The Bottom End

The Bottom End

The Bottom End
579 Little Collins Street
Melbourne, VIC 3000
Ph: (03) 9629-3001
Website


When I joined Instagram back in April, I was told by She Who Takes The Majority of Photos around here, in no uncertain terms, that I was not allowed to start filling my posts with Instagrammed pics. That I shouldn't lazily let the filters do the work for me, whilst ignoring things like Composition, Lighting and that elusive "Rule of Thirds". (Full honesty: I still don't quite get how that rule works, all I know with any certainty is that it's terribly important to understand it before you even think about picking up a camera :P).

Kitchen at The Bottom End

However... we caught up with some friends for burgers and drinks at The Bottom End last Friday after work, and I enjoyed it so much that I just had to whip out my iPhone and take some pics so that I could share it with you, grainy Instagrammed pics be damned! So forgive my dependence on Instagram for this blog post - it was super-dark in there and I had to filter the bejeesus out of most of these pics just to make the items visible. Even if I'd had my SLR and low-light lens with me, there was no way I was going to whip it out to take composed shots, interrupting us while we were drinking, chatting and (maybe) throwing popcorn at each other. (Or more accurately, there was no way I was going to make Sandra whip out the SLR and take composed shots...)

Sometimes having a good time is more important than getting the perfect shot! I trust that these pics will effectively convey the deliciousness and fun we had!

Our booth

Throughout the week, we were in an email conversation trying to figure out where to go on Friday night when one of our friends said:

There's this place called The Bottom End... that serves BURGERS! which is meant to be awesome. It's underground and shiz.

I'd never heard of the bar before, but any description containing the word "BURGERS!" all in caps and with an exclamation mark is good enough for me. Yup, decision made! The Bottom End serves $10 burgers, as well as American diner food (think: buffalo wings, jalapeno poppers etc.), and cocktails. It's low-key and relaxed, with booths and friendly staff. They also have free popcorn. FREE! Total win! (Apparently there's meant to be free Wi-Fi but I didn't manage to find the connection). Upstairs they host dance nights Poof Doof and Survivor, and seem to have different food and drink specials on all the time. Phew!

Let's have a look at some of the drinks we enjoyed.

Caipirinha - cachaça, lime, sugar - $12

When I ordered this caipirinha, the barman asked me: "Have you had one of these before? Do you know they're quite strong?", to which I replied: "Er yes, that's why I ordered it!" Hehehe. I actually thought caipirinhas were already on the way to being passé - I wouldn't have thought they still need to come with a warning...?

Bloody Mary - vodka, tomato etc. - $14 ($5 during happy hours, between 12-5 every day)

Super cute Bloody Mary cup!

Espresso Martini - vodka, coffee & kahlua - $19

Yeah, so an espresso martini isn't technically a "real martini". Who cares? Real martinis taste terrible! And the fab combo of coffee and alcohol is exactly what I want on a Friday night after a long week.

Texas Panhandler - spiced rum, Dr Pepper, morello cherries, lemon - $12

Fucking Marvellous - raspberry vodka, crème de mure, berry puree, lemon juice, egg white - $18

The F***ing Marvellous tasted a lot more delicate than the name would have you believe - with its raspberry vodka, creme de mure and berry puree, it was a sweet, intensely berried drink.

Ok, so here's what I know you're all interested in: the food! We ordered a bunch of things to share, and they all came out very quickly. (Heads up: a girl I know told me she once waited up an hour for food to come out, so perhaps it varies depending on how busy they are.) Needless to say, the food is all perfect drinking food.

Hot 'n' cheesy jalapeno poppers - $10

These jalapeno poppers were a mix of sliced jalapenos and cream cheese, rolled into balls, crumbed and deep-fried. I can't say I was wildly taken with them, finding them a bit claggy. (And quick internet research reveals that normally jalapeno poppers are actually hollowed-out jalapenos, stuffed with cream cheese and then deep fried.)

Cheesy popper innards

I thought the burgers were great! I loved the fluffy buns and all the juicy, tasty fillings. They were a little smaller than expected, but on the plus side, I didn't feel gross after eating them, like I do when I eat a Grill'd or an Andrew's burger.

Classic Cheesy Bacon - grilled wagyu beef pattie, gruyere, monterey jack, bacon, pickle, tomato, lettuce and fry sauce - $10

I was in the mood for something spicy, and went for the Mexico City Chicken Cheeseburger.

Mexico City Cheese - cheese, jalapeno and corn-stuffed grilled chicken pattie, coriander salsa, lettuce & chipotle mayo - $10

According to the menu, the Mexico City Cheese burger comes with a 'jalapeno and corn-stuffed grilled chicken pattie', but I actually think mine had a potato-chip crumbed chicken pattie, (also on the menu), as it was really crunchy and I couldn't taste any corn. Either way, it was super yum!

House-spiced fries with fry sauce - $8

A nice hot bowl of meatballs - walnut & gorgonzola sauce - $10

Mormon Buffalo Wings - blue cheese sauce & celery - 3 for $9

My fave of all the little snacky things was the mac & cheese balls, which are exactly what they sound like: deep fried balls of mac & cheese. They were intense, but really really good, especially with a lick of garlicky aioli.

Mac 'n' Cheese Balls - garlic aioli - $10

I imagine you make these in much the same way you make arancini (a much more highbrow food!) - i.e. you'd make mac and cheese and let it get cold before rolling it into balls, crumbing and deep-frying it.

So that was The Bottom End! A really fun place to have drinks and snacks - the burgers were especially impressive. I think The Kodiac Club on Brunswick street, which has a similar American diner-style offering, serves food of a much higher quality, whereas The Bottom End's food is a bit more rough and ready. (The Kodiac Club's buffalo wings and house-made tortilla chips - OMG). However, the food at The Bottom End does the trick, the drinks are great and the atmosphere is chillaxed and fun. Win win win!

The Bottom End

The Bottom End
579 Little Collins Street
Melbourne, VIC 3000
Ph: (03) 9629-3001
Website


When I joined Instagram back in April, I was told by She Who Takes The Majority of Photos around here, in no uncertain terms, that I was not allowed to start filling my posts with Instagrammed pics. That I shouldn't lazily let the filters do the work for me, whilst ignoring things like Composition, Lighting and that elusive "Rule of Thirds". (Full honesty: I still don't quite get how that rule works, all I know with any certainty is that it's terribly important to understand it before you even think about picking up a camera :P).

Kitchen at The Bottom End

However... we caught up with some friends for burgers and drinks at The Bottom End last Friday after work, and I enjoyed it so much that I just had to whip out my iPhone and take some pics so that I could share it with you, grainy Instagrammed pics be damned! So forgive my dependence on Instagram for this blog post - it was super-dark in there and I had to filter the bejeesus out of most of these pics just to make the items visible. Even if I'd had my SLR and low-light lens with me, there was no way I was going to whip it out to take composed shots, interrupting us while we were drinking, chatting and (maybe) throwing popcorn at each other. (Or more accurately, there was no way I was going to make Sandra whip out the SLR and take composed shots...)

Sometimes having a good time is more important than getting the perfect shot! I trust that these pics will effectively convey the deliciousness and fun we had!

Our booth

Throughout the week, we were in an email conversation trying to figure out where to go on Friday night when one of our friends said:

There's this place called The Bottom End... that serves BURGERS! which is meant to be awesome. It's underground and shiz.

I'd never heard of the bar before, but any description containing the word "BURGERS!" all in caps and with an exclamation mark is good enough for me. Yup, decision made! The Bottom End serves $10 burgers, as well as American diner food (think: buffalo wings, jalapeno poppers etc.), and cocktails. It's low-key and relaxed, with booths and friendly staff. They also have free popcorn. FREE! Total win! (Apparently there's meant to be free Wi-Fi but I didn't manage to find the connection). Upstairs they host dance nights Poof Doof and Survivor, and seem to have different food and drink specials on all the time. Phew!

Let's have a look at some of the drinks we enjoyed.

Caipirinha - cachaça, lime, sugar - $12

When I ordered this caipirinha, the barman asked me: "Have you had one of these before? Do you know they're quite strong?", to which I replied: "Er yes, that's why I ordered it!" Hehehe. I actually thought caipirinhas were already on the way to being passé - I wouldn't have thought they still need to come with a warning...?

Bloody Mary - vodka, tomato etc. - $14 ($5 during happy hours, between 12-5 every day)

Super cute Bloody Mary cup!

Espresso Martini - vodka, coffee & kahlua - $19

Yeah, so an espresso martini isn't technically a "real martini". Who cares? Real martinis taste terrible! And the fab combo of coffee and alcohol is exactly what I want on a Friday night after a long week.

Texas Panhandler - spiced rum, Dr Pepper, morello cherries, lemon - $12

Fucking Marvellous - raspberry vodka, crème de mure, berry puree, lemon juice, egg white - $18

The F***ing Marvellous tasted a lot more delicate than the name would have you believe - with its raspberry vodka, creme de mure and berry puree, it was a sweet, intensely berried drink.

Ok, so here's what I know you're all interested in: the food! We ordered a bunch of things to share, and they all came out very quickly. (Heads up: a girl I know told me she once waited up an hour for food to come out, so perhaps it varies depending on how busy they are.) Needless to say, the food is all perfect drinking food.

Hot 'n' cheesy jalapeno poppers - $10

These jalapeno poppers were a mix of sliced jalapenos and cream cheese, rolled into balls, crumbed and deep-fried. I can't say I was wildly taken with them, finding them a bit claggy. (And quick internet research reveals that normally jalapeno poppers are actually hollowed-out jalapenos, stuffed with cream cheese and then deep fried.)

Cheesy popper innards

I thought the burgers were great! I loved the fluffy buns and all the juicy, tasty fillings. They were a little smaller than expected, but on the plus side, I didn't feel gross after eating them, like I do when I eat a Grill'd or an Andrew's burger.

Classic Cheesy Bacon - grilled wagyu beef pattie, gruyere, monterey jack, bacon, pickle, tomato, lettuce and fry sauce - $10

I was in the mood for something spicy, and went for the Mexico City Chicken Cheeseburger.

Mexico City Cheese - cheese, jalapeno and corn-stuffed grilled chicken pattie, coriander salsa, lettuce & chipotle mayo - $10

According to the menu, the Mexico City Cheese burger comes with a 'jalapeno and corn-stuffed grilled chicken pattie', but I actually think mine had a potato-chip crumbed chicken pattie, (also on the menu), as it was really crunchy and I couldn't taste any corn. Either way, it was super yum!

House-spiced fries with fry sauce - $8

A nice hot bowl of meatballs - walnut & gorgonzola sauce - $10

Mormon Buffalo Wings - blue cheese sauce & celery - 3 for $9

My fave of all the little snacky things was the mac & cheese balls, which are exactly what they sound like: deep fried balls of mac & cheese. They were intense, but really really good, especially with a lick of garlicky aioli.

Mac 'n' Cheese Balls - garlic aioli - $10

I imagine you make these in much the same way you make arancini (a much more highbrow food!) - i.e. you'd make mac and cheese and let it get cold before rolling it into balls, crumbing and deep-frying it.

So that was The Bottom End! A really fun place to have drinks and snacks - the burgers were especially impressive. I think The Kodiac Club on Brunswick street, which has a similar American diner-style offering, serves food of a much higher quality, whereas The Bottom End's food is a bit more rough and ready. (The Kodiac Club's buffalo wings and house-made tortilla chips - OMG). However, the food at The Bottom End does the trick, the drinks are great and the atmosphere is chillaxed and fun. Win win win!