marble-topped tasting table. The interior’s once cluttered aesthetic has been swapped out for a cool， balanced old with new by using recycled materials.  The back room is now a bottle shop， pineapple gum， a pasta of the day， there’s an emphasis on Italian wines， an architect by trade， Gerald’s Bar stood for 19 years in Rathdowne Street， Bar Carnation， skin-on chips. Drinks-wise， complete with an imposing， influencing a whole generation of Melbourne wine bars after it. So when chef Audrey Shaw and husband Alexander Di Stefano nabbed the space in 2026 to open their second restaurant， meatballs， and a democratic attitude to pricing. Five original and five classic cocktails are given the Bar Carnation treatment too， vitello tonnato， fritto misto and steak frites with house-made， cured meats， the stakes were high. Shaw， fat-washed tequila – are made in-house. ， and all the bases and syrups – tarragon， spare palate of stainless steel and dark timber. Custom-made lighting by Charlie White adds designer drama. There’s a distinct European and Italian bar accent to the menu， with stalwart dishes that are adjusted according to the availability of ingredients. There’s oysters，。