Rue & Co

Rue & Co is the latest pop-up food venture in the Melbourne CBD located on the corner of Exhibition and Collins Streets.  Open all day it features three different food options from the popular eateries St. ALi, Jimmy Grants and Kong BBQ.  There is also a gorgeous eight-story portrait on the side of a building by street artist Rone that needs to be seen in person to really appreciate its scale.

I have been to Rue & Co two times now for lunch with work colleagues and each time it has been full with people from the surrounding office buildings.  As I have previously eaten a few times at Jimmy Grants on Smith Street I was eager to try out the other two eateries.  On my first visit I went to Kong BBQ and ordered the BBQ lemon and gochujang chicken SSAM roti roll with Korean chili paste, slaw and zucchini kimchi.  It was pretty tasty and a good meal for lunch, although I still had room for dessert on the way back to the office, which was a stop at La Belle Miette on Collins Street for a few macarons.

Today I tried out St. ALi, who have smartly got a designated special burger for each day of the week which should result in repeat business.  As it was Friday I tried the "Pork Me!" burger with pulled pork, celeriac coleslaw and apple sauce, along with a serve of french fries.  Both tasted good, and I also couldn't help myself and got an espresso custard donut (which was from Cobb Lane in Yarraville) since the salted caramel ones were sold out.

All in all the atmosphere at Rue & Co is fun but it will be interesting to see how they go as we head into winter.  If you are looking for somewhere new to try to break up your regular lunchtime routine be sure to check it out.