Apple

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

http://threewilliamscafe.com/

Percy’s Aeroplane Cafe

Matcha Hotcakes

(green tea hotcakes sandwiched between a Nutella brioche donut drizzled with chocolate ganache, pistachio and a dollop of whipped cream served with fresh and reduced red berries)

Deliciously decadent without being excessively sweet.

★★★★☆

Percy Thyme

(roasted mushrooms infused with thyme and garlic, tossed through baby spinach and served on smashed avocado and multigrain toast, served with dukkah, goats curd and a poached egg)

A good solid dish however the serving size of this used to be larger.

★★★☆☆

Pulled Pork Benedict

(poached eggs smothered in apple cider hollandaise, apple, roast pumpkin, onion, garlic and carrot, resting on a toasted pan de mie bun)

The toasted bun was surprisingly incredible! Generously buttered, soft in the middle and ultra crispy around the edges. The rest of the dish was also quite tasty however the rubbery overcooked eggs were a disappointing let down.

★★★☆☆

Matcha latte

Weak and watery.

★★☆☆☆

Overall:

A friend of mine suggested this place for a recent catchup and I was pleasantly surprised with our experience. The atmosphere was comfortable and although we were seated by ourselves all the way in the back room, the service was great as the wait staff continually checked up on us to refill our water and ask if we needed anything. What I also liked about this place was the staff’s interest on customer feedback. Apart from asking the usual question of whether or not we enjoyed our meals, we were asked about our thoughts on the Matcha Hotcakes, which were a new menu item (eg. Was the serving size adequate? Was the dish sweet enough?). Serving sizes in general could be improved, but I’d still return if I was in the area.

Percy’s Aeroplane Cafe

96 Denmark Street, Kew, VIC

(03) 9939 7642

Left Field

Slow Cooked Pulled Pork Shoulder Benedict with Sourdough, Poached Eggs, Apple Cider Hollandaise, Pomegranate, Apple and Mint

Ample amount of tender flavourful pulled pork, perfectly poached eggs, delectable hollandaise.

★★★☆☆

Breaky Board – Wild Muesli with Honey and Cinnamon Yogurt, Roast Pumpkin Bruschetta, Poached Egg, Hummus, Feta and Dukkah, OJ

I really liked the Breaky Board at Tall Timber and was hoping that the Breaky Board here would be just as good or even better. While this was very tasty, I enjoyed Tall Timber’s version slightly more.

★★★☆☆

Overall:

I was super stoked when I heard that this place was being opened in Carnegie as the South East side of Melbourne is seriously lacking quality brunch-type cafes. With a team of people who are behind Tall Timber, Rustica Canteen, Short Straw and Touchwood, I was really looking forward to seeing what Left Field would offer.

The decor inside was bright and simple, the staff helpful, and the food enjoyable. My only disappointment was that they had sold out of their ‘Cookies n Cream Donut Sliders’ so I will have to return to try them.

Left Field

358 Koornang Rd, Carnegie, VIC

(03) 9578 2043

Tall Timber

Slow Cooked Honey and BBQ Pork Ribs with Apple, Cabbage and Coriander Slaw, Sesame and Lime

Tender fall-off-the-bones ribs with a disappointingly average sauce.

★★★☆☆

Breaky Board – Dukkah Poached Egg on Pumpkin Loaf with Hummus and Smashed Avocado, Muesli with Berry Yoghurt and Seasonal Fruit, Small OJ

I love menu options that allow you to have a little bit of this and a little bit of that. And of course it’s even better when everything tastes great, like it did here!

★★★★☆

Overall:

Tall Timber is a popular cafe that offers great food and friendly service within a bright and comfortable space. Menu options are unique and delicious-sounding and I can easily see why this place is a favourite for so many people.

Tall Timber

60 Commercial Rd, Prahran, VIC

(03) 9510 4111

Pizza Religion

Pork Pizza

(pork sausage, chilli, fennel, apple and cabbage salad)

Quite enjoyable but there wasn’t enough pork sausage (many mouthfuls of this pizza were purely of cabbage salad)

★★★☆☆

Beef Cheek Pizza

(braised beef cheek, celeriac puree, caramelised onions and gremolta)

The pungent beef cheek tasted marvellous with the sweet caramelised onions.

★★★★☆

Overall:

There is a wide range of fresh gourmet pizza toppings available and they are all served on crispy thin crusts. The staff here are helpful and the atmosphere is truly family friendly.

Pizza Religion

493 Tooronga Rd, Hawthorn, VIC

(03) 9882 2555

http://pizzareligion.com.au/

Champions Bistro

37 Springs Rd, Clayton South 9544 9929

Smoked oyster, apple, horseradish

Beef tendon, salted macadamia praline

Duck liver, rye crisp, mountain pepper

Charcoal chicken wing, celeriac, scallop, lemon pith, miso foam

House baked sourdough with butter

Hapuka, nettle broth, broccoli leaf, pork fat

Kangaroo, native plum, sorrel, dried berry

Pynegana cheddar, mustard sheet, muntries

Tangelo, black garlic, brioche, fromage blanc sorbet

Jerusalem artichoke ice cream, dehydrated chocolate mousse, fragrant tea jelly

Overall:

Things I knew before dining here:

1. former Vue de Monde chef Clinton McIver heads the kitchen

2. reviews have been very complimentary and at one point this place was booked out for months in advance

With this in mind, I walked in with fingers crossed hoping that this place would live up to its expectations. Unfortunately for me it did not. Although I enjoyed everything that was offered on their tasting menu, nothing in particular sent my tastebuds into a frenzy. However the menu here is constantly changing depending on seasonality and other aspects so perhaps it was just the current menu that failed to impress me. I also found each course to be quite small and left still feeling hungry.

On a more positive note the service was terrific and I loved the simple unpretentious atmosphere (this place is unexpectedly located at the Clayton Bowls Club and the dining area offers a nice view of the bowling green).

I am still undecided as to whether or not I want to venture here again. Perhaps so once the menu has completely changed.

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!