The HOT List: Top 10 Best Milkshakes in Melbourne for kids

Tuck Shop Take Away

Pretty much all kids (and adults, let’s be honest) love milkshakes. And given it’s Spring and school holidays start tomorrow, now’s the perfect time to indulge in some cafe-hopping with the family.

Here’s a list of the Top 10 best milkshakes at family-friendly places (in no particular order) all taste-tested by my kids and the kid testers at Melbourne Minor.

Bookmark it, save it, print it and tick off the list with your kids. Slurp slurp!

Grigons and Orr

  1. Grigons & Orr, 445 Queensberry St, North Melbourne

This cute retro styled milk bar and cafe serves huge metal cups containing smashed up chocolate bars/biscuits along with thick frothed milk ($7.50). My tip is the Tim Tam milkshake though if you’re feeling nostalgic for your childhood there’s always Fizz Whizz!

  1. Rowena Corner Store, 44 Rowena Pde, Richmond

A delightfully old fashioned corner store with an amazing range of milkshakes. So many in fact that they have an entirely separate menu for milkshakes and spiders! They offer all the classics and have jumped onto the freak shake bandwagon with some crazy mason jar concoctions made to share. We recommend the ‘Elvis’ which is a peanut butter and jelly shake. Yum!

The Farm Cafe Abbotsford

  1. The Farm Cafe, 18 St Heliers St, Abbotsford

I don’t know whether it’s the bucolic scenery or the sound of cows mooing but these ice cold and thick milkshakes are a must-do when we visit Collingwood Children’s Farm. Get it take away while you check out the farm animals.

  1. Ascot Food Store, 320 Ascot Vale Rd, Moonee Ponds

A sleek, retro styled cafe in an old house that has some great shake choices. We headed over to this cafe on a recommendation from the great Heston Blumenthal and, obviously, the man knows his stuff. The gingerbread shake is our pick of the bunch.

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  1. Candied Bakery, 81a Hudsons Road, Spotswood

This American-style bakery is famous for blending a whole homemade apple pie into their soft serve milkshakes. A thicker straw would be helpful as it gets a bit chunky towards the end.


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  1. Johnny Pump, 87 Fletcher St, Essendon

Johnny Pump is all about the freak shake – a milkshake that is loaded up with all sorts of things on top and some crazy flavours. We ordered the Chocolate Brownie Shake and it came out with a full brownie and whipped cream on top. The cafe is cozy with a really funky interior and there is a permanent hopscotch out the front to shake down your shake.

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  1. Trunk Diner, 275 Exhibition St, Melbourne

Did you know the Golden Gaytime milkshake at Trunk Diner includes a whole ice cream bar, plus milk and more ice cream in its mix? Do not order this AND dessert.

  1. Soda Rock, 257 Toorak Rd, South Yarra

This is where you go to have a shake Danny Zucko style. Soda Rock prides itself on its loyalty to the old way of doing things, shakes come out on a tray with your glass, the extra in the silver cup and a straw offered from the jar. Each table has a jukebox and the diner is styled just like you hoped a 50s American Diner would be. The shakes are traditional and excellent.

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  1. Tuck Stop Take Away, 273 Hawthorn Rd, Caulfield

This tiny take away joint makes milkshakes in the cutest old-school surroundings. Their shakes are made with Schulz organic milk and house syrups concocted from nostalgic childhood sweets, melted down. Take your pick from Redskin, Mintie, Salted Fantale and Nutella. 

  1. Little Rose, 10 Heath St, Port Melbourne

Little Rose is a hidden gem in a back street of Port Melbourne. The shakes are delicious (our shout out goes to the coconut rough) and complement a lovely little menu. The cafe’s tag line is ‘Shakes. Jaffles. Coffee.’ and they do their trifecta very well.

Other notable mentions:

  • 8bit – every week they have a rotating chocolate bar flavour.
  • Common Galaxia – their chocolate milkshake includes huge chunks of chocolate brownie.
  • Happy Maree enters the milkshake competition with their chocolate shake. Sure, they only have one shake on their menu but they do it mighty well. Goes well with the house made banana bread.

Truck Stop Deluxe

And if you happen to be kid-free then you’ve got to try the alcoholic spiked milkshakes from Grand Trailer Park and Truck Stop Deluxe.  


Where do you think serves the best milkshakes in Melbourne?  

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About Joyce Watts

Joyce Watts is a former intellectual property, IT and media lawyer turned serial entrepreneur.

As well as being the founder of TOT: HOT OR NOT she helps businesses with their SEO, email marketing & social media as BrightSmart.com.au; she owns an online bike store CycleStyle.com.au and develops and produces creative experiences for families via WheelieGoodFun.com. She used to publish another popular lifestyle and food blog called MEL: HOT OR NOT The decisive guide to Melbourne.

She lives in inner-city Melbourne with her husband, two children and seven bikes.

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