How to spend 24 hours in Northbridge

If long-haul international travel is feeling beyond reach right now, there’s no better time to play tourist in your own city.

And Northbridge may just be the ideal destination for a winter staycation, with a series of arts and culture events, dining specials, new openings and old favourites to warm the bones and awaken the mind.

Inspired by Black Swan’s explosive new play Never Have I Ever, we have put together a 24-hour itinerary for those eager to shake off the mid-year blues with an impromptu mini break in the heart of Perth.

Afternoon

Check into the Alex Hotel, which sits pretty in the heart of Northbridge. The boutique hotspot celebrates its 10th year of business in 2015, and yet its design-forward aesthetic still feels just as current, not to mention the location within easy walking distance to all the area’s best bars and restaurants.

At 5pm, pop a coat on and head across the road to new watering hole Winston, which is from the same crew as The Bird, Ezra Pound and South Bird Hot Chicken. The New Orleans-style speakeasy has a fun handwritten menu of cocktails that change every week — a sweet, a sour, a stiff and a surprise — plus nightly specials and often a DJ spinning blues and jazz on the decks.

Evening

Now it’s back over to Shadow Wine Bar to try out its pre-theatre menu. This first-time collaboration with Black Swan State Theatre Company is exclusive for ticket holders and represents superb value at $35 for pasta and wine, with options including linguine with blue swimmer crab, bottarga, tomato and chilli, pan-fried ricotta gnocchi with king oyster mushrooms and burnt butter or rigatoni with lamb ragu, olives, chilli and pecorino.

Time for the main event at the State Theatre Centre: the raucous play Never Have I Ever, penned by Deborah Frances-White of The Guilty Feminist fame. Based around a dinner party that swiftly descends into chaos, the show explores identity and sexual politics and will likely leave guests buzzing with conversation points long after walking out of the Heath Ledger Theatre. Never Have I Ever runs until July 6.

For a sweet treat post-show, Chicho Gelato has a decadent hot chocolate menu. It’s a hard choice whether to opt for the Euro with its whipped cream, house-made crostoli and cocoa dust, the Chocomallow topped with a slab of house-made marshmallow and torched to order or the Chocogato, a riff on the classic affogato ice-cream dessert.

Morning

After breakfast at the hotel, wander over to The Art Gallery of WA to see the celebration of creativity that is the West Australian Pulse 2025. With 61 works by 2024 Year 12 Visual Arts graduates from 37 schools across WA, it is equal parts engaging, thought-provoking and smile-inducing. And even better, entry is free.

To round out the staycation, a hearty lunch at multi-level tavern Fallow is in order. This restaurant just rung in one year of operation and feels primed for winter with its warm interior and indulgent menu. Friday has a Steak Frites special from 12pm-3pm — chargrilled minute steak, Fallow fries, cafe de paris butter and a glass of house wine or middy of swan for $25 — or Sunday visitors can go all-out with a classic roast for $33.