Welcome to The Prestonian, a fortnightly newsletter that brings you all the ins and outs of Preston and its local surroundings.

We are a group of creatives who want to share our love and passion for the northern suburbs. We'll be covering a whole host of topics ranging from local news to food reviews to local sports. Everything Preston, always.

Meet our editor

Sezer is a creative writing wiz who specialises in putting words onto a page. He moved to Preston at the start of the year and fell in love with the suburb. You can see him walking his dog, Ramsay, up and down High Street.

He works as the social media marketing manager for Digital Basis, a Preston-based digital agency that has thrown its support behind The Prestonian.

Why The Prestonian?

The great suburb of Preston wasn't always just 'Preston'. It started as the Jika Jika Shire in November 1871 and was then renamed Preston on September 11th, 1885. Following this, Preston became a borough on March 14th, 1922, a town on May 24th, 1922, and was proclaimed a city on July 14th, 1926.

The 'City of Preston' was abolished in 1994, along with the City of Northcote and parts of the City of Coburg became part of the City of Darebin as we know it today.

We know that Preston has had quite the history, and we want to honour that by including the suburbs surrounding us in our publication.

Level Crossing Removals

Upgrades to public transport in the Northern Suburbs continue to roll on over the next two months, with Preston Station and Bell Station being closed until September, and multiple level crossings being closed at various times.

We've listed the dates and crossings below for you to mark in your calendar to reduce any inconvenience when travelling around Preston.

June 1st to June 28th: Cramer Street Level Crossing will be closed at various times from 7pm Wednesday 1 June to 6pm Tuesday 28 June.

June 3rd to July 1st: Oakover Road Level Crossing will be closed at various times from 7am Friday 3 June to 6am Friday 1 July.

June 16th to June 26th: Bell Street Level Crossing will be closed at various times from 9pm Thursday 16 June to 5am Sunday 26 June.

Northcote Rise

Northcote traders association Northcote Rise have secured the required funding for a new street festival that's set to bring the suburb of Northcote to the masses!

Northcote’s High Street will play host to the street festival that’s set to celebrate all the inner north has to offer. With $300,000 in funding provided by the state government, the family-friendly festival will support the revistalisation of the shopping strip and connect the community to local vendors.

Northcote Rise are putting together this new offering for all ages having been inspired by the success of popular past events in the area like the High Noon and High Vibes.

With the grant secured, the early stages of planning have begun. We'll keep you updated on the status of of this festival, we can't wait for this one!

Check them out at: https://northcoterise.com.au

Local Business Feature

Silvy's Delights

Owner, Silvana Marchi, would cook and bake at home with intention of having treats and sweets stick around for a while, only for a pleasant surprise to see them go within a day!

Silvy grew up in an Italian household where she learnt from the best at a very young age. By drawing inspiration from her heritage and blending it with other cultures, she has put a modern spin on traditional casalinga recipes.

Starting a business can be daunting, especially with the uncertainty of the past few years, but Silvy put on her big girl pants and chased after her dream.

The proof is in the pudding, or in Silvy's case, delights - try them yourself today!

Website: silvysdelights.com.au | Instagram: @silvysdelights | Facebook: Silvy’s Delights

New Business in the Area

Winston Press

If you head up High Street towards Reservoir the choices for coffee are few and far between. We're spoiled for choice in Preston Central with a whole host of great coffee spots, both on High Street and at the Preston Market. That's why we're super excited to see that Winston Press has opened up in the Quest building on High Street, a trendy cafe/bakery with a gorgeous interior. The staff are super friendly and love to chat, you can get a fantastic coffee and artisan loaf of bread all in the one go. Also, the homemade raspberry muffins are to die for.

Check out Winston Press at 518 High Street, Preston, 6am to 2pm Tuesday to Saturday.

Website: winstonpress.com.au | Email: [email protected] | Phone: (03) 4713 5066

Local Food Review

Spicy Stewed Beef Noodles - Tina's Noodle Kitchen

Tina's Noodle Kitchen on High Street serves up the cuisine of Chonqing, a city that borders the Sichuan province, a spice lovers paradise.

We took on the spiced stewed beef noodles and came away with a satisfaction that only finishing a warm broth filled with noodles can bring.

The meat was super tender, with noodles that were cooked to perfection and a chilli soup base was extremely flavourful and very spicy!

Tina's has a real homestyle feel to it with friendly service, a beautiful interior and tasty food, you won't regret trying the restaurant for yourself.

Check out Tina's Noodle Kitchen at 352 High St, Preston, every day from 11.30am to 8.30pm.

Instagram: @tinasnoodlekitchen | Phone: (03) 9470 6389

Sport in Preston

VFL: Northern Bullants V Southport - Match Preview

A spirited effort from the Northern Bullants against an almost AFL-quality Brisbane VFL side wasn't enough to bring home the chocolates last Friday night with Brisbane running out 62-point winners 13.15 (93) to 4.7 (31).

This week the Bullants face stern opposition in the form of second-placed Southport, who are coming off a 44 point win over Sandringham to further cement their place in the top 4.

The Bullants will look to their midfield to curb the influence of Southport's major ball winners Boyd Woodcock and Jacob Dawson who are both in outstanding form.

Last week's effort against the Lions showed that the Bullants can stick with the best teams for the majority of the game, it's just the little lapses that allow the opposition to pull ahead.

If the Bullants are to overcome the Sharks this weekend it'll need to be a four quarter effort from all positions on the field.

Match time: 12.05pm - 19th of June 2022.

Spread the Word

The future of The Prestonian is bright, and we want to showcase more and more of the Northern Suburbs. Bringing increased exposure to small businesses in the area, and creating a sense of community by keeping everyone in the know.

If you're a business owner, a local resident or a lover of Melbourne's Northern suburbs and you have something you'd like to share, then DM us on Instagram @theprestonian or reply to this email to get in touch.

Tell your friends, tell your family, tell everyone you know, we want to bring the beauty of the Northern Suburbs to as many people as we can.