Footscray: the Hidden Gem of the West!

Footscray is the heart and soul of the west. They say that Footscray is the Multicultural hub of Melbourne, and it truly is, over 160 countries call Footscray their Melbournian home. Literally travelling the world in your own backyard! Located in the Inner west and only 12min from the CBD, Footscray has it all ranging from gastronomical food, the serene Maribyrnong River, great night life, to amazing free festivals, with such a diverse range of the arts.

Community and culture are the main ingredients of a thriving Footscray. There is also a new hospital being built as well as an abundant choice of housing options as many apartments have been built in the last few years, justifying Footscrays position as an up and coming area. If you’re into shopping at affordable pricing, Footscray is the place with a range of sustainable clothing markets, vintage boutiques and all things recycled and new. Footscray is a hub of authentic, fresh affordable and sustainable retailers with such a unique history.

Being born and growing up in Footscray and a proud westie myself I can honestly when I head into Footscray, there is always something new to discover.

To do:

Fitness and Outdoor activities:

• Stroll through the Footscray Town Centre, walk along the Maribyrnong River, climb up the rock bridge.
• Ride through Footscray Park Quarry. If you love bike riding, there are many great bike routes with some scenic routes along the Maribyrnong River. Also, a number of pop-up routes around the roads.
• Footscray Botanic gardens are beautiful, and great for getting some fresh air in!
• Victoria University has reasonable priced gym and swimming pool.

To see/do

• Footscray Market- fresh food and produce, with no shortage of meat, poultry, fresh fruit and veg, you’ll be heading home with produce from all corners of the globe.
• The iconic designs at Footscray wharf- great for Sunday strolls
• Heavenly Queen Chinese Temple – A MUST spectacularly place to see and the influences of Chinese culture.
• Nicholson Street Mall and street shopping is a must whether it unique clothing and great for Bargain Hunting
• Sun theatre – After 80 years the Sun Theatre the heart of the west. You will be blown away by the art deco. It’s like travelling back in time to this lovely theatre that has been restored to its era. On occasion this lovely cinema even welcomes Hollywood icons
• Scienceworks – Planetarium Nights – Scienceworks (museumsvictoria.com.au) are great events with music/dj and food

Eating Out and Cheap Eats

Footscray is known for its under-priced food and cocktails, think of it as premium food but half the cost!

As quoted by broadsheet “Bland mega-pubs and expensive cocktail bars are yet to get a toehold in Footscray. And that’s just how we like it. Footscray’s small owner-operated bars and pubs have down-to-earth personalities”.

Footscray has a wide range of cuisines, from Ethiopian, Thai, Indian fancy burgers (8bit, Hustaburger) Check out Small French bistro, Fox in the corn or Harley & Rose (West Footscray) for some fancy and authentic food!

They say one is spoilt for choice when it comes to international cuisines, but some popular ones are ;

• Banh Minh and pho in multiple places in Footscray. Loads of affordable Vietnamese restaurant – Nhu Lan is always feted as having the best Banh Min but also French Baguette is a popular one.

• (Famous Doughnut stand by the train station) the Famous and legendary Olympic doughnut van that forever changed the fabric of Footscray.
• Best cannoli in Melbourne since 1956 at Cavallaro & Sons Pasticceria- Handmade Sicilian sweets
• And the incredible cafes in Footscray such as Milking Station, Rudimentary, Sicilian Sweets and Ca-rem Gelato just to name a few!

Cafes

• Milking Station
• Rudimentary
• Sicilian Sweets
• Ca-rem Gelato
• West 48
• Small Graces
• Dumbo
• Brother Nancy
• Migrant Coffee
• Pod Cafe

Bars/Nightlife;

There are many options on a night out in Footscray! People have even compared Footscray to Fitzroy in terms of nightlife! After a good night out a MUST try a slice of the iconic ‘slice shop pizza’ on Nicholson Street Mall.

Here are some of my favourite bars!

• Mama Chen’s (the old dancing dog) has reopened and its promising lots of live music
• Sloth bar has regular open mics and small bands
• Hotel Westwood – formerly the reverence has a wide range of bands playing their amazing band rooms
• Little foot
• Josephine
• Trouble in dreams (cocktail bar hidden Pie thief)
• Pride of Footscray – (LGBTQIA+) a gay bar that people are travelling from far and wide to visit!
• Ms SUE
• Footscray Night markets- food trucks market stalls with various
• Fresh roasted coffee – from fresh coffee roasteries- specialising in Ethiopian coffee
• Neighbourhood contemporary arts festival = free street parties in Nicholson St Malls, local DJs, food, live music, art – Footscray’s iconic mall turns into a wonderland of sensory experiences.
• Loads of local festivals including ‘West Set festival’ which provide free gig events.
• Footscray community Arts centre has vibrant programs. Neighbourhood Contemporary Arts Festival also has FREE festivals diverse line up of music, electronica music, a place of community, and humanity in Melbourne’s west
• Oktoberfest @ploughfootscrat with affordable tickets
• Footscray Puppy pub crawl – fun pub crawls with your best furry friend.

Transportation

CBD is EXTREMELY close that the city can be seen within reach. The distance between Footscray and City of Melbourne is 6 km.

Train: Main train station- Footscray station (that is also beautiful Federation heritage station to take some photos) by train is a direct line to city.

Bike riding- Many riding routes have been set up to travel into the CBD.

Bus: direct bus departing from Nicholson St/Irving St and arriving at Bourke St/Queen St. Services depart every 10 minutes, and operate every day

How do I get to Footscray?

The suburb is well served by train – Footscray station is planted right in the thick of things. Otherwise, you can go further west towards Middle Footscray and West Footscray stations. The 82 tram also runs toward Barkly Street via Gordon Street.

What’s nearby?

Seddon and Yarraville are further south, and Ascot Vale and Kensington are to the northeast. Maidstone and Highpoint Shopping Centre are close by as well.

Schools

Local schools in the surrounding area are:

• Footscray Primary on Geelong Rd in a lovely old building,
• Footscray City Primary,
• Footscray High School with 3 campuses in proximity – Barkly St campus for Year 7 only, Pilgrim St campus with Year 7 & Year 8 only and the Kinnear St campus which is the senior campus from Year 8 – Year 12.

All 3 of these schools are part of the Footscray Learning Precinct and are joining a new integrated early learning centre to transform education in Melbourne’s inner west. The Precinct will build on the richness and diversity of the community and will provide opportunities for learning across all stages of education.

If you are interested in working in Footscray, register your details here.