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Spanish Club
Serving the area's Spanish community for over 25 years, the Spanish Club is now hosting bands and DJs between elderly citizens' meetings and salsa dance classes. The back Salon Room is beautiful, complete with fancy patterned carpet, and it's smoke-free. The front bar has good black vinyl booths to drink at, and - if it's Saturday - to eat a Matador Breakfast with Bloody Marys.
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Standard
The cheerfully dingy front bar is reserved for Fitzroyalty working on their pub suntans. This is where the telly is, and a bunch of knick-knacks collected over many years, including a mounted deer head and mounted Johnny Cash records. Which leaves the dining room and the glorious beer garden (replete with an automatic awning fitted with little heaters - genius).
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Sun Theatre
Gloriously restored to its art deco heyday, the Sun Theatre offers the most joyous cinema experience in town. The films are a judicious blend of arthouse and mainstream; seats are roomy and padded with pale green suede; sound is superb; and you're encouraged to fill your personal coffee table with tia maria choctops, nougat and champagne.
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The Greville
Time can easily melt away when you're ensconced in the surrealist décor of the Greville (formerly known as the Candy Bar), that harks back to Greville St's halcyon clubland heyday. A café by day, the DJs and drag queens move in of an evening - come watch the balls drop at drag bingo on a Monday night.
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Theatreworks
Theatreworks is a community theatre dedicated to supporting a range of arts practitioners. It's been around for 25-odd years and provides affordable theatre space to innovative and emerging artists.
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Ticketek
Ticketek is a ticket agency representing some headline acts, sporting events and big productions. It takes phone bookings, with credit-card payment. You can also book over the Internet, or visit a street outlet, including Rod Laver Arena (Batman Avenue) and the Princess Theatre (Spring Street) during office hours.
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Ticketmaster7
This is the main booking agency for major theatre and sports events, as well as headline concerts. Besides taking bookings by phone and over the Internet, Ticketmaster7 has a number of city outlets open during office hours, including Myer (275 Lonsdale St) and Telstra Dome (Gate 2, Bourke St), with entry via Spencer St.
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Tony Starr's Kitten Club
Ascend the lime-green stairs to the split-level world of Tony Starr. First stop, the Galaxy Lounge with its '50s-inspired cocktail-hour décor, open kitchen and weekend live cabaret. Or, company depending, climb the stairs again and stretch out and purr in the padded plushness of the Love Lounge.
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Tote
Last time we were here, the band was swinging from the rafters, dripping in sweat. The Tote has been belting out alternative music seemingly forever - the carpet is threadbare and the mosh area is literally a pit. There's live music in the back room from Tuesday to Sunday, or select a track from the Tote's jukebox, which is loaded with alternative faves.
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Town Hall Hotel
The Town Hall is an unfussy North Melbourne local. Typical of this area, bands are from the city's musical fringe. Live music is staged free in the front room from Thursday to Saturday. There's a beaut beer garden and super meals are also available.
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Transport
A people-watcher's paradise from any angle, this ultramodern pub is located at the city's transport hub, with views of the Yarra River, Flinders Street Station and Federation Square. It's big, brassy and busy, serving every drink imaginable, utilitarian pub food and entertainment: DJs, bands and beer-tasting nights (from the 150 varieties available). Look up and check out the beer's transport from the transparent elevated keg room.
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Troika
Troika has a loyal bunch of mostly older unconventional followers who get on board for the intimate, gimmick-free surrounds. It's about decent drinks and good tunes, with booths and bar stools set close - conducive to conversation. And if conversation is waning, the walls are usually adorned with interesting art works on which to comment.
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Ume Nomiya
Polite, subtle and neat, Ume Nomiya is the kind of bar you'd feel comfortable taking your mum - not that anyone does. Clean, healthy Japanese food comes from the kitchen upstairs. Locals make use of the Bottle Keep service, buying a whole bottle of their favourite whisky, sake or shochu (distilled alcohol, usually made from barley) brought out from behind the bar each time they visit. DJs make some lovely background noise.
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Union
Many come for a few, and end up making a night of it. There's a pool table and sit-down Space Invaders game, a courtyard and large dining room serving huge helpings of homy fare. Occasional entertainment, such as a wandering transvestite delivering witty repartee, raises money for various causes. It's the community equivalent of the raffle - without the meat tray. Instead, gold-coin entertainment lightens your wallet and your conscience.
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Veludo
It's big, it's brassy, and it's got a balcony. Over two levels, Veludo's relatively late closing means that most St Kilda-ites have ducked in here after everything else has closed. A dark and sultry way to lose a few hours, especially during the cooler months, when you can couch it next to a roaring open fire. Humdrum food runs till late.
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Vic
The masses of regulars who eat at Victoria St's restaurants were crying out for a postprandial bar. Finally, they got the Vic. Prop at the window with a digestif Amaro , or head further back, slouch in a couch and undo the top button to make room for a cleansing beer.
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Vineyard
Sure the bay's close by, but you can't help but wonder what a boatshed was doing on Acland St. The Vineyard, housed in an ex-government boatshed, sits on a too-good-to-be-true spot. From the courtyard barbecue area, backpackers, locals and young things mingle in view of the rickety scenic railway in Luna Park. Inside, there's room to boogie unless it's packed, which it often is.
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Windsor Castle
Those big Hawaiian-style grass umbrellas shading the beer garden out the back make you feel like you're part of a Barbie play set. Inside, cosy nooks, sunken pits, fireplaces and flocked wallpaper make the Windsor Castle well loved. Add to that fabulous food that surpasses the usual pub standards. The Castle gets particularly cramped on sunny Sundays.
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