Issue #5

Welcome to The Prestonian, a fortnightly newsletter that brings you all the ins and outs of Preston and it's 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.

What are we covering in this issue?

We're bringing you a new series covering a Prestonian favourite food, the open week experience at Awake Gym, a showcase of the current exhibitions at a local Preston gallery, and plenty more!

Burgers of Preston

The Stray Neighbour Cheeseburger

We thought about trying something a little different with the food-related content for The Prestonian. We wanted something meal specific to make into a regular feature in our issues. Burgers of Preston makes its debut!

We're planning to try as many burgers as we can find in our great area, bringing some extra love to local businesses while eating our favourite food.

Just a few minutes up the road from our office is Stray Neighbour, one of the coolest spots to eat in Preston. The best thing about Stray is that they are open for lunch, so when you're craving something tasty in the middle of the day, this is the place to be.

After grabbing a seat at a table out the front to enjoy the sunshine, we combed the menu for the burger of the moment, and we found it. The simple, unassuming cheeseburger. A staple in burger folklore and a must-have on any menu.

The cheeseburger at Stray hits all the right notes, a perfectly toasted bun with house-made pickles, a slice of American cheese, special sauce and a burger patty so juicy you'll think it was about to hit you with the best piece of gossip you've heard in years.

A must try for any burger lover in Preston.

Website: Stray Neighbour | Instagram: @strayneighbour | Phone: 03 9471 1420

Gertrude Contemporary

The northern suburbs of Melbourne have no shortage of fantastic art for everyone to enjoy, ranging from murals to sculptures to pop-up galleries. One such place is Gertrude Contemporary on High St in Preston, a free gallery that brings increased exposure for independent artists.

For over 30 years, Gertrude has been making an impact on the contemporary art landscape in Australia. The showroom in Preston provides a space for independent artists to work free of any inhibitors, a step in their careers that proves pivotal in nurturing growth during their evolution as artists.

Taking a step into the gallery, you'll see the list of artists included in the current exhibition, along with the curator and title. Currently you can head in and experience Polyphonic Reverb as curated by Mark Feary, an exhibition that focuses on historical and ongoing practices based in Australia and Aotearoa with an emphasis on Polynesia and Melanesia.

With a beautiful mix of artistic mediums ranging from paint on canvas to film projected onto the wall, the gallery offers something to enjoy for every art lover, so head down to Gertrude Contemporary to take in the beautiful work on display.

Website: www.gertrude.org.au | Instagram: @gertrudecontemporary

Awake Gym + Wellness Open Week Experience

It's certainly an understatement to say that the past two years affected our fitness here at The Prestonian. From snap lockdowns to the 5km bubble, more than a couple of extra kilograms appeared on our scales.

Thankfully for us, our new friends at Awake Gym opened up right next to our office and started by providing an open week for everyone to come and enjoy.

Kicking off our week we arrived at the gym on Monday, aiming to maintain some consistency with our workouts. The team at Awake greeted us with big smiles and keen conversation before we got stuck into it.

The quality of the equipment is top-notch, with a mixture of strength, cardio, and more free weights than you can imagine. Since the open week is designed to understand client needs, the team took note of any machines or bits of equipment they were lacking for clients who wanted access to them.

Getting in and out of the gym was a breeze, with the roller door always open to welcome anyone. We enjoyed ourselves so much that we came back almost every day for the week, even on our weekend.

Pilates and group classes were an absolute blast, meeting new people and learning new movements to improve our overall health. Although we didn't try out the infrared sauna, we have that high on our list of things to try.

If you're looking for a gym that aims to create a community and place for you to learn more about yourself while getting fit, then Awake is worth checking out!

Website: www.awakepreston.com.au | Instagram: @awake.preston

Sport in Preston

VFL: Northern Bullants v Richmond Tigers - Match Review

The VFL is nearing the end of its home and away season, and in their second last game of the year the Northern Bullants were faced with taking on Richmond's VFL team, a task that wouldn't prove to be easy.

The Bullants started the game strongly, only trailing the Tigers by 2 points at the first change, matching Richmond in the majority of statistics. Unfortunatley, as has been the case all year, top sides have found a way to pull ahead of the Bullants as the game progresses.

The second quarter saw Richmond reach a 20-point lead, but it wasn't until after halftime that the Tigers began their assault by piling on 13 goals to the Bullants 3 to eventually run out 82-point winners 21.10 (136) - 7.12 (54) in what was a dominating display on the scoreboard.

Richmond fielded 16 AFL-listed players, with the majority amongst the best for the Tigers on the day. Will Mitchell continued his strong run of form for the Bullants, amassing 35 touches for the game, with Jean-Luc Velissaris and Liam Mackie providing support collecting 24 possessions each.

It hasn't been quite the season the Northern Bullants had hoped for. Having managed only one win for the year and with one more game to play for the season, the Bullants will be hoping to bring home the chocolates and end their season on a high note against Werribee.

This weekend the Bullants have the bye.

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.