George Street @ Fitzroy — Warehouse Warmth in Melbourne’s Original Inner North

A chic, brand-new two-bedroom apartment with lift access, in Melbourne’s oldest suburb and unofficial capital of doing your own thing. It’s light-filled with full-height windows and oak floors, built around a large open-plan lounge, dining and kitchen area, with exposed concrete pillars and ceilings giving it real warehouse bones rather than the usual new-build blandness.

The Space

120m², including a 21.5m² indoor/outdoor balcony.

What You Actually Get

The kitchen has high-end Swiss appliances, for the rare occasions you decide not to eat out — which, with Smith Street and Brunswick Street on your doorstep, may not happen often. There’s a well-appointed bathroom with a shower and basin, plus a separate toilet with its own hand basin, because nobody wants to queue for the loo on holiday. A dedicated workspace with a desk sits well away from the living area, for the days work genuinely refuses to leave you alone. Ducted heating and air-conditioning keep things comfortable, and there’s a 65″ 4K UHD Google TV with free Netflix for the nights the neighbourhood loses.

The Location, Without the Spin

With a Walk Score of 99, this is about as walkable as Melbourne gets — you’d have to try hard to need a car here. It’s a three-minute walk to the 86 tram at Johnston St/Smith St, and there are roughly 624 restaurants, bars and coffee shops in Fitzroy, which is either overwhelming or the best possible problem to have. George Street sits between Brunswick, Johnston and Smith Streets — three of inner Melbourne’s most iconic strips — so you’re spoilt for choice whatever mood strikes: fine dining, funky cafés, wine bars, rooftop bars, or a Lune croissant if you’ve got the patience for the queue. Rose Street Artists’ Market and the Fitzroy flea markets are both walkable too, and the CBD is a straightforward 20-minute walk or a quick tram ride down Brunswick Street. It’s also a short tram ride from St Vincent’s Hospital and the Epworth Freemasons, which makes it a genuinely useful base for visiting medical staff or family — not every Fitzroy apartment can say that with a straight face.

Where to Eat (We’ve Actually Been)

• Cutler & Co., Gertrude St — Fitzroy’s benchmark restaurant since 2009, and it still hasn’t put a foot wrong. Book ahead, dress up a little.
• Vegie Bar, Brunswick St — the easiest, most reliable plant-based room in the suburb. No fuss, no negotiating with a vegetarian in the group.
• Jim’s Greek Tavern, Johnston St — an institution for over 50 years. Go hungry, leave regretting nothing.
• Naked for Satan, Brunswick St — Spanish tapas downstairs, a rooftop bar upstairs, and a name that gets a reaction every time you mention where you’re headed.
• Lune Croissanterie — less a bakery, more a pilgrimage. Worth the queue at least once.

Parking, Sorted

Secure, reserved undercover parking for one car, accessed from the laneway behind the building (2.1m clearance). Though honestly, with everything this walkable, the car might just sit there looking smug.

Pet Friendly

No — pets can’t stay here, but plenty of our other properties are happy to roll out the welcome mat for four-legged guests.