Not your typical Italian Lygon Street eatery, no, no, St Charly gets its inspiration from the Mediterranean, Middle Eastern flavours. It is a perfect place for breakfast, lunch or dinner, a date or a solo meal, a meeting or a get together with friends and drinks.
The cafe is modern in design, classic in colour. Matte black frameworks surround a white crisp setting. Overhanging plants give the place a breathable atmosphere and a life of its own. There’s just enough exposed brick to warm the ambience and even the awning out front is a black and white lined design to emphasise exactly what you’re walking into.
The menu at St Charly is an amalgamated array of spices, aromas, tastes and exotic ingredients. Using mostly local suppliers. The bread, baked to perfection, is from Rustica Bakery. Varied goods from Istra, and meat from Donati’s Fine Meats right there on Lygon Street.
The smell, as you enter, is what really gets you. Walking in you immediately get a coffee and sweet-filled mist that seems to paint the air and your senses. It’s inviting, and the smiles from the staff keep the theme going. You sit, you order, you relax, and you eat and drink and have yourself a wonderful experience.
We all know that Lygon Street isn’t scarce when it comes to cafes and restaurants. It is one of Melbourne’s go-to streets. Italian places are plentiful here. So, it’s a pleasure to see something that truly does stand out. It doesn’t bend to the knee, or duplicate, or try and compete with what Lygon is known for. It merely does its own unique thing and does it well.
St Charly is a perfect date spot. Its open spaces include some pretty nice little hidden tables. It can be cosy yet non-intrusive, casual yet dressy. I think perhaps it’s all down to the colours. That black and white theme, mixed in with just the right amount of warm brick and cool greens. It lets you do the talking. You decide and they’ll provide.
Bon Appetite.
Address
306-308 Lygon St, Carlton VIC 3053
Contact
(03) 8682 9109
Opening Hours
Monday – Friday: 7 am – 4 pm
Saturday – Sunday: 8 am – 4 pm
