Correction (10 October 2026): an earlier version of this page listed places and details we could not stand behind. It has been rewritten from scratch: every place below was confirmed at two independent sources on 9 October 2026.
A neighbourhood guide should start with the street grid, so this one follows Carlton from Lygon Street to Faraday Street and out to the university edge. It answers one question: what can you check from a desk about where to eat, drink coffee and spend an hour indoors here?
There are seven places, all in Carlton: two cafes, two Lygon Street restaurants, a pizza place on Grattan Street, a museum and a theatre. Each one is weighed with a for and a catch, and the catch is usually how much a listing tells you.
Every place was checked against two sources, such as OpenStreetMap, the venue’s own site, a university page or the Australian Good Food Guide. Where we could not find hours or prices, we say so rather than guess.
The quick picks
| If you’re after | Head to | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Campus coffee on Pelham Street | Amicus Espresso | 185 Pelham Street, Carlton |
| A Lygon Street Italian sit-down | Universal Italian | 139-141 Lygon Street, Carlton |
| Pizza near the CBD edge | Leonardo’s Pizza Palace | 29 Grattan Street, Carlton |
| Indian further along Lygon Street | Kahaani | 262 Lygon Street, Carlton |
| A museum stop on Faraday Street | Museo Italiano | 199 Faraday Street, Carlton |
| Live theatre on Faraday Street | La Mama Theatre | 205 Faraday Street, Carlton |
| A Swanston Street campus cafe | Superfloor Cafe | 700 Swanston Street, Carlton |
Amicus Espresso — 185 Pelham Street, Carlton VIC 3053
The University of Melbourne’s campus page lists Amicus Espresso at 185 Pelham St, Carlton Campus. OpenStreetMap carries the same address with the postcode 3053. For: two sources agree on where it is. Against: we found no hours we could stand behind for this cafe, and the pages we read carry no date, so confirm before you go.
Fast facts: a campus cafe on Pelham Street, listed by the university and mapped on OpenStreetMap.
Universal Italian — 139-141 Lygon Street, Carlton VIC 3053
Universal Italian’s own site gives 141 Lygon Street, while the Australian Good Food Guide lists 139-141 Lygon Street, Carlton 3053. AGFG lists BYO and Takeaway for it, and those are listing features rather than our findings. For: three sources agree on the street. Against: we found no published hours or prices we could print, and the sites are undated.
The shape of it: a Lygon Street frontage where the street number differs slightly between its own site and the directory.
Leonardo’s Pizza Palace — 29 Grattan Street, Carlton VIC 3053
Leonardo’s Pizza Palace gives its address on its own site as 29 Grattan Street, Carlton. The site lists Monday to Thursday 5pm to 9pm, Friday and Saturday 12pm to 10pm, and Sunday 12pm to 9pm. For: a full week of hours from the venue itself. Against: the site looks dated, so we print no menu prices and suggest confirming the hours.
Fast facts: Grattan Street address, hours taken from the venue’s own site rather than a directory.
Kahaani — 262 Lygon Street, Carlton VIC 3053
Kahaani sits at 262 Lygon Street, Carlton 3053, according to the Australian Good Food Guide, and OpenStreetMap agrees on the street number. The AGFG listing gives Monday to Thursday 5:30 PM to 10:00 PM and Friday to Sunday 5:30 PM to 10:30 PM. For: a complete weekly listing. Against: AGFG is an owner-maintained directory, so the hours may be out of date.
The shape of it: further up Lygon Street than Universal Italian, with hours that come from a directory listing.
Museo Italiano — 199 Faraday Street, Carlton VIC 3053
The CO.AS.IT site gives the address as 189-199 Faraday Street, Carlton, and OpenStreetMap maps the museum at number 199. Its site lists Monday closed, Tuesday to Friday 10 am to 5pm and Saturday 1pm to 5pm. For: hours from the operator itself. Against: it is closed on Mondays, and OpenStreetMap’s older tag shows different times, so go by the site.
If you move here, know: Faraday Street holds this museum and a theatre within a short stretch, so it suits an indoor stop.
La Mama Theatre — 205 Faraday Street, Carlton VIC 3053
La Mama’s own site gives 205 Faraday Street, Carlton, and OpenStreetMap maps the theatre at the same number with the postcode 3053. For: two sources agree on where it is. Against: we found no hours to print, because performance times depend on the programme, so check its site for what is on.
Fast facts: a theatre on the same stretch of Faraday Street as the museum, confirmed by its own site.
Superfloor Cafe — 700 Swanston Street, Carlton VIC 3053
The University of Melbourne’s page lists Superfloor Cafe at 700 Swanston St, Carlton Campus, and OpenStreetMap shows the same address. For: two sources agree on the location. Against: the hours tagged on OpenStreetMap could not be matched to this cafe with confidence, and the university page is undated, so check before you go.
The shape of it: a Swanston Street cafe on the university side of Carlton, away from the Lygon Street strip.
Quick answers
Where can you eat on Lygon Street in Carlton?
This page lists two Lygon Street restaurants. Universal Italian is at 139-141 Lygon Street according to the Australian Good Food Guide, which lists BYO and Takeaway for it. Kahaani is at 262 Lygon Street, and its AGFG listing gives evening hours from 5:30 PM.
Is there a museum or theatre in Carlton?
Yes, both are on Faraday Street. Museo Italiano is at 199 Faraday Street, and its site lists Tuesday to Friday 10 am to 5pm, Saturday 1pm to 5pm and Monday closed. La Mama Theatre is at 205 Faraday Street, and its own site gives that address.
Where can you get coffee near the University of Melbourne in Carlton?
The university’s campus pages list two cafes in Carlton: Amicus Espresso at 185 Pelham Street and Superfloor Cafe at 700 Swanston Street. We found no hours we could confirm for either, so check the university pages before heading there.
What are Leonardo’s Pizza Palace’s opening hours?
Its own site lists Monday to Thursday 5pm to 9pm, Friday and Saturday 12pm to 10pm, and Sunday 12pm to 9pm, at 29 Grattan Street, Carlton. The site looks dated, so confirm with the venue before you go.
How we checked
We checked every place on this page against at least two independent sources on 9 October 2026: OpenStreetMap, unimelb.edu.au, the places’ own websites and the Australian Good Food Guide. We copied no menu prices from these places’ own pages, so this page prints none. Menus, prices and opening hours change, so check with the venue before you go. The cover photo is illustrative, from Unsplash, and does not show any place on this page.
Seen something out of date? Email [email protected] with the page link and what has changed, and we will check it again.
Sources
- Amicus Espresso: openstreetmap.org/457318538, unimelb.edu.au/amicus-espresso
- Universal Italian: openstreetmap.org/4041048234, universalrestaurant.com.au, agfg.com.au/universal-restaurant-20204
- Leonardo’s Pizza Palace: openstreetmap.org/676533299, leonardospizzapalace.com.au
- Kahaani: openstreetmap.org/676627997, agfg.com.au/kahaani-117106
- Museo Italiano: openstreetmap.org/6515021014, coasit.com.au/museoitaliano
- La Mama Theatre: openstreetmap.org/331165028, lamama.com.au/contact
- Superfloor Cafe: openstreetmap.org/11702829481, unimelb.edu.au/superfloor-cafe
