Some of the best meals of my life have been enjoyed in narrow alleyways or gobbled in cramped spaces. Forget the white linen tablecloths or awe-inspiring views; exceptional moments can be found on a street corner or drunk from a plastic cup.
This is where the intangible beauty of context comes in. A night market in Melbourne conjures images of endless lines and sold-out signs. A night market in Thailand? My idea of heaven. A food court in Melbourne? No thanks. But a food court in Singapore? You'll have to hold me back by the scruff of my neck like a manic dog.
Service, context, and environment are as crucial as food and drink. This is where we finally get to Byrdi, which while arguably one of our city's most decorated cocktail bars, is located inside a food court.
When you get to Byrdi, you'll no doubt check the address, like I did, to ensure you're at the correct location. Surrounded by polished kiosks, this food court is a cut above the school holiday food courts of your nightmares. But still.
The bar is earth-toned and sleek, with a good mix of natural materials. If the number one bullet point in the design brief was "calming", then they've nailed it. It's ambient and peaceful, an oasis among the chaos of Melbourne Central.
The brainchild of owners Luke Whearty and Aki Nishikura, who together have over 20 years of experience and almost the same number of awards, Byrdi's ethos is about adaption, evolution and inspiration. Their menu rotates seasonally and changes day to night. The day menu is more limited, but even with six cocktails, we're spoilt for choice, so deciding on one of each is the way to go.
Unsurprisingly, the cocktails are beautiful. Each is in its respective glassware, topped with individualised garnishes and in various shades. They remind me of a tray of pastries suitable for Marie Antoinette, each bespoke, considered and elegant.
The Nice One Gary ($23) is an immediate favourite. Lacto-fermented Valencia orange with Australian bitters and Davidson plum is fluffy, acidic and bright – like drinking sunshine. The sprinkling of vacuum-dried plum on top looks wonderful against the bright orange drink and adds an invigorating tartness.
The Iced Coffee ($20) is made with frozen nut milk, Byron Bay pour-over and toasted koji. It's refreshing and creamy, and my dining partner and I agree it would make the perfect morning replacement for our usual summer iced latte.
We didn't have a single unimpressive drink at Byrdi, and you most certainly won't either. That said, sometimes the bold, innovative ingredients and flavour profiles don't quite translate exactly as you'd expect.
The Dier Maker ($25), for example, combines distilled sheep's milk, reduced oak, shio koji and mountain marigold – ingredients that promise a thrilling tasting experience. Yet, despite the adventurous blend, the result tastes as familiar as a pet nat. This isn't a bad thing, of course – but in a bar filled with laboratory-esque equipment, glass beakers, delicate tweezers and intriguing dried goods, some visitors may expect more daring dances across the palate.
Like the cocktail menu, the food menu is more edited during the day. Although they don't have the flamed chicken fat oysters I was dying to try, I console myself with the potato cake ($16) and prawn toast ($20). The potato cake is crispy, more-ish and light. Topped with salt and vinegar saltbush, it's a superb push and pull of acidity and salt, with the delicate layers of mild potato providing the perfect textural vehicle.
The prawn toast is exceptional. Springy prawns sandwiched between two pieces of deep-fried sesame toast and smothered in pepperberry mayo create the best rendition I've ever had of this woefully underappreciated snack.
The service at Byrdi is also a highlight. The staff is generous, patient and exceedingly knowledgeable. What could be a pretentious bar is instead a warm and appealing environment.
This brings us back to our initial conundrum: the location. When I ask the generous, patient and exceedingly knowledgeable staff about the positioning, they remind me that owner Luke Whearty founded the acclaimed cocktail bar Operation Dagger (which has since closed) in Singapore.
Singapore is, of course, famed for its hawker centres, where globally renowned food is served not on white tablecloths but in food courts. Whearty wanted to bring this holism to Byrdi and Melbourne, and I'm now profoundly moved by his endeavour. As someone who regularly complains about Australia's lack of street food culture, I tip my hat to Whearty and Nishikura, who are taking steps to shift our cities' rhetoric about context and environment.
Why should we not enjoy world-class cocktails and exemplary prawn toast when seeing a movie or doing a spot of shopping? In the famed words of Mia Agraviador, "Porque no los dos?".
Time Out Melbourne never writes starred reviews from hosted experiences – Time Out covers restaurant and bar bills for reviews so that readers can trust our critique.