Beetroot

Little Big Sugar Salt

Guilt Free Hot Mess

Soft fluffy gluten free almond and berry pancakes, dairy free coconut ice cream, sugar free date syrup and fresh fruit

★★★★☆

Glutenfreekakes

Millet+sweet potato+currant cakes with cashew cream, chilli jam, wilted kale and fried eggs

★★★☆☆

Rainbow Roots

Baked beetroot, quinoa, seeds, radish, herbs and a soft boiled egg (with a side of free range bacon)

★★☆☆☆

Overall:

Inconspicuously located among Vietnamese dominated Victoria Street, LBSS is an ideal place for those who are health-conscious and are after dishes that don’t taste like cardboard but actually taste good. The menu is small and simple, and is divided in such a way that all you need to do is decide 1.whether you want a little or big dish and 2. whether you want a sweet or savoury dish (hence the name of this place). The atmosphere was cosy and inviting (it felt as though we were in someone’s house), the staff friendly and attentive, and the service a little bit slow (most likely due to the tiny kitchen that they have here).

Little Big Sugar Salt

385 Victoria St, Abbotsford, VIC

(03) 9427 8818

Home

Top Paddock

658 Church St, Richmond 9429 4332

Latte

Well roasted, full-bodied with a toffee-like aroma

= Excellent

Chai latte

= Not bad

Gin and lime cured ocean trout fillet with pickled baby beetroots, potato galette, poached eggs, leaves, goats curd and toast

The presentation of this dish was rather peculiar as everything seemed to be randomly plopped onto a different part of the plate. The trout itself was crispy on the outside and rare on the inside, and went well with the other ingredients on the plate.

= Not bad

Pan fried local snapper with chilli-fried egg, avocado, tomato, lime and a corn tortilla

The snapper was tasty but there wasn’t much of it! I also wasn’t a fan of the super dry corn tortilla.

= Not bad

Blueberry and ricotta hotcake with berries, organic maple, seeds and double cream

OH SO AMAZING! (both in terms of looks and in terms of taste!) The berries added a lovely freshness and the seeds added a nice crunch. I could not get enough of this wonderfully sweet and fluffy hotcake.

= Excellent

And here’s another photo since this dish was so darn pretty:

Overall:

If you have a sweet tooth, you MUST try the blueberry and ricotta hotcake! Seriously. If not, there are many other interesting items available on the menu such as sticky black gingerbread and soft-shell crab rolls. The service here was average while the decor was simple and chic with plenty of greenery and flowers about which brightened up the whole place. Note that bookings for groups of 4 or more can be made on weekdays.

The Premises

202 Bellair St, Kensington 9376 7565

Slow roasted pulled pork with Nana Kath’s pineapple chutney, red cabbage slaw and a dill pickle

= Not bad

Two poached eggs, falafel, beetroot slaw and tahini yogurt on Lebanese flat bread

= Good

Overall:

Homely atmosphere, good service and your standard breakfast/brunch fare.

Ten Minutes By Tractor

1333 Mornington-Flinders Rd, Main Ridge 5989 6455

Olive and multigrain bread served with caramelised Myrtleford butter, pink salt and olive oil

Yellow beetroot, quinoa, goats curd

Grilled pear, quince, brioche

Red Hill Somers Soft goats cheese, roast pumpkin, chickpea, green beans, hazelnut vinaigrette

Roasted Whiting fillet, fried mussel, confit tomatoes, fennel, olive oil pomme purée

Mustard glazed quail, onion & pearl barley risotto, peppered pancetta and mulled wine apples,

served with freshly baked brioche

Roasted wallaby loin, beetroot, parsnip, chestnut cream, quinoa, fig jus

Tamarillo sorbet

Michel Cluizel chocolate & hazelnut pavé, honey ice cream, poached pears

Brie and crackers

Overall:

We opted for the five course degustation menu which turned out to be the right choice as we were already quite sated by the fourth course. The food was beautifully presented and each dish comprised of fresh, well complemented ingredients. However the standout item for me was without a doubt the EXTRAORDINARY caramelised Myrtleford butter! Served warm, it was exquisitely creamy yet light and had a delicious hint of sweetness to it. The cheese served here was also divine and is well worth trying. The decor was polished, and the service was professional yet slightly stand-offish. The dining room offers splendid views of the winery but only seats around 50 people so reservations are recommended as this place does get busy. It was a lovely experience but the only reason why I would come back would be for the butter.

Ramen Burger

Recipe:

1 pack of ramen or instant noodles
2 eggs
1 beef burger patty
1 slice of Tasty cheese
1 slice of canned beetroot
handful of rocket
tomato sauce

Method:

1. Cook noodles according to directions on the package. (I didn’t add any noodle seasoning but you can if you want to) Drain the noodles and allow to cool to room temperature.

2. Whisk 1 egg into a bowl and add the noodles. Mix well to ensure that the noodles are coated with the egg. Divide the egg-dressed noodles in half and place each half into a ramekin or other round container. Cover the noodles with plastic wrap, and place a can of soup or heavy bowl on top to press it into shape. Refrigerate for at least 15 minutes.

3. Add oil to a pan and once the oil is hot, cook the noodle buns until each side is golden brown.

4. Cook the burger patty on a pan and once it’s cooked to your liking, place the cheese on top so that it melts onto it.

5. Fry 1 egg sunny side up.

6. Time to assemble the burger! The order I did this was: noodle bun, tomato sauce, burger patty (cheese side up), fried egg, beetroot, rocket and second noodle bun.

Overall:

A burger that looks terrific and tastes terrific!

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).

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.