Contrary to popular belief, I am not an extravagant lass though perhaps you could be forgiven for thinking otherwise if you were to see my book and CD (remember those?!) collection. Being too old to wait for a kebab or the artery-clogging fast food post-clubbing on a particular night, I found myself at Bimbo Deluxe on Brunswick Street for someone’s going away. If you have even a remote interest in the edible, then you will have heard of the dimly-lit pizza palace-cum-bar. It occupies what was once the historic Punters’ Club (which even I am slightly too young to remember in its heyday).
The best thing about Bimbo’s is their cheap pizza. At nominated times, you can expect to pay $4 for them. I’m not a stranger to these cheap beauties – hey, one sharehouse I lived in even had a Bimbo Deluxe beer glass. Ah happy times. One chilly Melbourne night, someone who was friends with someone else was going away and thus I found myself at Bimbo’s after a long absence.
My cheap-arse dinner was the gorgonzola pizza. It has one of my favourite things ever on it: prosciutto. I literally snapped the pizza in half and proceeded to eat it bent. They have very thin, crispy bases and we were short on cutlery and napkins so it seemed a practical move.
To wash down my tasty dinner, I had a glass of the Bimbo-branded ‘homebrew’. Why lord, why? Why the lemon slice?! A friend told me that the venue doesn’t really brew their own beer but they buy it off someone who sells swill so that certain venues can pass it around as their own. The funny thing is, this wasn’t the cheapest beer there.
Quite a few in the party chose the agnello pizza though apparently could not taste the lamb promised on the menu. It was recommended to others contemplating ordering this that they pass. Apparently it tasted Mexican too though this didn’t seem to improve it.
One table passed around remnants of a vegetarian pizza which wasn’t received with much enthusiasm. However, there were oohs and ahhs of anticipation when a chocolate pizza came out. Oh yes, Bimbo’s do dessert pizza. Sadly, not as well as I recall. I know, it looks none too appetising, but it was okay. The pizzas really are a notch above your standard junk food fix. Nice once in a while, or to soak up the alcohol you’ll invariably keep drinking.
I somehow got talked into taking a shot and a chaser by my baby bro, and managed to cadge said drinks off him. Though of course, I ordered pots of the cheapest beer available (Boag’s Draught). After performing my sisterly duty of entertaining my adopted sibling by indulging said whim, I was driven home to contemplate what was apparently my initiation into a band of ginger-headed brothers. Don’t pretend you haven’t done something similar, or never ended up at Bimbo’s because I just won’t believe you. I’m sure it’s not the last visit I’ll pay the place.