We were in the north of Western Australia and chatting with friends that we’d met on the road. They were from Perth and were talking longingly of visiting Melbourne.

“Oh”, we cry with delight “We must take you to a gastro pub.”

Our new friends stare at us in shock and horror.

Melburnians are indeed proud of their Gastro pubs. Tired old hotels are given a makeover and a top chef is employed to produce high quality gastronomic meals. Fine food is served in a pleasant and somewhat refined atmosphere and patrons will happily travel across town just to judge the fare of a ‘new’ pub.

Our new friends? Well we haven’t seen or heard from them since, so they’ve probably passed through Melbourne very quickly for fear of being struck down by dysentery.