Breakfast/Brunch

Dee’s Kitchen

19 Pier Street, Dromana 5981 4666

Warming Shakshouka

Delicately smashed rosemary potato and pumpkin

Zucchini and fetta fritters

Spiced carrot and chickpea pastili

Thoughts:

Warming Shakshouka – a rich Middle Eastern inspired tomato salsa baked with spinach, chorizo and chèvre (goats cheese), topped with two poached eggs and served with warm house baked pita bread = Not bad

Delicately smashed rosemary potato and pumpkin – the roasted potato and pumpkin were tantalising and full of flavour. These were served with beautifully poached eggs, crispy pancetta and pepperonata (stew of onion and sweet peppers) = Excellent

Zucchini and fetta fritters – deliciously crispy fritters that had a hint of creaminess due to the fetta, served with a sweet beetroot and sesame dip, and a tasty labneh (yogurt cheese) dip = Excellent

Spiced carrot and chickpea pastili – rolled carrot and chickpeas in crunchy Tunisian pastry, served with a cauliflower and quinoa salad, a pumpkin dip and a yogurt dip. These imitation spring rolls were bland while the salad and dips were plain and unexciting = Not bad

Overall:

The menu is Middle Eastern/Mediterranean inspired, while the ingredients that they use are sourced locally wherever possible and change with the seasons. Note that this place also sells wine, cheeses and cured meats for you to take home. The staff are friendly and helpful, and although the decor here is quite dark (dark floors, dark metal chairs, grey metallic ceiling), the open space of the dining area allows for plenty of natural light to enter in through the windows, making the place feel warm and comfortable.

Spilt Milk

288 Neerim Road, Carnegie 9571 8880

Donkey

Cow

Thoughts:

Donkey – overcooked poached egg, bacon (not the crispy kind) and fresh spinach on sourdough, served with spiced capsicum aioli = Not bad

Cow: baked eggs with fatty chorizo sausage, plenty of fetta and herbs served in a pan, with chewy light rye bread and sweet tomato relish on the side = Not bad

Overall:

The menu here is fun and unique as all of their dishes have been named after various animals. Portions however are quite small, as is the place, thus seating is limited. The staff are friendly and the atmosphere is cosy. Just note that there is no restroom here but they are in the process of installing one.

Lolo and Wren

484 Albion St, Brunswick West

Crispy Croque Monsieur

Sweetcorn and Zucchini fritters

Brioche french toast (half serve)

Thoughts:

Crispy Croque Monsieur – I didn’t realise it at the time, but this was listed in The Age’s guide to Melbourne’s best sandwiches. It consists of shaved leg ham, swisse cheese, cheese and chive cream, coated in crisp breadcrumbs and fried, served with homemade tomato relish. Crispy, greasy and deliciously cheesy; this sandwich was awesome = Excellent

Sweetcorn and Zucchini fritters – crispy light fritters that contained more corn than zucchini, served with peperonata (stewed sweet peppers), Meredith soft goats feta, pebre salsa (Chilean chili salsa), chilli jam and avocado = Good

Brioche french toast – served with lemon curd, fresh orange, ricotta, candied zest, raspberry compote, baby basil and burnt orange syrup = Good

Overall:

Located on a suburban street underneath some modern green apartments, parking is close and plentiful. The decor is simple and the service varies from average to fantastic depending on who is serving you. The menu here is fresh and interesting, and bookings can be made before 10am and after 1pm.

Dukes Coffee Roasters

169 Chapel St, Windsor 9521 4884

House cured ocean trout, heirloom beetroot, goats feta, poached egg, german rye

Avocado hummus toast, poached eggs, honey candied bacon and dukkah

Thoughts:

House cured ocean trout – ordinary trout, perfectly poached eggs, white/golden/red beetroot and slivers of apple added a nice sweetness, the german rye was extremely tough and chewy = Not bad

Avocado hummus toast – the avocado hummus spread and the honey candied bacon were delicious. However the toast itself was rock hard and impossible to cut! = Not bad

Overall:

I think my expectations for this place were just set too high. After hearing about how great this place was, I was left a little disappointed. The service was average, the food nothing extraordinary and the decor dark and offbeat.

Bent Espresso

2/385 Centre Rd, Bentleigh 9557 1339

Beetroot relish, avocado and goats cheese on toasted sourdough with poached eggs and dukkah

Sautéed garlic mushrooms, spinach and goats cheese on toasted sourdough with poached eggs and dukkah

Potato and herb cake topped with smoked salmon, asparagus, poached eggs, soft herbs and horseradish cream

Thoughts:

Beetroot relish – the combination of the sweet beetroot, the salty goats cheese and the creamy avocado made this dish quite enjoyable = Good

Sauteed garlic mushrooms – the fresh, buttery, garlic infused mushrooms were fantastic! The sourdough was a little bit over toasted but everything else on the plate was delicious = Excellent

Potato and herb cake – the potato cake itself was crispy and full of flavour while the horseradish cream added a mildly pungent element to the dish = Good

Overall:

I can’t imagine what this place would be like when it gets busy as they do not have a waiting list of any sort here. You simply loiter around and hope that the staff know who arrived first, or that the people who arrive after you follow the honour system and don’t jump the queue. The place itself is very small, with a funky huge mural along the back wall and bright red retro style chairs and tables. The staff are friendly and efficient, while the food here is delightful (perfectly poached eggs and all). On a side note, they do not have a toilet here so you have to use the public toilets located outside near Bentleigh Station (which were apparently revolting).

Porgie and Mr Jones

291 Auburn Rd, Hawthorn 9882 2955

Smashed avocado with thyme buttered mushrooms, marinated feta, basil and poached egg on wholegrain toast

Shakshuka – two eggs slow baked with spiced tomato, silver beet and feta

Toasted banana bread with maple syrup mascarpone, fresh banana, berry compote and crushed pistachio

Thoughts:

Smashed avocado – absolutely delicious! Mushrooms were bursting with flavour, egg was perfectly poached, the toast was thick and fresh, and the marinated feta added a slight sharpness which balanced out the creamy avocado = Excellent

Shakshuka – the slow baked eggs mean eggs that look poached, but are actually cooked all the way through. This dish was full of spices and went well with the warm pita bread = Good

Banana bread – more like banana cake than banana bread (was moist and light). I liked how they incorporated slices of banana in between the two slices of banana bread which made the whole thing taste a lot more fresh = Not bad

Overall:

A great place to have breakfast/brunch as the food here is fresh and tasty. There are three main dining areas: the quirky hipster room (wooden benches, funky artwork), the formal dining rooms (known as the “good rooms”) and the bright garden terrace. Service was average and note that this is a cash only place.

The Tree Of Us

71 Church St, Richmond 9077 3839

House onion rings

Ribs

Breakie burger

Stelios burger

Thoughts:

House onion rings – thinly sliced onion rings covered in a really nice crispy batter = Good

Ribs – average ribs covered in a sweet Jack Daniels BBQ sauce, served with mash potato (which tasted like it had been sitting around for a while) and some salad = Not bad

Breakie burger – bacon, chorizo sausage, egg, house hash, relish, rocket lettuce and mayo all combined into one delicious burger! = Good

Stelios burger – an epic burger made up of 2 x 140g beef patties, bacon, mushroom, lettuce, tomato, jalapeños, swisse cheese, mozzarella, tomato relish and truffle mayo. The beef patties were extremely juicy and the truffle mayo taste was quite distinct = Good

Overall:

A cozy little place that has friendly service and terrific burgers. The front dining area has a contemporary feel with lots of interesting artwork displayed, whereas the back courtyard has a very relaxed feel with its fake grass and colourful fairy lights (I can imagine it being a great place in summer for having after work drinks). Note that wednesday nights are their rib night and that on thursday nights the beers are only $2 with any food purchase. Bargain!

Two Birds One Stone

12 Claremont Street, South Yarra 9827 1228

Two birds – eggs on toast with mushroom, spinach, heirloom tomatoes, haloumi, avocado, house made sausage and bacon

Black Angus steak sandwich with bacon, beetroot chutney, horseradish cream, rocket and cheese

Corn fritters with house smoked salmon, avocado and snow pea tendrils

House smoked salmon omelette with beetroot relish, goats cheese and chervil on toast

Thoughts:

Two birds – a typical big breakfast dish = Not bad

Steak sandwich – the sweet beetroot chutney combined with the tangy horseradish made this a satisfying steak sandwich even though the steak was slightly overcooked = Not bad

Corn fritters – somewhat dry but the snow pea tendrils gave the fritters a fresh and unusual taste = Not bad

Salmon omelette – the omelette itself was nice however the toast that it came on was really thin and dry = Not bad

Overall:

Good atmosphere, average service and so-so food. Probably not a place that I would be rushing to go back to.

The Grain Store

517 Flinders Lane, Melbourne 9972 6993

Apple, rhubarb & ricotta pancakes

Chilli & fennel sausage, winter vegetable hash

Lemon meringue pie

Thoughts:

Pancakes – Extraordinary! The combination of tangy rhubarb curd, sweet apple puree, crunchy oat and honeycomb crumble and the fluffy ricotta pancakes was simply fantastic = Excellent

Chilli & fennel sausage – the egg was perfectly poached and sat upon the winter vegetable hash which was a mix of potato and sweet potato chunks. The chilli and fennel sausage was ordinary but the pear and cider relish was quite tasty = Good

Lemon meringue pie – lemon curd, marshmallow, tamarillo salsa, basil and two squares of buttery pastry made up this deconstructed pie. Despite having all the right ingredients there on the plate, I couldn’t help but feel that something was missing = Not bad

Overall:

A wonderful brunch place that is hidden among dull office buildings found at the west end of Melbourne’s CBD. The food here is fresh, local, organic, and not to mention beautifully presented. The staff are friendly and there is a relaxed country kitchen feel here with its light open space and naturally colourful decor (fruit, vegetables, plants, flowers) that can be seen throughout the dining area. Best of all, this place takes reservations!

Luxbite

38 Toorak Road, South Yarra 9867 5888

Meringue Monster

(green tea sponge, pistachio, watermelon yoghurt, sour strawberry mousse, meringue)

Passionfruit Tart

(Passionfruit curd, meringue, kaffir lime sherbet)

Endless Love

(lychee ganache, rose cream, lychee, fresh raspberries)

Lolly Bag Cake

Thoughts:

Meringue Monster – terrific combination of flavours! The only thing that could have made this cake even more delectable was having a less dry and powdery green tea sponge (which is only noticeable if you eat this layer alone) = Excellent

Passionfruit Tart – the tangy passionfruit curd together with the sweet meringue and hint of kaffir lime resulted in a very refreshing tart. Just note that the pastry is quite solid and takes a bit of muscle to cut through = Good

Endless Love – fresh and delicate with a hint of tanginess from the raspberries = Good

Lolly Bag Cake – made famous by Masterchef, this cake is made up of seven layers that include: 2 layers of joconde almond sponge brushed with banana sweet syrup (banana lollies), freckles crunch with popping candy (chocolate freckles), spearmint leaf buttercream (spearmint leaves), mandarin Jaffa ganache (jaffas), musk stick marshmallow (musk sticks), topped with a delightful redskin glaze (redskins). A very sweet and unique creation, the best part about eating this was trying to determine which layer was which lolly = Good

Overall:

The desserts on offer here are pretty amazing: well presented and of course taste fantastic! There is a curious Asian influence with some their flavours; their macaron selection includes pandan, green tea pistachio, rose and lychee, and bamboo oolong tea. The decor here is modern with high ceilings, striped walls and a long marble communal table. Service is quick and friendly although seating is limited so expect a wait or grab a takeaway instead.