Melbourne, known as one of world’s most liveable cities and famous for its coffeeshop and cafe scene, AnakJajan have been curious and wanting to visit Melbourne.

And finally we have the chance to visit this beautiful city, we had our #AnakJajanAustralia trip for almost 2 week, started from Melbourne and then move to Gold Coast and Sydney.

Famous for its food scene, AnakJajan’s main purpose to visit Australia is to explore its culinary, we explored many recommended places to eat from award-winning celebrity chef restaurant, hip cafes to local markets, but of course other than eating, we also visited some of the recommended places and did some fun activities too.

I’m gonna write a series of Melbourne, Gold Coast and Sydney travel guide from #AnakJajanAustralia trip recently, sharing our experience. Hopefully it could be a quick itinerary guide for you guys that are planning to visit Australia. Let’s start with the first city, Melbourne.

---

FLIGHT
Just wanna share our experience flying to Melbourne, we took a direct flight from Jakarta to Sydney using Qantas Airways for around 7 hours of flight and then transfer to Melbourne from Sydney via Qantas Airways for around one and a half hours.

---

INTERNET
Upon arriving at the airport, simcard is available to purchase mostly at international arrival hall, AnakJajan purchased visitor simcard at Optus with 2 AUD package per day including text, call and 500mb data per day. The connection was stable and we have no problem using it from Melbourne, Gold Coast to Sydney and internet connection sharing via tethering is also possible.

---

CLIMATE
FYI, there’s 4 hours difference between Jakarta and Melbourne. The weather in Melbourne can be a bit chilly, we visited Melbourne in Mid February 2016, it was supposed to be summer but the weather was quite nice and chilly around 17-19 Celsius.

Since Melbourne has a reputation for its changeable weather, often referred to as having ‘four seasons in one day’, you better check the weather forecast and prepare the right outfit. Temperatures average 25°C in summer and 14°C in winter.

---

WHERE TO STAY
In Melbourne, we stayed in Crown Promenade Hotel located conveniently in city centre Melbourne CBD area around 1.1 km from National Gallery of Victoria and 2.1 km from Queen Victoria Market. The room was homey and comfortable, we love the city view from our room.

Address:
Crown Promenade Hotel
8 Whiteman St, Southbank VIC 3006, Australia
Phone: +61 3 9292 6688
Map:

---

YARRA VALLEY
Located around an hour drive from the city, Yarra valley is a great location to escape from the hustle and bustle of the city with its relaxing and spectacular scenery, food and wine. There are lots of things to do in Yarra Valley, I’m gonna share the places we visited in Yarra Valley.

---

Yarra Valley Chocolaterie & Ice Creamery
This is a fairly new and fast-growing spot in Yarra Valley. Surrounded by the picturesque view of Yarra Valley, this place is totally a heaven for sweetooth and chocolate lovers. You can find wide variety of chocolate in various shapes and flavors wrapped beautifully in eye-catching packaging, it could be a perfect souvenir.

Here in this spacious chocolaterie, you can see the European chocolatier producing the chocolate from the factory and don’t forget to get some free chocolate sample.

You can also grab a light breakfast or lunch at the cafe too while enjoying the breathtaking view of Yarra Valley from the cafe.

AnakJajan did an Ice Cream Tasting session for 40 minutes where we were guided through 12 different samples of ice cream. The ice cream tasting session is available for public for 18 AUD per person.

The ice cream tasting session was really fun, as an ice cream lover, we enjoyed it very much, the ice cream was smooth, rich and tasty with lots of unique and innovative flavors such as Salted Pretzel, Turkish Delight, Curry till Wasabi!

Address:
Yarra Valley Chocolaterie & Ice Creamery
35 Old Healesville Rd, Yarra Glen VIC 3775, Australia
Phone: +61 3 9730 2777
Map:

---

Rochford Wines Yarra Valley
Famous for its wine, visiting winery is a mandatory thing to do in Yarra Valley and Rochford Winery is one of the famous places in Yarra Valley, in this place you can do a wine tasting, purchase some wine and other local product also enjoying upscale modern Australian dishes at the restaurant.

Rochford Wines restaurant offers various seasonal dishes made from using the freshest local sourced produce with wide list of wines as a companion. AnakJajan had our first lunch here, we ordered some dishes to share.

Roasted Quail AUD 20
with sweet corn, pickled grapes, lardo and scotched quail egg
Every ingredients complemented each other perfectly, quail was cooked and seasoned perfectly, it was tender and flavorful.

Confit Octopus AUD 21
cauliflower skordalia, crispy onions, spiced hazelnut
The octopus was very tender and didn’t have any fishy unpleasant smell at all, we love the crispy texture from the crispy onion, it have the dish a great texture and aroma.

Shaved Asparagus Salad AUD 20
black garlic, mizuno, manchego, white truffle vinagrette
Asparagus was shaved thinly and then seasoned with light sour based seasoning, the refreshing taste was very appetizing.

Pork Belly Pizza AUD 19
caramelized onion and sage
For more filling option, Rochford has pizza dishes with various toppings, just like the one we tried with lean pork belly meat, caramelized onion and sage.

Leg of corn fed Chicken AUD 33
soubise, farro, guanciele
My favorite dish that day, chicken was juicy on the inside while crispy golden on the outside served with farro grain that has been seasoned nicely with some kind of onion sauce. Love it!

Variations of blood orange, aerated milk chocolate and dark chocolate sorbet AUD 15

All dishes we ordered were very scrumptious and pleasing both for the eyes and tummies, it was full of flavor and unique.

Address:
Rochford Wines Yarra Valley
878-880 Maroondah Hwy, Coldstream VIC 3770, Australia
Phone: +61 3 5957 3333
Map:

---

Rayner’s Orchard – Yarra Valley
We had one of the most unique activities and tasted the freshest and sweetest fruit we’ve ever had in our lives in Rayner’s Stonefruit Orchards guided tractor fruit tasting tour.

We were taken around the orchard using tractor to see the lush green fruit trees and then picked and tasted the fruits fresh from the trees. The variety of fruits to try depends on the season itself, during our visit it was peach, tomato and plum seasoned, even the tomato itself has lots of variety with amazingly sweet taste.

It is a fun and different option of activity to do in Yarra Valley that is very suitable for family.

Address:
Rayner’s Orchard
60 Schoolhouse Rd, Woori Yallock VIC 3139, Australia
Phone: +61 3 5964 7654
Map:

---

ST. Ali Coffee – Melbourne
A visit to Melbourne won’t be complete without having coffee. One of the best and famous coffee shops and roasters in Melbourne is ST. Ali, they have recently expanded its business and opened an outlet in Jakarta.

Compared to the modern ambiance in Jakarta, the outlet of St. Ali we visited in Melbourne has more edgy trendy warehouse ambiance. And from the menu, there are similarities, some dishes are available exclusively only in Australia, some dishes are available in Jakarta.

Cappuccino AUD 5

Koo Koo Ca Choo AUD 21.5
crispy potato hash with mushroom duxelle, poached eggs, shaved gyuyete, chlorophyll, truffle vinagrette
Compared to the same menu we tried in St. Ali Jakarta, in terms of presentation, the one in Australia looks more appealing, it tasted pretty similar but I love the more crunchy texture and golden color from the potato hash.

The Fat Boy AUD 28
2 fried eggs, pork sausage, bacon, black pudding, potato hash, mushroom and toast
A classic, heavy and satisfying choice of breakfast menu that you cannot go wrong with.

Eggs Your Way AUD 11.5

Buttermilk Pancakes AUD 18.5
pancakes with white chocolate, mixed berries, toasted hazelnuts, puffed grains, pistachios and double cream
Love the fluffy soft texture of the pancakes and the creamy yet fruity combination of flavor from the ingredients. Simply an enjoyable dish for breakfast.

Overall, great coffee, lovely brunch menus, St. Ali is definitely a must visit when you’re in Melbourne.

Address:
St. Ali Coffee
12-18 Yarra Pl, South Melbourne VIC 3205, Australia
Phone: +61 3 9686 2990
Map:

---

Menya Ramen
AnakJajan have been wanting to try the Gyu Tan Don from Menya Ramen Melbourne since it’s very popular and highly raved among Indonesian. Menya Ramen served various Japanese dishes from noodle to rice dishes. I need to warn you about their HUGE PORTION! The portion is extremely big, I recommend you to share 1 portion for two persons if you’re not too hungry.

AnakJajan tried some dishes such as Unagi Don AUD 13.90, Tan Tan Ramen AUD 9.90 and Gyu Tan Don AUD 15.50. The Gyu Tan Don was our favorite, the thinly sliced beef tongue was tender, tender and well-seasoned with savory addictive seasoning, it is definitely so much better compared to the ones available in Jakarta.

Address:
Menya Ramen
Melbourne Central Shopping Centre, La Trobe St & Swanston Streets
Melbourne VIC 3000, Australia
Phone: +61 3 9328 8928
Map:

---

Jinda Thai
During our trip to Australia, we received so many tasty recommendations on where to eat and Jinda Thai is one of the most recommended places, since the restaurant is super popular and can be really packed during dinner time, we suggest you to make a reservation first.

Jinda Thai serves classic Thai food, every dish looks so appetizing and interesting we almost wanted to order everything!

Cha Yen (Thai iced milk tea) AUD 4

Som Tum Soft Shell Crab AUD 14.90
Refreshing young papaya salad with sweet and sour dressing and golden deep fried soft shell crab. A perfect dish to increase our appetite.

Nam Prik Fried Rice AUD 14.90
Aromatic Thai spicy shrimp paste fried rice served with sweet stir-fried beef, salted egg and fresh vegetable.

Pineapple Fried Rice
This one was also really good, turmeric based fried rice with amazing wok-fry aroma, fresh seafood and sweet juicy pineapple chunks. A delicious and filling sweet and savory combination dish.

Tom Yum AUD 17.90
Jinda Thai is really not joking with their Thai dishes, just like the tom yum soup, it was super rich with bold and spicy flavor, very hot yet addicting at the same time.

Grilled Marinated Pork Neck
Well marinated tender meat with amazing grilled aroma served with appetizing sweet and sour dipping sauce, omg I’m drooling already while writing this post.

Thai Tea Mille Crepe Cake
For a sweet ending, Thai Tea Mille Crepe Cake is a must not miss, layers of delicate crepe with light whipped cream drizzled with sweet thick Thai tea sauce and served with coconut ice cream.

The Thai dishes in Jinda Thai were nicely cooked and full of flavor, it was one of our memorable and favorite meals in Melbourne. We must say that Jinda Thai did a great job in creating the rich flavor of Thai food in Melbourne. Recommended!

Address:
Jinda Thai
1-7 Ferguson St, Abbotsford VIC 3067, Australia
Phone: +61 3 9419 5899
Map:

---

Om Nom Kitchen & Dessert Bar
AnakJajan visited Om Nom Kitchen & Dessert Bar for a dessert degustation session by chef Christy Tania. We tried several desserts, the desserts were pleasing both for the eyes and tummies, each plate of dessert has a very complex components in it resulting a very delectable taste.

My personal favorite dessert would be the cute mushroom-shaped dessert that is actually a berry sorbet with meringue, pannacota, lychee, rose water popping ball and other ingredients. Om Nom is definitely a place for unique and exquisite dessert creation.

Address:
Om Nom Kitchen
Adelphi Hotel, 187 Flinders Ln, Melbourne VIC 3000, Australia
Phone: +61 3 8080 8827
Map:

---

Princess Bridge
During the night, take a night stroll to Princess Bridge and enjoy the night view of Melbourne from the iconic bridge over Yarra river. It’s a great spot for touristy picture taking both during day and night.

Address:
Princess Bridge
Princes Bridge St Kilda Rd, Melbourne VIC, Australia

Map:

Oohh goshh, this post has become a very long post but I’m not finish yet, in fact I still have more places to eat and visit in Melbourne that I want to share (hint: instagenic places for photo taking, famous chocolate shops, etc), I” continue it on the second part https://anakjajan.com/2016/03/16/australia-melbourne-travel-guide-things-to-do-places-to-eat-and-visit-part-2-end/. Let’s Travel!!

http://www.australia.com/

If you guys are interested in visiting these places but you prefer a hassle free trip, you can check Avia Tour website http://www.avia.travel/ for more offer since Avia Tour is collaborating with Tourism Australia for special trip/tour offer to Australia.

Follow @AnakJajan for latest update:
A N A K J A J A N
INSTAGRAM | TWITTER | FACEBOOK

Don’t forget to subscribe/ follow our blog so you can get an update on your email about our new post.