Bebida

Food, staff, and atmosphere is amazing! Good beers on tap and they now have a taco Wednesday! Great place to visit and awesome local:) I’ll be back again and again!

I recently went to Bebida again, after a bit of a sojourn, to find it newly renovated and just as lovely as it’s always been.
Depending on the time of day you go, Bebida can be anything. On a summer arvo they have all the floor length windows open, along with happy hour specials and small snack plates. It’s a great place for a lazy summer Saturday arvo.
In the evenings there are often bands playing, which range from intimate acoustic shows to more energetic bands that you just have to dance to.
There’s only one beer on tap, but they have a full bar and the food is great.

Quieres una bebida? –Si, oh si!
I’m practically fresh off the boat, so I don’t know places, hoods, or anything quite yet. I’m not exactly in the know. Luckily, I have some good peeps who are and I was taken to Bebida (which means «drink» in Espagnol) recently with the promise of cheap Happy Hour drinks. Just the promise of drinks is usually enough to get me to agree… to anything really.
When I rocked up to this place, I was pleasantly surprised. It’s kind of eclectic, with funky pieces of furniture and Spanish themed pictures on the walls. It has a sort of cozy feeling, which was nice considering it was not warm outside… Melbourne loves to change temperature 10x a day, so you really never know what to expect. Thankfully, Bebida has seating to accommodate the city’s four seasons in one day. There’s benches and tables out front, and a variety of seating inside. There’s even a little area in a back that has a very distinct «I’m drinking in someone’s garden» feel to it. Once we had situated ourselves inside and I had ordered my first beer, which at the Happy Hour discount only cost me $ 2.40 — yes!, we let the good times roll on.
I will definitely return to Bebida on a warm, sunny day (I swear they’re coming!) and order a nice café, which I hear are fab here, or perhaps a tasty dish. I also wouldn’t mind checking out one of their live music gigs that happen throughout the week. A great atmosphere AND live music? It sounds to me like a proper Sunday Session is in order…

With acoustic players one weekends and being situated to the now dilapidated music venue that is The Birmingham Hotel. Bebida is often found full of people being in and all about music.
The coffee here is great, and when day becomes night the place is made for drinking, with the large table out on the street often filled with locals and loudies.
Their toasted foccacias are simply to die for, with a good variety of quality vegetarian options. The other fresh and tasty treats are consistently good, and for those not able to find room inside or out the front the courtyard out the back is marvelous.
Also it’s worth going to the toilets just to check out the amazingly tragic record covers.

Bebida is one of the nicest little spots you can imagine on Smith Street. With tables outside the front and a quaint little courtyard out the back, there is ample space to enjoy the outdoors here in shade and sun.
The staff are some of the friendliest people you could find and they are more than happy to see how you are travelling on any given day. With an exciting breakfast menu and tapas menu later, there is also some tantalizing bites on offer. Throw into the mix a daily happy hour and you’ve got the recipe for some guaranteed fun times.
The toilets clad with some of the wackiest and weirdest LP covers are just hilarious. Don’t get drunk and waste hours in here.

It’s not my favourite bar in the area, but you could do a lot worse.
Bebida is a casual, chilled-​out café bar that works just as effortlessly in the day as it does at night. There’s tables out on Smith Street, a gorgeous little garden out the back and I like the tall tables and stools inside.
There are some nice beers here like the Mountain Goat Steam Ale, one of my favourites, and they’ve also got a good selection of wine. I’ve tried a sauvignon blanc that was inexpensive and suited the food.
On the food-​front, it’s Spanish tapas-​style — small dishes of tasty meats and seafood to share. Price is fairly reasonable and although it’s not the best tapas in town, it’ll do just fine.
I’ll always be grateful to Bebida for being so accommodating and letting my man and I in for food and drink very late one night when there was nobody out and about on Smith Street and every other bar that served food was closed. It was clear that they would’ve closed up if we hadn’t walked in, but the bartender was most welcoming and we ordered some tapas and drinks and went home happy.

A long-​standing and relaxed little Spanish tapas joint near the Johnston St corner of Smith St, Bebida is the kind of restaurant you can stop in at for a coffee in the arvo and then return to with friends in the evening to chat over a couple bottles of wine and finger foods.
The tapas — or grazing’ plates — are definitely on the ‘modern’ end of the definition: as well as a few Spanish dishes, you’ll also find chargrilled kangaroo, fish’n’chips, tempura vegetables, crumbed chillies stuffed with brie, crisp pork belly… Yes, there are many cultures represented here. These servings are small, so you’ll need a selection, and they’re all priced at around $ 8-​$ 10 each. It doesn’t work out to be all that cheap but the food it great and interesting and the atmosphere is intimate but lively.
Speaking of the atmosphere, there’s a small front dining area with the serving counter leading to an outdoor courtyard that is lovely to sit in when it’s a warm night.

A great little Spanish-​esque café during the day which turns in to a groovy bar by night. I rocked up here for breakfast yesterday, albeit a little tender, and felt like I was treated to the royal treatment by the accommodating staff. I didn’t feel any shame as I walked past the counter and heard the words «you look like you need a coffee», I was just happy I only needed to grunt an order.
I moved through to the cosy courtyard and reenergised with the sun on my face and coffee in my veins. Lucky I was with a few friends, as you have to order at the counter and I couldn’t have made it in and out when I wanted to order. I tucked into a delicious vegetarian pide that was bursting with flavour. The vibe was cool and it felt like I was hanging out in a Spanish siesta.
As the sun sets, musicians and revelers pop up and the larger and vino flow generously. The cosy little bar has an electric atmosphere by night and has live music from Wednesday to Sunday.

I do enjoy whinging about a lack of affordable, latin influenced food across this city. I mean, let’s face it, I’m from Florida. Spanish is spoken far more than English there.
Bebida took off its silky red glove, held its sombrero under its arm, and gave me a full gentleman’s slap!
This is the coolest little dive of a place around. It’s a bit kitschy, to the point of feeling familiar. They have an AMAZING garden out back. A little bit of seating out front. And nice tall benches inside.
The food is stellar. Delicious breakfast burrito, that won’t add 2kg to your svelte figure. Great sandwiches, but you’ve gotta check the specials board whenever you go, it contains some of the best things to pick from!
Even some yummy Bloody Mary recipes going on, but the Margarita does leave a biiiit to be desired.
All in all, Bebida hits the spot, and fills that tender, salsa-​dancing, black bean loving corner of my frozen heart!

Bebida is effortlessly cool — the type of place that looks like it doesn’t try hard but comes out looking really great.
I like stopping off for coffee during the week, normally I’ll hog a seat near the front with a drink and maybe one of the cakes they serve there too, last time I went they had one of the best blueberry friands I think I have ever had.
The coffee is fantastic and made with love and care, and I highly recommend the breakfast menu, my favourite dish being huevos con jamón ($ 14.50),
poached eggs with finely sliced prosciutto and cream cheese and capsicum on toast.
The prices are sweet (not too expensive) and the service always puts a smile on my face. Its nice to have someone not only be polite, but pleasant when you’re in a café.
I have to admit that I generally haunt Bebida during the first half of the day. It’s a breakfast place, but recently looking at the menu, I really do need to consider attending later on.
Cheap beer, great tapas and live gigs all promise to be truly special during a long summer.

Bebida is definitely one of those haunts that locals love. What’s not to love? Bebida has its own brand of coffee, known as Atomica, made from Arabica beans roasted in Fitzroy.
Me, I love Bebida’s happy hour, which is hard to come by in Melbourne. Want $ 4 beers of local brews such as James Squire Amber Ale or Mountain Goat Steamed Ale? Yes please. Happy hour runs between 6pm and 7pm from Thursdays to Sundays.
Matt, the quirky bartender/​server/​all rounder, makes the place friendly, cosy, and interesting. He always has a great story to tell. It’s not only the staff, but the entire place that gives off good vibes — background music quiet enough so you can hear each other speak and an outside courtyard with plants and cushioned benches.
If you’re in the mood for some live music, Bebida has sessions from 8pm to 10pm throughout the week ranging from acoustic folk to reggae.