By WENDY HARGREAVES
Everyone likes a bargain. Especially when it’s delicious.
Here are five of Melbourne’s best happy hours, chosen for their cheap drinks AND scrumptious food. Chin chin!
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Annam
- 56 Little Bourke St, Melbourne, (03) 9654 6627
- Chef Jerry Mai’s modern take on Vietnamese food is always worth a look, but it’s even better on weekdays from 5-7pm because her delectable chicken dumplings are just $1 each. The deep-fried chicken ribs are also $1 each, with $10 cocktails, $7 wines, $9 basic spirits and $7 Hanoi beer.
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Oysters at The Bot and Entrecôte
- Botanical Hotel, 169 Domain Rd, South Yarra, (03) 9820 7888
Entrecoté, 131-133 Domain Rd, South Yarra, (03) 9804 5468 - Love oysters? Two neighbouring venues on Domain Rd are offering a deal too good to resist, all enjoyed with views across Domain Rd to the Royal Botanic Gardens.
- The iconic Botanical Hotel offers freshly-shucked $2 oysters every day from 4-7pm, and all day on Sunday and Monday, along with $15 glasses of Billecart, $12 Aperol Spritzes, and $15 Negronis. Stay for a steak… they’re the best in Melbourne (IMHO).
- Up the street at Entrecôte, take a seat on the sunny deck and let the oh-so French staff serve freshly-shuck oysters at $2.50 a pop, washed down with $12,9 Mumm, every day from 4-6pm. The best day is Sunday, when French Jazz band La Nuit Blanche knocks out a few tunes.
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Naked For Satan
- 285 Brunswick St, Fitzroy, (03) 9416 2238
- With one of the best 360-degree views in Melbourne, this rooftop bar serves 90 cent oysters on Thursdays and Fridays from 5-7pm.
- But there’s an even better deal weekdays from noon-4pm and Sunday nights from 6pm. That’s when all meals are $11, from the baked camembert with truffle paste, chestnuts and ciabatta to the twice-cooked pork belly with apple, parsnip, drunken prunes and sage (normally $33).
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400 Gradi Yarra Valley
- Rochford Wines, 878-880 Maroondah Hwy, Coldstream, (03) 5957 3399
- This isn’t strictly a happy hour, but it’s an absolute bargain. Bottomless pizza and drinks for $45 every Friday night from 4pm-8pm at the 400 Gradi outpost at the bottom of the hill at Rochford Estate. Make sure you pre-book your two-hour pizza party, and take time to enjoy the spectacular Rochford property.
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The Moat
- 176 Little Lonsdale St, Melbourne, (03) 9094 7820
- Tucked beneath Melbourne’s iconic State Library, the Moat is the perfect place for a quiet drink and some nibbles. Weekdays from 4.30-6pm and Saturdays from 5-6.30pm, they serve $12 espresso martinis and gin martinis, $6 bottled beers and $7 schooners or glasses of wine. Enjoy your bargain drink with a generous farmer’s platter to share, with mushroom paté or Serrano ham, cheese, pickles, olives, almonds and pide for $24.