bar corvina - 157 fitzroy street st kilda 3182 9537 0244

the food is too fancy-schmancy for this place to call itself a bar, but then again, the drinks were too bloody good for it to call itself a restaurant. suggesting a pre-dinner gin and tonic before we'd even sat down was a gratifying surprise, and when the drinks arrived, we had to award them two very enthusiastic thumbs up for the tall glasses, reasonable sized lemon (why do bars feel compelled to fill your glass up with fruit? probably the same reason mcdonalds fills your coke up with ice), and a straw for the girls but of course not for blokes.

you're made to feel pretty special in the back part of the restaurant, all white linen and silver, but if you were dining on the wooden tables at the front you might feel like a bit of a pleb. and if you're seated at the bar, you're probably one step away from the streets. we liked the comfy booths.