Just Open: BCKYRD, Brunswick

Sprinklers, Hills hoists and the smell of cut grass: the bliss of the backyard. Simon Ward, owner-chef of Fitzroy's Hammer & Tong, and James Rattray, of Flowerdale Farm, want to bring back the backyard. "There are apartments going up all around us," says Ward. "A lot of people don't have backyards anymore; BCKYRD is Brunswick's community backyard."

The boys have turned an empty lot into a lush public hangout. Two shipping containers bookend the under-awning outdoor space that's been greened with a wall of micro-greens and trucked-in trees.

Hammer & Tong's food truck is parked in the driveway sending out a special BCKYRD menu. There's crab and corn chowder in sourdough cobs, charcuterie boards, flathead and chips, and ramen and duck meatballs.

It all came together in a week, in time to open Good Friday for the Easter break. In coming weeks, a mural will bring the side wall to life and a bar will be installed. For the time being, stubbies of local beers and ciders will come from the truck.

Stage-two plans for the long, narrow site are an urban farm at the back producing micro-greens in a greenhouse for retail and to supply the kitchen.

BCKYRD, 20 Nicholson Street, Brunswick. Open weekends, Friday to Sunday, 11am-9.30pm.