Beci Orpin is a multidisciplinary artist, designer and author based in Brunswick, Melbourne whose broad practice is united by a signature application of colour, shape, and optimism. She has collaborated with major brands and organisations including Apple, Google and The Australian Ballet, as well as lectured and led workshops at national institutions, including the NGV, Craft Victoria and Melbourne Design Week. Beci has exhibited her work both locally and internationally, with solo exhibitions at Lamington Drive, and Shepparton Art Museum. Beci has authored and illustrated 11 books, and in 2024, completed her largest installation to date – Bunny Dearest, a giant soft toy rabbit, commissioned by the Immigration Museum.
Here’s how she Melbournes.
My local is The Sporting Club hotel. I love it when a pub is re-done but still has the right amount of pub-ness. This is around the corner from my studio and menu has pub classics but also some great seasonal specials – the food is really good, and the wine list too. Plus, it has three fireplaces and Thursday night meat tray raffle and I’ll pretty much always know someone there. Some of the constants I order are the hot-smoked trout hash entrée and the wombok salad, and they do a great schnitty, too. There was a great wallaby dish, but it was seasonal and has been taken off the menu now – I hope it comes back.
My favourite image or photograph of food and drink here is… My good friend (and recent Victorian!) Nadia Hernandez is Venezuelan/Australian artist who often uses themes of food and cooking in her work. In her last show at Station Gallery there was a painting of an orange which was meaningful and perfect. I missed out on buying it but it will remain in my memory forever.
If we’re talking outside Australia and if you’ll allow a sculpture, I’d also add any of Claes Oldenburg’s food sculptures – especially the Floor Burger and Dropped Cone.
The best new thing I’ve found is Princess Cake. I know it’s not a new thing, but the first one I ever tried was recently, at Dua Bakehouse. The colour and graphic nature of it definitely appealed to me, and the taste was very delicious too.
When I want to celebrate an occasion with a special meal, I hit Manzé. This North Melbourne gem is possibly the epitome of Naarm dining for me. Perfect cosy room, brilliant service and of course the food. In a world full of kingfish crudo entrées, Manzé’s tomato fritter (or whatever is on offer) is a refreshing celebration for the mouth. The menu is seasonal and changes, but they always have some kind of curry or biryani on the menu which is a joy. I’m a big salad girlie, too, and their locally grown green leaves are not to be overlooked. Also, one of the best sparklings I’ve ever tasted was handed to me by Nagesh [Seethiah, the chef and co-owner] on my last visit. Of course, I can’t remember what it was, but they do have an excellent wine list too.
When I want to show off the city to friends from out of town, I take them local and do a bit of Brunswick East–Lygon Street crawl. Snacks at Figlia (oysters, burnt carrot, cabbage skewer), dinner at Mankoushe (full banquet is a must, but if you’re full, the eggplant, shanklish and kebab are all heavy hitters), and drinks at Bahama Gold. Momento Mori’s Fist Full of Flowers by the glass for $10 is a true bargain! They make a mean Paloma too.
My favourite place to load up on supplies is Mediterranean Wholesalers. It’s one of the reasons we moved to Brunswick almost 20 years ago. Also, Vic Market for vibes and fun. At Med Wholesalers I’m getting their fresh pasta (cheapest I’ve found) and the bags of grated pecorino – we’ve been buying this since the kids were little and they still request it, and the apple pies from the café are a bargain. At the Vic we like the Asian grocers for freshest greens, Queen’s Harvest for their quality, Curds and Whey for butter, the egg shop for Milawa Poultry eggs, and the poultry shop for their free-range chicken (plus they also sell crocodile which we never buy, but it’s cool to know it’s there).
There’s no better value in the city than Juanita Peaches’ $15 weekday lunch specials! I’m biased – the owner of the establishment happens to be my better half, Raph Rashid – but the current version of the chicken burrito with chilli oil is a solid 11 out of 10.
And I wish more people would experience the excellence of adding whipped cream and Nutella sauce to any ice-cream! I usually go pistachio from Pidapipo or Piccolina – both have excellent add-ons.
My defining food moment in Melbourne was…I wouldn’t say it was a particular moment, but because I grew up in Melbourne in the dinner party era and had quite epicurean parents (Austrian stepfather, mother with experimental tastes), I was able to experience a wide range of foods from a young age. I have very early memories of eating rollmops and dill pickles, and various dishes from our Indian and Greek neighbours. My parents would also cook things like laksa and Thai curries. These were all exotic for a lot of Australia in the 1980s but because we lived in Melbourne, I was able eat those things and have those experiences.
If there was one thing I could change about eating and drinking in Melbourne it would be more Southeast Asian in the inner north! Please!
But the thing I hope never changes here is the diversity in both food cultures and price ranges, and that there is always something new and fun to eat and discover.
Catch Beci Orpin’s Comfort Zone exhibition at Melbourne Design Week, designweek.melbourne/event/comfort-zone, and follow her wider adventures at @beciorpin.