AND ALSO…

IN SESSION

All the elements of a solid local restaurant – comfort, good service, deftly cooked food, well-priced wine – have been crossed off the list at

Congress (above). A clean-lined, two-level restaurant below a new Collingwood apartment building, it mixes current design tropes with warm hospitality and good booze. Dishes like a crumbed pig’s head sandwich, kangaroo pastrami with crisp onions, and Dutch spice cake with malt custard all encourage return visits. 49 Peel St, Collingwood, (03) 9068 7464

DREAM TEAM

This independent 57-seat cinema,

Thornbury Picture House, not only features a five-metre screen and top-notch sound system but is also one of the area’s best bars. The drinks list spotlights local brewers (Stomping Ground, 3 Ravens, Hawkers) and well-made Negronis and Aperol Spritzes. Umberto Espresso Bar supplies the snacks – antipasto, polpette, calamari fritti – and there’s batch-brew coffee from East

Brunswick roasters, Padre. 802 High St, Thornbury. (03) 9995 0040

THE PERFECT SPOT

A former carpark next door to fellow newcomer Bar Saracen is now home to

Sunda, a South East Asian restaurant where Khanh Nguyen (formerly of Sydney’s Mr Wong, Bentley and Noma Australia) pushes the boat out with his take on Indonesian, Malaysian and Vietnamese food. Roti is paired with a curry and Vegemite dipping sauce, raw scallops with andaliman pepper, and egg noodles with XO sauce, chicken crackling and pepperberry. One of the smartest new canteens in town. 18 Punch Ln, Melbourne, (03) 9654 8190