Today's adventure took us into Fitzroy, an inner suburb of Melbourne, to a restaurant called Bimbo Deluxe. The word deluxe in the title most certainly does not describe the building itself, but the pizza was fantastic, quite possibly the best food I have eaten down under that involved the children. Sitting out in the rooftop courtyard under a sunny sky contributed to making it a memorable experience.
We had been warned ahead of time not to be fooled by the dilapidated paint job of the exterior.
The interior was not much of an improvement, at least until we made it to the rooftop:
I could not begin to do justice to all of the offerings on the menu. A sampling of some of the more unusual toppings includes spiced lamb, sultanas, saganaki, tuna, eggplant, mascarpone, taleggio, potato, baby octopus, prawns, and roasted pumpkin.
Below is the Caesar salad pizza. Its toppings were listed as bacon, anchovies, egg, baby cos, parmesan, and dressing. I had only a sliver of a piece, but have decided we must return so I can order a whole one next time.
Katie ordered a pizza with lemon, lime, bacon, tamoto, garlic, spinach, and green onion. While she claims to have liked it, the word she chose to describe it is "interesting," a word that I have often counseled her to use when she is not sure of her opinion but feels the need to be diplomatic.
Predictably, the younger three all chose Margherita pizza, with the addition of ham.
I opted for the Tallegio, which included tomato, taleggio (a semi-soft, washed-rind Italian cheese that I had never heard of before today), roasted potato, and rosemary.
Incredibly, the pizzas were only $4 each. It hardly seems that it could get better than what I have described thus far, but Bimbo also serves dessert pizza. We sampled a slice of the dark Belgian chocolate and mascarpone pizza shown below. It alone would have made the trip worthwhile.
Ross is quite envious of our pizza experience, which means our return trip might happen sooner rather than later.
WOW!! Almost heaven!
I love that you didn't let the outside of the building turn you away. What a great camoflage! Just think, if they fixed up the outside then they would have to charge more for the pizzas. :)
Posted by: Suzanne Pannelle | 08/17/2010 at 10:26 PM
Next time you visit, ask them if they deliver to the U.S.LOL I agree with Suzanne that you didn't let the outside turn you away. I love when you find hidden gems like that!
Posted by: Nikki | 08/18/2010 at 03:50 AM
WOW!!!!! That's some pizza ! I'm afraid I'm in with the three younger kids !
Sure glad someone told you about the roof-top !
What a wonderful , fun day .
Posted by: janetjames | 08/18/2010 at 08:38 AM
Wow (mouth watering here!), that looks amazing! And where are their chain branches in the US? Are you taking in visitors...I wish that I could come visit and we could have lunch there! Thanks for putting in the time and effort for this blog. I'm really enjoying it!
Posted by: Nicldavis | 08/19/2010 at 12:26 AM
Oh yum! Yum, yum, yum, yum, yum. That pizza looks sooooooo good, Christie!
Posted by: Shanda | 08/19/2010 at 12:27 AM
Ok, I want it on the next pizza run. Now that's the kind of places I've been longing to find. We'll have to do it w/o kids due to Jaden's allergies - but I'm not against finding a sitter and joining you and Ross for a date on the roof of a total dive. Let's do it!!!
Posted by: Crystal Keller | 08/25/2010 at 01:08 PM