JD’s Burgers

King Kai

(signature Asian fusion beef patty, American cheese, bacon, Spanish onion, beer battered onion rings, lettuce and “afterlife” BBQ sauce on a brioche bun)

★★★★☆

Golden beer battered chips coated with JD’s seasoning

★★★★☆

Ultimate Black Pepper

(signature Asian fusion beef patty, HK black pepper sauce, American cheese, bacon, mushrooms, Spanish onion, lettuce, tomato and Japanese mayonnaise on a salad)

★★★☆☆

Overall:

I am always on the look out for good burger places, and JD’s Burgers certainly know how to make good burgers. When we visited, their menu offered 19 different burgers that incorporated exotic flavours from around the world. The burgers are served on either a premium French brioche bun or a salad (but let’s be honest, at a burger place you don’t win friends with salad!) The service was quick and friendly, and the dining area small and simple. Note that they also offer some crazy burger challenges for those who dare: a 1.5kg burger and a 4kg burger!!

JD’s Burgers

17 Hamilton St, Mont Albert, VIC

(03) 8590 6448

http://jdsburgers.com.au/

5 Lire

Ricotta Hotcakes

(buttermilk hotcakes topped with Nutella inspired semifreddo, Pariya Persian chocolate fairy floss and scattered with chocolate cacao and orange crumble)

The fairy floss reminded me of a bad toupee but I really liked it as it wasn’t overly sweet. The hotcakes themselves were average but the Nutella, the crumble and the fairy floss brought this dish up to the next level, making it overall enjoyable.

★★★☆☆

Riso con Latte

(warm creamy arborio rice topped with amaretto baked peaches and an amaretto biscuit crumble)

Warm and hearty.

★★★☆☆

Italian Style Croque Monsieur

(brioche loaf toastie spread with ‘Nduja, stracchino cheese, peppered fig jam, Lyonnaise onions and a fried egg)

Perhaps it was the combination of the ingredients or perhaps it was the ‘nduja (spreadable salami) itself, but there was a peculiar alcohol-like taste to this croque monsieur that no one was fond of.

★☆☆☆☆

Deconstructed Tiramisu Waffles

(waffle jolie topped with a whipped vanilla mascarpone, coffee jelly, crushed cookies, chocolate balls and coffee gel)

Every part of this was delicious!

★★★★☆

Overall:

Tasty food (mostly), friendly staff, and a long wait for our food to arrive (likely due to the small kitchen that they have).

5 Lire

116 Errol St, North Melbourne, VIC

(03) 9329 2249

http://www.5lire.com.au/

Lights in the Attic

Bird Nest

(scotch eggs on top of a potato nest, free range kransky chilli beans base and grated parmesan)

Very tasty and really filling!

★★★★☆

Wild Forest

(chilli scrambled egg, potato made mushrooms on top of toast with free-range bacon, pork floss and crackling)

The eggs were a bit bland, the crackling was tough and rigid, but the potato mushrooms were cute.

★★☆☆☆

Overall:

After seeing so many photos of the Bird Nest on Instagram, I’m really glad that this dish turned out to be as tasty as it looks. In fact all the dishes here are well presented. This cafe is bright and airy, and the service friendly.

Lights in the Attic

38 Camberwell Rd, Hawthorn, VIC

(03) 9813 5042

Sabai

Wok tossed tofu, herbs, salted chilli, fried shallots and poached prawns served on prawn crackers

House made vegetarian spring rolls with sweet chilli sauce

Soft shell crab sliders with apple slaw

Slow cooked pork baby back ribs with red curry glaze

Slow braised lamb shank massaman, potato and cashews

Somtum – green papaya, carrots, snake beans, cirspy shrimps, Thai chilli, garlic, cashews, cherry tomatoes, lime and tamarind dressing

Tom Yum – spicy and sour soup with squid, mushrooms, prawns, tomatoes, lemongrass and kaffir lime leaves

Crispy barramundi, fresh herbs and apple salad, chilli, lemongrass and sweet sour dressing

Steamed pandan, coconut and palm sugar puddings

Affagato – mini magnum, kahlua, espresso, toasted coconut

Thai tea panna cotta with coconut crumble and berries

Thai milk tea

Overall:

The word ‘sabai’ means comfortable or relaxed in Thai, and this restaurant is certainly a place where you can kick back, relax and enjoy lots of great contemporary Thai food. Authentic Thai cuisine is based on the fusion of five primary flavours: sweet, salty, sour, spicy and bitter. These flavours are combined to produce dishes of amazing intensity, and this was definitely the case for many of the dishes we sampled. The somtum in particular was like a flavour punch in the face! (but in a good way.) A place worth visiting for well balanced Thai food and friendly service.

Sabai

460 Church St, Richmond, VIC

(03) 8528 6884

http://sabairichmond.com.au/

*Disclaimer: I dined as a guest of Sabai.

Rustica Canteen

Free range roasted cayenne spiced chicken, kale, corn, lime aioli, pumpkin sourdough

★★★★☆

Grilled brisket, house pickles, gruyere, Russian dressing, watercress, light rye

★★★★☆

Poached eggs, smashed avo, rustica sourdough

★★★★☆

Crispy skin vodka cured ocean trout, smoked sea salt, radish green salad, poached eggs, citrus yogurt, light rye toast

★★★★☆

Overall:

Friendly service, great music (classic 80’s and 90’s), delicious food. The bread here is fantastic, making the sandwiches amazing! I also wanted to try their Ispahan croissant except they had unfortunately sold out. My next choice (the Chocolate and Peanut Butter croissant) was also sold out and I wasn’t particularly keen on the almond or the plain, so I must return here soon for the croissants!

Rustica Canteen

33 Guildford Lane, Melbourne, VIC

(03) 9642 2203

http://www.rusticacanteen.com/

The Garden of Good & Evil

Baked scallops with garlic and chilli butter

Well cooked but tasted purely of butter.

★★★☆☆

Street Corn

★★☆☆☆

Twice cooked pork belly with Asian slaw and micro herbs

Great flavours except the pork belly skin was extremely chewy and difficult to cut/bite through.

★★★☆☆

Soft shell crab tacos with smashed avocado, salsa fresca and chipotle aioli

Crispy crab with a delicious combination of ingredients.

★★★★☆

Beef brisket sliders with smoked hickory BBQ sauce

★★★☆☆

Seafood paella with tiger prawns, calamari, mussels, barramundi and saffron rice

This was in the ‘something bigger’ section of the menu so I was expecting something well…bigger. This dish was a little salt heavy otherwise the flavours were good and the seafood plentiful.

★★★☆☆

Trio of vegetable crisps

An interesting mix of sweet potato, potato and red cabbage.

★★☆☆☆

Overall:

The inside dining area was poorly lit so we decided to grab a table in the lovely back courtyard. Service was friendly and the food enjoyable. Note that the $10 paellas are only available 12-4pm on Sundays.

The Garden of Good & Evil

13 Station Rd, Cheltenham, VIC

(03) 9585 6067

http://www.thegardenchelt.com.au/

Trei Cafe

Coconut Hotcakes

(vanilla ice cream, coconut nectar, toasted pistachios, blueberries)

One of the most popular items here at Trei Cafe. We were told that they were out of the vanilla and nutmeg co yo ice cream (coconut milk vegan ice cream) so we happily settled for plain old vanilla ice cream instead. Now I really liked the colourful presentation and the generous serving size, however these hotcakes were not as fluffy as they could have been and were also markedly salty.

★★☆☆☆

Mango Smoothie Bowl

(mango, coconut water, coyo, coconut milk, vanilla Proper protein, granola, macadamias, passionfruit)

Healthy, refreshing and very colourful.

★★★☆☆

Overall:

Simple bright decor, average service, ordinary food. The east side is desperately in need of good brunch places, and after my visit to Trei Cafe I still believe that this is the case.

Trei Cafe

232 Blackburn Rd, Glen Waverley, VIC

(03) 9802 0960

Mykonos Cafe And Crepes

Little Venice Crepe

(banana, strawberries, oreo, nutella, coconut)

Thin crepe with crispy edges and a generous amount of filling!

★★★★☆

Bougasta Crepe

(semolina custard filling, icing sugar, cinnamon)

A satisfying crepe, but after the first bite all I wanted was a real bougasta instead.

★★★☆☆

Platter with dips and bread

★★★☆☆

I can’t remember what these were called but the lovely owner gave these to us on the house after telling us how he made them by hand earlier that day.

★★★☆☆

Overall:

Stepping into this place is like stepping into a holiday. The beautiful decor and ambience takes you straight to Mykonos. The staff were very welcoming and the crepes very tasty. A great addition to Oakleigh (aka ‘little Greece’).

Mykonos Cafe And Crepes

58 Portman St, Oakleigh, VIC

(03) 9569 6767

http://www.mykonoscafe.com.au/

The Peddler Cafe

Campfire (Baked) Eggs

(chorizo, bacon, butter beans, chilli, parmesan, napoli)

★★☆☆☆

Roast Salmon and Quinoa Salad

(avocado, snow peas, rocket, saffron and elderflower vinaigrette)

★★☆☆☆

Overall:

A charming unpretentious cafe where the staff were lovely and provided great service. The menu was limited compared to many other cafes (which is perfectly fine), however the dishes we sampled were merely average which was a shame.

The Peddler Cafe

295b Springfield Rd, Nunawading, VIC

(03) 9877 4381

ANOIA Artisan Pizza & Pasta Bar

Linguine Del Mare

(tiger prawns, calamari, cherry tomatoes, garlic, chilli)

★★★★☆

Zucca Pizza

(bianco-fiore di latte, roasted pumpkin, pinenuts, rocket, goats cheese)

★★★☆☆

Overall:

As soon as we walked in, we were inundated with delicious smells coming from their open kitchen. Now the fit-out at Anoia is dark and sleek and although the place appears to be small, there is actually more seating available at the back of the restaurant. The food we sampled was delectable while the service was ordinary. Note that this place also does takeaway.

ANOIA Artisan Pizza & Pasta Bar

779 Glenferrie Rd, Hawthorn, VIC

(03) 9819 2900

http://anoia.com.au/anoia/