7 Fun Things to Do in Brunswick When You Want Something Different
Brunswick has a reputation problem, and it is a nice one to have. Everyone knows it for coffee, bands and Sydney Road, which means most people default to the same three moves: brunch, a pub, home. Perfectly good moves. Just slightly predictable by the fourth weekend in a row.
Here are seven things to do in Brunswick when the group chat has run out of ideas.
1. Play a round of mini golf indoors
Mini golf has quietly grown up. The version now sitting on Sydney Road is a 27 hole course spread across two indoor floors, themed around decades of music and film, with a bar attached and an arcade downstairs.
The format is what makes it work socially. A Melbourne mini golf game gives everyone something to do with their hands and a running score to argue about, which takes all the pressure off the conversation. Nine holes runs about half an hour, eighteen takes roughly an hour, and the full 27 is for people who have committed to the evening. It is climate controlled too, which in a Melbourne winter is not nothing.
2. Catch a band on a Tuesday
Brunswick’s live music scene does not wait for the weekend. The Retreat Hotel on Sydney Road has bands most nights and a beer garden that has been there forever. Brunswick Ballroom, a former cinema at the southern end, pulls touring acts into a genuinely intimate room. Howler on Dawson Street runs gigs, DJ sets and comedy through a courtyard that always seems to have something on.
Pick a night midweek and you will pay less, queue less, and stand closer.
3. Laugh at free comedy on a Monday
The Bergy Seltzer runs a free Monday night comedy show that locals guard slightly jealously. Strong lineups, no ticket, and a Monday that suddenly has a point to it. Arrive early if you want to sit down.
4. Spend a morning at CERES
CERES Community Environment Park in Brunswick East is a working environment park with gardens, a nursery, a cafe and a fortnightly market featuring local makers and handcrafted goods. It is the closest thing Brunswick has to a green lung, and it is a completely different pace from Sydney Road.
Good with kids, good alone, good hungover.
5. Do a proper op shop crawl
Sydney Road is one of the better strips in Melbourne for second hand shopping, anchored by the enormous Savers and dotted with smaller vintage and charity shops along the way. Give yourself three hours and no shopping list. The trick is patience rather than luck.
6. Look at art without paying for it
Counihan Gallery, run by Merri-bek Council, shows contemporary work with a strong local and community focus, and entry is free. Pair it with a wander to take in Brunswick’s street art, which changes often enough that a route you walked last year will look different now.
7. Time your visit for the Sydney Road Street Party
Every March, Brunswick Music Festival takes over the suburb, and the Sydney Road Street Party closes the strip for a day of stages, more than a hundred artists and roughly a hundred and sixty stalls. It is the single best day of the year to be in Brunswick, and the whole thing is free to attend.
Planning something for a group
Most of the above works for two people or twenty, but if you are organising an actual occasion the logistics get real. You need somewhere that holds a group, does food and drinks, and gives people something to do so the whole thing does not depend on everyone knowing each other.
Make a night of it
The best thing about Brunswick is that none of this requires a plan. You can walk the strip, follow the noise, and end up somewhere you did not expect.
But if you want a guaranteed good night or are looking to organize fun birthday parties in Melbourne, choose What The Putt at 305 Sydney Road, through the Phoenix Street entrance. Walk-ins are welcome, though Friday and Saturday evenings get busy enough that booking is the smarter move. Under 18s are welcome until 8pm with a parent or guardian, and after that it is adults only. Call 1300 520 377 or book online.
