Our guide: Best shopping in Fitzroy & Collingwood

Our not so secret spots for your weekend city break in Melbourne. From Fitzroy and Collingwood's best coffee, iconic pubs, markets and delis.

To the best vintage shops, fashion and homewares.

Stay, eat, drink, shop and relax like a local in our 'hood.

 

Shopping in Fitzroy is best done by wandering and discovering. It's eclectic retail mix is focused on local independent designers, art, vintage fashion, furniture and book stores.

Walking the loop from Brunswick Street, to Gertrude street, down to Smith street and back along Johnston Street will help you find most of the gems. 

FITZROY MARKETS

To get your weekend started make your way down to Rose Street Artists Market and The Fitzroy Mills just off Brunswick Street.

A great stop for shopping local artists and jewellery makers, fresh veg and flowers, second hand fashion and a buzzing weekend market atmosphere.

 

VINTAGE CLOTHES & FASHION

Traditionally Melbourne's creative heart and soul - Fitzroy is home to an eclectic mix of designer boutiques, independent fashion labels, and some of Melbourne's best vintage clothing shopping.

You'll find Lost and Found Market, American Vintage, Hunter Gatherer and other second hand fashion stores along Brunswick Street. Assembly Label's Brunswick street store has their re-worn boutique, to pick up pre-owned pieces for great prices.

The fabulous Vintage Garage and Shag are both not to be missed on Smith Street. And Rose Chong's iconic costume hire shop on Gertrude street.

Local labels Suku, Ansdorf, Gorman, and Bùl all have their flagship stores in Fitzroy. And if you're looking for designer labels stop in at The Standard Store on Gertrude.

 

FURNITURE & INTERIORS

Similar to it's fashion - Fitzroy loves it's interiors vintage and eclectic too.

Smith Street has Grandfather's Axe, Modern Times, Angelluci and Smith Street Bazaar for showrooms full of beautiful mid-century, modern and antique furniture and art.

I love Nook Vintage and have fitted out my apartment with their up-cycled vintage furniture sourced from all over Victoria and lovingly restored by the owners.

Maa Interiors on Johnston Street where you can shop Jacquie's earthy and eclectic homewares sourced from all over the world.

And of course there's us! The Nouvelle Nomad studio for Melbourne's home of vintage Moroccan rugs and handmade artisan wares.

EATING & DRINKING

We’re lucky to live in the middle of a concentrated area of some of the most diverse, and best quality eateries in Melbourne. Built by the waves of migrant communities, coffee snobs, and influential restauranteurs that make Melbourne the internationally recognised city that it is for food and dining.

If you’re in the mood for traveling with your taste buds you’ll find some of the best European style cafes, modern vegetarian concepts, gastro pub meals and Asian eats all within a few kms.

For a quick bite, line up to grab a crispy pork Báhn Mì from any number of Vietnamese cafes and bakeries as you hit the pavement for a day of shopping.

Stop in at Tortas and Tacos for street tacos and a beer in the sunshine.

Or head to Nico's Sandwich Deli for New York style sandwiches, coffee and take away bloody marys. A newcomer to Fitzroy during lock downs, Nico's has a lunch time queue up the street, feeding the masses from a hole in the wall, and is now a popular local’s corner hang.

It’s pretty hard to find a bad coffee in Fitzroy. Try Archies, Industry Beans or Burnside for a coffee stop and some breakfast.

Or head to Terror Twilight for a great veggie breaky or lunch with tunes on vinyl, healthy broth bowls, and a “mushroom mind’ addition to your latte for clarity and calm.

CIBI - is a must visit, beautiful Japanese design space, cafe and concept store. An expansive warehouse in the back streets of Collingwood serves a Japanese inspired breakfast or lunch, and plenty of tables available to pull out your laptop or notebook and stay a while.

Shop beautiful Japanese knives and artisan ceramics, imported sake and produce, gift packs, and design lead books while you’re there.

Alimentari - Is a long standing Melbourne food institution. European style deli with shelves stacked with produce and deli goods, and some of the best coffee, paninis, and porchetta rolls going round.

They have 2 locations, Brunswick Street for more corner cafe style, and the larger Smith Street venue. Take a seat in the floral canopied courtyard out the back and order a vino with with your meal.

Napier Quarter - In the back streets of Fitzroy amongst the historic old chocolate factory buildings and brick warehouses built for industry back in the day, that are now full of bougie appartments.

A typical Fitzroy heritage blue stone building turned Euro style corner cafe. Stop by for a glass of wine and charcuterie plate in a cute window seat or the cafe tables out the front.

FITZROY PUBS

And of course - You can’t visit Fitzroy without visiting the best of Melbourne’s pubs, all in the space of a few blocks.

There’s an iconic pub on just about every corner - all dating back to modern Melbourne’s industrial beginnings, and with the old UK style front bar, dining room, open fires and sunny courtyards. 

With all the sticky carpet, footy memorabilia, urban cowboy bar-flies, and tattooed uni students pouring your beer that makes Fitzroy Fitzroy.

Some of the most iconic and locally loved pubs to try are:

The Standard - the local’s local. Biggest outdoor beer garden in Fitzroy so it's great for groups and relaxed pub meals

The Napier old school front bar and "Fitzroy heritage" decored dining room with open fire in Winter

The Marquis of Lorne affectionately known as the MOL. Great for a pint out the front, or a dinner with friends in the dining room upstairs.

The Builders Arms for an elevated pub lunch or dinner, and great wine list on Gertrude street.

REST

If all you’ve done is eat and drink for days (no judgement - that’s all I seem to do in Melbourne) you may want some time out to just be.

Fitzroy Swimming Pool is our local Summer time hang - set yourself up for the afternoon for a full Fitzroy cultural immersion, with the parade of locals sporting full body tattoos, budgie smugglers and hangovers. And then there’s the people there for actual swimming.

Sense of Self - inner city haven where they’re bringing back the ritual of communal bathing. A serene and calming warehouse conversion full of plants and natural light, with beautiful minimalist design, indoor heated plunge pools and steam rooms to relax in.

It's heaven for a few hours of calm.

And if you fancy a bit of yoga to round out your weekend, Good Vibes studio in Collingwood is beautiful - can highly recommend.

With it’s light space, minimalist style interior and zen rock garden. Classes are done to beautifully created playlists, mats are provided so it's easy to do a pop in, and with some great teachers.

So that's our tour of some our favourite spots in Fitzroy and Collingwood - What have we missed..?!

There's so much to Fitzroy and Collingwood that you should absolutely plan to spend a long weekend here exploring.

We look forward to welcoming you to our Fitzroy studio when you're here!

109 Victoria Street Fitzroy

Open Thursday to Sunday