, but I like that. It has a really calming atmosphere.”

A Melbourne transplant, Bell now feels at home in Geelong, which offers something Melbourne didn’t. “If this business was in Melbourne I don’t think it would’ve been as successful,” she notes. “It’s very collaborative in Geelong, and I don’t think you get that as much in Melbourne; you’re a bit more in it for yourself. Here it’s about community over competition.”

A neighbourhood guide to Gertrude Street, Melbourne