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Melville is a bohemian suburb of Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa. It is the location of many restaurants and bars, which are mostly frequented by students from the nearby University of Johannesburg, located in Auckland Park.
The area, along with Parkhurst and Greenside is one of the few areas of the Northern Suburbs to have cafes, restaurants and shops lining the streets rather than in enclosed shopping centres. The majority of the restaurants are located along 7th Street, although there are a few new restaurants and nightclubs on Main Street.
There are over 30 guest houses in the vicinity, and is a popular stopover in Johannesburg for tourists. On 7th Street, there are numerous restaurants and bars. For anyone wanting to rent art house movies DVD guru on 7th will blow you away for the range they manage to keep available.
Melville is also well known for the Melville Koppies (rolling hills of grassland with views over the city), and is near the historic suburb of Sophiatown. Beware of the over eager car guards who will try and hustle tourists and locals alike for illegal car parking spaces that might end up getting them ticketed.
If you are wanting to get into the bohemian vibe and have a tattoo or piercing in this area - rather avoid it as the health standards in these shops are not regulated.
The suburb was proclaimed on 5 October 1896, and is named after the land surveyor, Edward Harker Vincent Melvill. In the public sale notice, the suburb was described as "picturesque and healthy spot in the vicinity of Johannesburg with a magnificent view of the wooded country to the north with the blue Pretoria ranges stretching like lines of steel against the horizon."
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