Coffee

The Diplomat

Rolled oats, almond and mixed seed granola with chai panna cotta, berries, lychee, coconut yogurt and a mocha infused quinoa

Seriously good. Although a bit more yogurt would have made this even better.

★★★★☆

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Potato rosti with smoked salmon, yuzu mayonnaise, grilled asparagus spears, avocado and wasabi cream and a Japanese boiled egg

The yuzu mayonnaise and the avocado and wasabi cream really brought this dish to the next level.

★★★★☆

Green tea and mango smoothie

★★☆☆☆

Pear, honeydew and rhubarb mixed juice

★★★☆☆

Overall:

Comfortable bright open space, easy-going staff, colourful and well presented food. The menu here is unique in that every item (aside from the toast) has its own interesting and delicious twist. I must return soon to try their other dishes.

The Diplomat

4 Railway Parade, Highett, VIC

(03) 9939 6289

Three Williams

Duck Narnie

(peking duck, cucumber, shallots, fried onion, coriander, cabbage, orange hoisin)

★★★★☆

Wild Mushrooms

(lemon and garlic sautéed with wild mushrooms, mushroom and goats curd tapenade, fried egg, hazelnuts, truffle oil, parsley, sourdough)

★★★★☆

Golden Gaytime French Toast

(crunchy brioche french toast, vanilla ice cream rolled in a chocolate cookie crumb, chocolate crisps, fresh strawberry, toffee sauce)

★★★★☆

Splice Shake

(orange, apple and coconut blended with ice cream)

★★★☆☆

Banana smoothie with native honey, macadamia and wattleseed crumb

★★★★☆

Super Smoothie

(kale, apricot, apple, linseed, sunflower, almond, banana, ginger, cinnamon)

★★☆☆☆

Overall:

Terrific food, friendly service, minimalistic decor. There are often queues for this popular place during the weekend so we decided to visit on a weekday and were seated straightaway. It’s a place that’s definitely worthy of a return visit.

Three Williams

613A Elizabeth St, Redfern, NSW

(02) 9698 1111

Home

Pasticceria Papa

Vanilla and Ricotta Cannoli

★★★☆☆

Mini Ricotta Cake

★★★☆☆

Coconut Nutella Bigné

★★★★☆

Iced Chocolate

Half the glass was simply cream.

★★☆☆☆

Overall:

I had really been looking forward to the cannoli and the ricotta cake after reading all the rave reviews. Although they were tasty, I didn’t find them spectacular. In fact nothing we had was spectacular which was a bit disappointing. Perhaps we just came on an off day.

Pasticceria Papa

145 Ramsay St, Haberfield, NSW

(02) 9799 9531

Home

Le Petit Prince

Mushrooms and Chorizo

(with smashed avocado, beetroot hummus, poached egg and feta on quinoa and soya toast)

★★★☆☆

Green Bowl

(kale, kiwi, cucumber and coconut smoothie with black chia seeds, house granola, coconut flakes and seasonal fruits)

Simple, colourful, guilt-free.

★★★☆☆

Iced Matcha

Check out the huge clumps of undissolved matcha powder.

★★☆☆☆

Overall:

I liked how the menu here was divided into 3 sections: ‘The Light’, ‘The Healthy’ and ‘The Rich’. Of course my eyes immediately went to ‘The Rich’ section and I had to convince myself that ordering from ‘The Healthy’ section would be just as good. Service was helpful and I really enjoyed sitting outside under the shade of the large leafy trees.

Le Petit Prince

1A Mercer Rd, Armadale, VIC

(03) 9824 6404

http://lpparmadale.com.au

Flour and Stone

Pastrami on rye with pickled fennel and manchego

★★★☆☆

Chicken, tarragon, aioli, celery, walnuts and watercress

★★★☆☆

Pannacotta Lamington

★★★★☆

Overall:

We visited Flour and Stone early on a weekday morning and discovered that their baked savoury items were still in the baking process. At least we were able to get our hands on one of their popular pannacotta lamingtons which was indeed very moist and very delicious! The place itself is teeny-tiny though, so getting takeaway might be the better way to go if you are not keen on being right up close to all the other customers around you.

Flour and Stone

53 Riley St, Woolloomooloo, NSW

(02) 8068 8818

Home

Devon Cafe

Eggs Blini

(buckwheat blini, citrus cured salmon, asparagus, chives, salmon caviar, maltaise sauce)

★★★☆☆

Breakfast with the Sakumas’s

(miso grilled king salmon, smoked eel croquette, 63° egg, radish petit salad, kewpie mayonnaise)

★★★★☆

Lost In Devonshire

(Devon’s style French toast, peanut butter, raspberry jelly, vanilla cream, chantilly, peanut butter cookies, freeze dried strawberry and maple ice cream)

★★★☆☆

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Ruby Heart Berry

(juniper berry, rosehip, hibiscus flowers)

★★★★☆

Overall:

Good service, nicely presented food, normal looking cafe in the front area, odd army-like decor and graffitied walls in the back area.

Devon Cafe

76 Devonshire St, Surry Hills, NSW

(02) 9211 8777

http://www.devoncafe.com.au

Cote Terra

Celeriac Fritters

(served with house smoked salmon, pickled fennel, dill aioli and poached eggs)

The fritters themselves were somewhat dry and bland, so had to be eaten together with the runny egg yolk and the dill aioli. But the standout of this dish was undoubtedly the house smoked salmon which was absolutely delicious!

★★★★☆

Miso Mushroom

(roast field mushrooms, crispy enoki, cassava, parsnip puree with poaches eggs on rye)

There was only one thing that stopped me from liking this dish, and that was the EXTREMELY salty mushrooms. Everything else was great though.

★★★☆☆

Chips with chipotle mayonnaise

Crunchy golden chips that really satisfied the chip craving I had.

★★★★☆

Overall:

Generous servings, friendly service and great coffee. It’s always particularly exciting to discover decent brunch places this side of town.

Cote Terra

17 Station St, Oakleigh, VIC

(03) 9939 6805

http://www.coteterra.com.au/

Mountain of Bears

BBQ Pulled Pork Burger

(slow cooked pork shoulder served with lettuce, tomato, pickles, fried shallots and house made slaw with a side of grilled kipfler potatoes)

The pulled pork was juicy and well flavoured while the potatoes were a nice change from the usual side of chips that you get from everywhere these days.

★★★☆☆

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Valencian Paella

(clams, squid, chorizo, chicken and shrimp cooked with saffron infused rice served in a claypot, topped with parmesan and spring onion)

Bland but filling.

★★☆☆☆

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Berries For The Bears

(strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, milk, yogurt)

★★☆☆☆

Overall:

Tucked away in a small arcade, Mountain of Bears is a place that offers friendly service, an inviting atmosphere and cleverly named menu items. Let’s avocuddle anyone?

Mountain of Bears

556 North Rd, Ormond, VIC

(03) 9578 9882

Beatrix

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Cocoa sour cream layer cake with chocolate cheesecake buttercream and raspberries

A light and spongy cake that is perfect for that chocolate craving.

★★★★☆

Pistachio and lemon curd layer cake

Pistachio + Lemon = Amazing. How did I not know this earlier? This deliciously moist cake was lightly tangy and had an intense nutty flavour.

★★★★☆

Goats’ curd cheesecake tart with a toasted hazelnut crust and cherry compote

After eating this I realised that loving goats cheese and goats curd in a savoury form does not mean that I will love it in a sweet form. It just didn’t taste quite right.

★★☆☆☆

Baked and brûléed caramel cheesecake with a cocoa cookie crust

Crunchy caramelised topping, dense sugary cheesecake, tasty cookie crust.

★★★★☆

Overall:

Beatrix is a cake lover’s dream. It’s a place where the cakes are baked with love and have a homemade quality to them. I seriously wanted to order one of everything but the slices here are decently sized and we could barely finish what we ordered. Service was cheery however seating is limited (as this place is teeny-tiny). Note that this place is closed on Mondays and Sundays.

Beatrix

688 Queensberry St, North Melbourne, VIC

0403 698 836

http://www.beatrixbakes.com/

Pavlov’s Duck

Lankan Frenchy

(organic croissant, soft boiled egg, chilli fried potatoes, Asian tabouli, fish and potato fritter)

★★★☆☆

Sweet and Savoury

(bircher muesli mixed berries, coconut chia pudding and clustered granola, boiled egg, sourdough toast)

★★★☆☆

Red Velvet Pancakes

(with lemon curd, grapes, banana, almond flakes, raspberry jelly, agave syrup and crispy bacon)

★★★☆☆

Milk Rice

(rice pudding with chilli chicken curry, spicy onion relish and an Asian pretzel)

★★☆☆☆

Kottu

(chopped roti, vegetables, spices, fried egg)

★★★☆☆

Hoppers

(three plain hoppers with dhal, coconut sambol and chilli onion)

★★★☆☆

Monsieur Truffe 70% Hot Chocolate

Rich and velvety, one of my favourite hot chocolates at the moment.

★★★★★

Overall:

If you are looking for a unique brunch menu, look no further than Pavlov’s Duck! The Sri Lankan inspired dishes here are bold, full of flavour and wonderfully plated. Service was down to earth, and the warehouse-like space is typical of a hipster brunch place. A hoppers making station can also be found at the front so you can watch your hoppers being freshly made. In any case, I’m coming back for the hot chocolate.

Pavlov’s Duck

401 Smith St, Fitzroy, VIC

(03) 9416 4336

http://pavlovsduck.com.au/