Go to “the Glastonbury of gastronomy”. Try fancy takes on Macca’s classics. Wander through a colossal, colour-bombed Parthenon tribute. And more. Here’s what Broadsheet Melbourne editor Tomas Telegramma is checking out in Melbourne in November.

Get to The Keys
It’s been 18 long months since we broke the news that a nostalgic leisure centre – with three bars, 12 bowling lanes and room for 600 people – was coming to Melbourne. But now, it’s finally here. And it’s a hell of a time. One of the year’s most ambitious openings, The Keys is by a co-founder of Dexter, Takeaway Pizza, Dom’s and Nico’s, who – along with his team – has created something completely peerless for Preston, and perhaps Melbourne. There’s a retro bowling alley and arcade, and some banger drinking and dining options (case in point: the hot-honey pepperoni pizza).

The art spectrum
A raft of striking new art exhibitions and installations have recently arrived in Melbourne. For full immersion, see Rone’s blockbuster new show Time at Flinders Street Station’s long-abandoned ballroom and upper level; you can wander through abandoned, frozen-in-time scenes from mid-century Melbourne. Meanwhile, a colossal, colour-bombed recreation of Greece’s Parthenon is landing in the NGV’s Grollo Equiset Garden on the 21st. On the digital front, groundbreaking gallery The Lume has lit up with a dazzling new French impressionism experience; the Science Gallery has unveiled an intimate artwork that airs the skeletons in your digital closet (whether you like it or not); and an attention-grabbing, cycling-inspired video work by acclaimed Australian artist Shaun Gladwell is now on display at Pedla’s flagship Collingwood cycling store.

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Melbourne Food & Wine Festival goes regional
After Melbourne Food & Wine’s cracking 30th-anniversary festival earlier this year, the culinary celebration is hitting the road this month for a 10-day regional edition. It runs from the 18th to the 27th all over the state – from Ballarat to Gippsland – and while some of the bigger-ticket events have sold out, there’s still a ton of stuff worth travelling for. Like The Village Feast (aka “the Glastonbury of gastronomy”) for which the festival is taking over a tiny Victorian town with a food fair like no other (expect fancy brekkie muffins from Hector’s Deli. There’s also an all-encompassing farm-to-table experience at Daylesford’s iconic Lakehouse, a snack and sip tour through the beautiful Milawa and a rousing country brunch in Warragul with a hot buffet and grazing tables galore.

Lunch at Nonna’s House
If – like me – the bulk of your childhood memories involve beelining through your grandparents’ house in search of something delicious and made with love, this one’s for you. Melburnian Hamish Vaccari has converted his late nonna’s Fitzroy North house into a nostalgic Italian sub shop. It’s a tribute to her – and his nonno, who used to run a catering business out of the back garage. Enter through the discreet side gate, order at the garage window, then head to a leafy nearby park with a saucy meatball sub and a side of fries loaded with either bolognaise or carbonara – made from family recipes.

Familiar spots, new concepts
Reinvention is in the air this month. Previously degustation-only Gertrude Street diner Gaea has re-emerged as a tiny (temporary) izakaya, with dishes like sake-steamed mussels with wild garlic, and sourdough tsukemen. An ex-head chef at Cumulus Inc has taken the reins at Fitzroy bar Bonny; don’t miss the mornay-slathered Corner Inlet Filet-O-Whiting on shokupan. Elsewhere, the OG Umberto Espresso Bar is back in business – as an ephemeral wine bar called Pezzo, with loaded focaccia, prosecco salami and fun Italian wines. And modern-Mexican laneway diner Mejico has opened a new pink-lit, glass-walled tequila bar.