Naked For Satan
285 Brunswick St
Fitzroy, VIC 3065
03 9416 2238
nakedforsatan.com.au
GoogleMap
Dirty Granny Cider $5 pot
The bar and pub drinking scene in Melbourne isn’t really my thing. I’m more for quiet, sit down dinners and early nights. Plus I’m terrible with alcohol anyway, half a glass of wine and I’m all silly.
But I finally paid Naked For Satan a visit, about a year after all the online buzz over it has settled. But that did not mean the place was dead, I came here on a Wednesday night with visiting friends from Singapore and it was packed!
What’s special about this place? Aside for its eccentric decor, they specialise in vodkas and pinxtos. The latter was what we were here for.
Pinxtos are like small nibbly bits of toothpicked spanish tapas served on slices of bread. On weekday lunches (12pm-4pm) and certain nights (Mon-Wed 4pm onwards), they go at $1 per stick rather than the usual $2. Payment is based on an honesty system, you collect your toothpicks and pay based on how many you accumulate.
I secured a nice quiet spot right at the back, away from the noisier front and mid-section of the place. So my friends and I could actually have drinks, nibbles, and hear ourselves chatting.
Blue Cheese, Quince & Walnut | Squid Ink Risoni w Grilled Calamari
Chilli Cashew & Capsicum w Eggplant | Goat Cheese, Quince Paste & Pistachio
Between the three of us, we pretty much sampled most of the pinxtos on offer. For this post, I won’t go into too much detail, but the four above were our big favourites,
Cauliflower, Manouri Cheese & Garlic Prawn | Capo Collo
Octopus, Chickpea & Caperberry | Cream Cheese, Roasted Beetroot & Walnut
And the four above leant more on the ‘meh’ side.
Seafood w Prawn & Capsicum | Chorizo, Cream Cheese & Green Chilli
Tortilla w Aioli | Smoked Chicken & Corn Relish
And we did not sample the four above.
Chorizo Croquette | Sardine w Spicy Mayo & Tomato
All the pinxtos on display are served cold. However, ever so often, a waitstaff will walk about with a plateful of hot offerings, like the two above. They were alright.
Black Eyed Bean Salad & Roasted Carrot | Chocolate, Cointreau Mousse Canolli
These were the last two sticks we grabbed. The bean and roast carrot pinxtos was delightful. However, the only dessert offering, a canoli, wasn’t all that enjoyable.
So there were some good nibbles here but also a number of meh ones. The pinxtos actually fill you up quite quickly because there’s so much bread action. I also wasn’t as keen about them being served cold.
I think the focus on this place lies more on its social and drinking aspect, which isn’t really my thing. But don’t get me wrong, I still enjoyed my night. And the friends I was with loved the concept here, our ‘dinner’ turned out to cost just over $7 each, we accrued a mere 22 toothpicks between 3 people. That’s like the cheapest meal ever in Melbourne, so I shouldn’t be complaining.
I’m glad you finally made it to naked for satan. I personally have slightly mixed feelings about the place – one one hand the cheap nibbles are a foodie’s dream, but on the other hand most of them weren’t fabulous, and drinking isn’t my forte either (less room for food!). And now that they’re $1 each instead of 50c like they used to be….
Ming @ sweetandsourfork recently posted..Straits Cafe
I heard abt the 50¢ pinxtos, that’s crazy cheap! Sometimes you wonder how they stay afloat. But I still do like th concept, and the idea that the honesty system still works!
Hahaha don’t think I’ll ever come here… because my boss lives nearby and is at naked for satan quite often!!!
Haha… I suppose you have a reason to keep your distance… Unless boss is out of town! :)
I agree with your thoughts on Naked for Satan, it’s not an awesome spot for eating, but the drinks are relatively well priced and you can get full fairly cheaply. I do like the concept though, something a bit different :)
I had the ‘Hot Devil’ when I was there a few weeks ago, a lovely warm rum and spice cocktail with cinnamon and lemon. Like mulled wine but…with rum! Really yummy! :D
Ashley recently posted..Gypsy & Pig
Haha that’s such a cute name for a drink! :)
Interesting concept for a restaurant. I agree that I would prefer more hot food but it sounds perfect for a fun and cheap meal.
Christina @ The Hungry Australian recently posted..8 Favourite Things: August
It’s worth it for what it is. Nice buzzy ambience for social catchups at good prices. :)