Carillon City Shop M13B 207 Murray St PerthWestern Australia6000 (08) 9486 1777
Opening Hours: Mon - Thur 9:00am - 5:30pm; Fri 9:00am - 9:00pm, Sat 9:00am - 5:00pm; Sun 12:00pm - 5:00pm
Darling Nail Salon is located just by Llama Espresso, on the ground level in the Carillon City. The salon is quite large, with 7 awesome looking massage-chairs for pedicure, very comfortable, and six tables for manicures, all of them double, plus the dry-off stand. The salon is always clean and well kept, tastefully decorate, and it has an air of brand new that I really like.
I have been several times to this salon, every time without appointment, just walked in, and I have always been attended to extremely well and got a great service. Unlike other places around, they have never skipped steps in my pedicure, and I have left with my feet looking splendid, better than after visiting more reputed salons that have the "de-luxe" attached to the treatment. They use OPI polishes, which are my favourite brand.
The main downsides of the places are: 1/ They don't focus much on the massage. This is never a problem to me, as I prefer them to invest their time in my feet that in providing a mediocre or bad massage to my legs. 2/ Like most salons in Perth, you can find the selection of colours a bit limited, and some of them a bit dry and thick. 3/ I have seen some mani-pedi done at the same time, which looks greats in the movies, but is a bit too much for the person having it done. Perhaps they were in a hurry and asked for that?
Their pricing is standard for nail treatments in Perth.
Service is matter of fact, still courteous. If they aren't flooded with visitors, they really spend a lot of time with your feet and do things with care.
430 Fitzgerald St North Perth Western Australia 6006 (08) 9328 2944 Website
Formerly located on Beaufort St, Crystal Eyes is a family owned and operated optometry currently located on Fitzgerald St, just in front of North Perth Plaza, and beside the Red Cross Op Shop.
There is nothing flashy about this business: small entry, corner location, no window display, small shop, but this is a lovely welcoming business that treats customers with attention and friendliness, and does what it supposed to do without pushing you into buying or ignoring you while you are inside.
The young guys who run the shop do a terrific job at getting your eyes tested, your glasses done, fitted and adjusted, and at fixing and repairing anything that your old glasses might need. Usually, repairs are done on the spot, fast, and at terrific prices.
Pricing of the frames are usually high, with a mix of Australian and European brands, available. They have a stylish mix of colours and styles, but, to be fair, I have found nothing funky here.The edgy shape of the shop might trick your eyes as it looks like the frames on display are very few, but there are many more in the drawers and around the corner. Most glasses are ready in a day. However, some transition and special lenses are made interstate and you might have to wait for 10 working days to get them back. They will SMS when you have them ready, though.
I think they do not sell sunnies, unless they are prescription's, but I am not completely sure!
Service has always been terrific.
They have Hycaps payments available, and they deal with most private health insurance providers.
They need to improve their website and include their opening hours in it.
Cockburn Central Train Station is a two-platform train station in Jandakot served by the Mandurah Train Line. The station is sandwiched between the Kwinana Freeway on the left side, and the Success Park 'n' Ride bus Station on the right side.
The Station is well designed and organized, practical, clean, and comfortable for commuters: There is a spacious seating area on the ground and a lift and an escalator to access the exit on the upper floor. You can use your legs, if you want, because there is a normal staircase, as well.
The Cockburn Train Station has almost anything that you would like to have or you might need to use in a small train station: electronic information panels, written timetable, written info about ticket prices, multi-rider recharge machines, ticket machines, money exchange machine (one of those to you put a banknote and you get that amount in coins), a public telephone (yes, they still exist!), and, at the end of the covered passage, there is an EFPTOS machine and a coffee machine, as well as the public toilets. There is a security booth on the upper floor (hurrah!) and another one, on the ground level.
The covered passage on the right side, while exiting, leads to the Bus Station's two platforms, as well as to a small shopping area across the road. The Cockburn Gateway Shopping Centre is a few hundred metres further down; you can take bus 527, which takes you right there.
The toilets are the only downside of the place - small, ugly-looking, run down and kept just OK. They need an overhaul. The Buses connect the station with Hammond Park, Murdoch Station, Fremantle Station, and other areas in the Success-Jandakot area. MIND - Cockburn, is pronounced "Cohbarn".
300 Walcott Street Menora Western Australia 6050 (08) 9272 5787 Hours: Mon - Fri: 7:00 am - 3:00 pm Sat: 8:00 am - 3:00 pm Sun: 8:30 am - 1:30 pm Under new management, BROTHER is a decent unpretentious well-priced café away from the buzz of Beaufort street.
There is nothing flashy or new vogue about BROTHER. The place is small, with comfortable indoor and alfresco areas. The ambience is a bit mismatched and uninspired, still welcoming, the main decoration being the photos for sale on the walls; the woody corner on the
right upon entrance is, on the contrary, truly charming, and it is a pity that the whole place is not like that.
Brother's coffee is very good. I am not a fan of Toby State beans in general, but they do a great job with them here, and the coffee is well-prepared, smooth and creamy. Mugs available!
Their food is a mix of Australian favourites with a emphasis on Mediterranean dishes for lunch. I love their specials, which are the ones that bring me back to Brother. I loved their White Wine Seafood Linguine, which were not only tasty, but full of chunky pieces of seafood. Their old-style home-made bowl pies were absolutely tasty and filling, although a bit soggy. Their Feta and Spinach Ravioli were also lovely. On the contrary, I found their Peas & Scallop Risotto bland. Serving sizes vary depending on the dishes.
They have also have a nice selection of cookies, cake slices and muffins baked on the house, sometimes still warm when you order, like the strawberry friand in the photo.
The service has always been terrific regarding friendliness, speed, modifications and adjustments of the menu. All the staff and the young couple of owners are truly welcoming, humble, honest and hard-working.
The place attracts a varied
group of people from all ages, families included, but mostly quiet people looking for a place where you can eat and talk at the same time without having to yell. They have several copies of the daily newspaper available for customers, which is always a big tick in my list.
One of the main downsides of the place is their limited opening hours during the weekend, days that usually bring more customers to any restaurant. I have gone on a Saturday and the kitchen was closed at 2.30pm, and 1pm on a Sunday, so I went and spent my money elsewhere. They open the whole week, and it is understandable, but perhaps closing another day of the week and having extended hours during the weekends might pay off.
MIND - They are starting to open in the evenings for dinners some days of the weekend.
BONUS - Free WIFI.
FIX IT - Last time I was there, the knob lock of the toilet self-opened. My bottom is sacred. Yelp!
ACTIVATE IT - The former website is no longer operational. Their Facebook account has been untouched or very quiet for months. They could easily post here the specials of the week or extra info about events, change in opening times, hours when the kitchen closes and so on.
Beside North Perth Plaza 391 Fitzgerald St North Perth Western Australia 6006 (08) 9227 8020 Website Hours: Mon-Thu 11:00 - 20:00
Located on the left side of the main entrance to the North Perth Plaza, Ecco! is a very small unpretentious restaurant with a lovely alfresco area that is very popular and sought after when the weather is good.
Ecco! is one of those
underrated unpretentious real Italian restaurants that specialises in
wood-fired pizzas (oil and tomato sauce based) and classics of the Italian Cuisine like tomato-based
gnocchi, pasta, lasagna, cannelloni, arancini, and meat dishes, and a few antipasti prepared in the house. This is not a sophisticated new-vogue Italian cuisine, there is no fancy stuff here, just traditional Italian recipes. As the old man told me,
"I have no studies, I am no chef, but I can cook Italian food as in the
old days". That is a big thumbs up for me. The place is quiet
during the day, but it is a regular spot for first and second generation
Italians, a fact that always shows that the food served there is
authentic.
The Pasta alle Vongole is the best dish I have eaten there, and one the best PALV that I have eaten in Perth in the last years. Pasta al dente, flavoursome, with the right amount of everything. Perfect. And the serving was huge.
On the contrary, the Pappardelle al Ragu were average, not al dente, and lacked a bit in flavour. Very much the so-so thing I prepare at home myself.
Their pizzas I have
tried here are very nice and flavoursome, with a thin crisp base, and
traditional simple ingredients, and no added sauces. Wood-fired ovens
really give the pizza an unique flavour and texture that makes of any pizza a good pizza. They serve breakfast from Friday to Sunday, and they have a mix of traditional Australian favourites with more Italianized bites.
The servings of most dishes are really generous, man-sized, and you won't leave hungry. You will probably leave with a doggy bag. Pizzas are on the medium size, not too big, not to small.
The staff are friendly and attentive. It seems to be a family operated business, with some extra hands at the kitchen. The place has three main downsides, which, in a way explains why they don't have a larger clientele. The first one is that the place it is a bit Spartan and lacks a bit in character; people love old traditional trattorie, just because of their charm, so they could just give their place the feeling of one of those. Just saying. The second one is that the place is just a BYO. The third one is that the price of some of the pasta dishes is a bit expensive taking into account that the ingredients used in some recipes don't cost much.
Ecco! is not a fancy place, but it is perfect for quiet munchers looking for simple traditional Italian recipes and pizza.
MIND - They do take-away - Hurrah.
FIX IT - Their website is very minimal and needs a bit of update. There is not reference whatsoever to opening hours. Also, the takeaway menu link corresponds to the fixed menu link, and vice versa.
The Savage Planet, also called The Fantastic Planet, is an allegorical science-fiction animated movie about morality and the established social order.
The story is set in the dystopian planet of Ygam, where the Draggs, a species of giant blue humans, rule. There is another human species, the Oms, tiny in size, whom the Draags consider a pest and exterminate regularly, keeping some some of them as pets. Terr, one of those pets, is found and kept in captivity by a girl called Tiva. He grows with her master, learns all the secrets of the Draags, and then...
The universe and atmosphere created by Laloux are superb. Mix Salvador Dalí surreal landscapes and imagery, Bosch architectural fanciness
and oniric creatures, add a hint of 19th century botanical
drawings, slowly pour some psychedelic music by Alain Goraguer, and whisk all
energetically with an allegorical story adapted from Stephan Wul's by Laloux and Roland Topor, and you get something unique. The 2-D animation has all the limitations that the genre had in the 1970s, but the creativity and artistry of the drawings and story will make you forget the deficiencies of the animation (especially clear in the poor mobility and reduced facial expression of the characters). Some of the scenes are memorable, and I especially liked the Draag's mating and meditation practices, and some of Tiva's learning trances.
The movie is not apt for children because it has violence, sex, nudity, and elements that are difficult to explain to children. The movie, indeed, touches many adult serious themes: slavery, class
domination, racial extermination, relationship between Theology and Science, relationship between Humans and Nature, cohabitation/conflict between different social systems, colonial and imperialistic attitudes. The movie is complex enough to offer many elements of reflection without being dogmatic, and the viewer will be surprised at finding oneself understanding the good and bad points in both societies and ways of acting and living.
The main problem with the movie is its slow pace, and the emotional frigidity of the characters that don't allow the viewer to empathize with them beyond a pure intellectual or visual level. Furthermore, there is not enough action or thrill, so one gets easily bored after the initial fanciness of the imagery sinks in.
The Fantastic Planet is weird, artistic, psychedelic (even hallucinogenic), naive and delightful, but not always engaging - one of those movies that you want to watch because it is like no other, and sounds too cool not to have in your watched-movies list. The movie wan Cannes Jury's award in 1974.
207 Murray Street Carillon City Murray St Level Perth 6000 Western Australia Ph: 08 9321 0110 Website Facebook Opening Hours Mon-Fri: 9:00am - 5:30pm Sat: 9:00am - 5:00pm Sun: 11:00am - 5:00pm Dusk is an Australian franchise selling candles, melts, aromatic essential oils and burners, room perfumers, and anything related to the world of candles and aromatherapy, like oil burners, vaporisers, ethanol fireplaces, and mood reeds. They also have a few gift items, silicone flowers and glass vases. Their candle products are produced in their factory in Western Australia.
This Dusk shop is very small, but packed to the rafters. They always have colourful catchy displays at the entrance, and the inner shop is, despite being crowded, aesthetically pleasant, well organised and the products are beautifully displayed.
I especially love their essential oils blends, which are fragrant but without being overpowering, and cheaper than other brands. I also like some of their individual candle holders, or packs of three, which can be truly cute, pretty and sometimes even artistic, and are usually well priced. Although they have tons of things, I find the style of their oil burners a bit limited.
The girls at the shop
are lovely every time I have visited, and attend to you with
great diligence, affability and friendliness. They leave you browse around, if that is what you want. They are very
knowledgeable about what they sell and about the world of candles in general. They
always give customers two free leaflets: "Aromatherapy. A guide to use,
care and safety", and "Your guide to use, care and product safety".
Pricing of most products is mid range,
not cheap but not expensive either. The only thing I found pricey were
the normal tea candles, which can be found at a fraction of the price at
your local IGA.
Dusk Carillon is perfect for a quick visit for your refills during your lunch break if you happen to work in the CBD, and one of those places where you can find a nice gift for a female friend or relative for not much money.
MIND - The aisle space is very reduced, so mind your arms and handbags or you break something!
