Coffee round up + Cumulus & St. Ali's

I've actually cut back a lot on coffee & tea (except chinese tea). It was hard initially (probably caffeine withdrawals) but not difficult since the taste of coffee found here are generally so-so (if not bad). Local ones are too sweet, while the brewed ones passable (but somehow they always force a toilet visit on me after drinking, er don't mean to gross anyone out). I've always presumed its something to do with the milk - perhaps someone can correct me!?

On my trip downunder, it was a whole different story. Drank cups & cups of coffee. May be its the chilly weather, couldn't start the day without a hot cuppa. If you tested my blood then, the caffeine level would be alarmingly if not unusually high!!!

Cacao

Coffee @ Cacao was not bad especially since #1 its super near the Apple Store and #2 macarons are made available here.

If macarons are not your cup of tea, they have a wide selection of beautiful chocolates to tempt you!

Coffeehit

This is my favourite place for coffee. Pretty good if not the best among those served at Doncaster Westfield.


Noticed that these days most coffee places have a specialised milk pourer (what do they call them?) since their only function is not just to pour milk but in a fancy way to make you coffee look like cups of art.....known as coffee art!!


They also have their own coffee grinder so you can smell them a mile away!



Kokoblack

Not really a coffee place since they are more well known for their chocolate.


Chocolates, chocolates everywhere - walls of them!!

But they do serve coffee if you don't want a hot creamy cup of chocolate.



Gloria Jeans

Their coffee is not as strong and thick as others, yes I agree. But only made mention of them because their babycinos come FREE unlike some others where you might be charged at least AUD$1.


Not only is it FOC, they have colour rainbow sprinkles that would make your child smile the widest! Its hard to self-indulge on a coffee and not deprive your child from a healthier choice of babycino (that's warmed milk topped with foam with dusting of chocoloate and sprinkles (if they have them)).





Cumulus
45 Flinders Lane, Melbourne

cumulus homepage


This place also came highly recommend for their food. Read a lot about their famed '65/65 egg' which is slowly "poached" in its shell at 65 degrees for 65 minutes for the perfect egg just soft and slightly oozy!!

Didn't manage to go. OR rather, didn't make too big an effort to go. Will check it out in my next visit. As you know I was more keen on warm 'quirky' places and while this place has been noted for its food it didn't fit into the 'quirky' box. opps. my fussy feathers are showing aren't they?

Do check out what local food bloggers have written.
theage

melbournegastronome

breakfastblog

tastedbytwo

tummyrumbles

jeroxie

St Ali
9/9 Yarra Street, South Yarra

stali homepage


Another place that came in highly recommended for their coffees. If you are a serious or avid coffee drinker do consider visiting this place.

Another on 'next' list. While I could perhaps have been satisfied with a good quality cup of joe, again (being greedy) I wanted m-o-r-e.... than just a good cuppa - the 'X-factor' ie. the whole 'quirky' experience!!!

Mosey along to read what local food bloggers have written.

jeroxie
melbournegastronome
beanbunker
eatingmelbourneblog
ronnies-spots
breakfastblog





Appetite Café
This place looked very interesting as we passed by. Will definitely visit North Melbourne again. Other than Auction Rooms, there are many other 'interesting looking' cafes around that seem to fit into the quirky box! *grins*


8 Errol Street, North Melbourne

Apte

538-540 Heidleberg Road, Alphington

It means 'A Place To Eat'. APTE.
get it???

The deco inside is modest, white walls filled with paintings for sale.


Outside was much more cosy and interesting, especially on a nice morning!

Having had breakfast earlier, we chilled out for a quick coffee.
Rule is: waitress will take your order at the table and you pay at the counter before leaving.

Try to rock this rule and you'll be sent back to your table or the counter, depending whether you are order or paying!!

High on caffeine, I got busy.....

spying on someone's handbag and finished breakfast!
The tables outside are pretty narrow but functional.


pimping on a tall & fit looking blond cyclist.



and other patrons.....



On a good sunny day, you'll notice quite a number of customers dropping by for breakfast after their morning bike rides.

Hope I don't get killed for posting this shot, making my friend's head look bigger and weirder than it usually is!! ;p *kidding...only kidding*

Mosey to read about what local foodies have to say:

breakfastblog
breakiesworthgettingupfor
melbournegastronome

Mart 130

107a Canterbury Rd, Middle Park

Below are some of the many reviews I've read about this place.
Terri @hungerhunger
melbournegastronome
itpleasesus
wenywonderswhy
mydeliciousblog
breakfastblog
theage

So you can imagine I had a lot of expectations of this place!!!

While we had no trouble getting to Middle Park (tks to P's natural gps), it took us a while to figure out where on earth was '107A'???? It finally dawn on us that it was the TRAM STOP! hahaha

So if you ever plan on visiting this place, look for a tram stop.

After all if you haven't guessed Mart = Tram (spelt backwards)!!

The tram line is operational so do look before you cross ya!


The place was cosy!



The seating area inside is a little small so if you prefer indoors, you might have to wait until a space frees up.


We prefer the back patio and even on a slightly cool morning, they have heaters out so it was just nice for us! :)

The 'coveted' premier corner!! As there's only one, you'll be lucky to get it - try calling to reserve it though they'll probably only grant it if you have 4 or more people.

The patio over looks the overlooks Carmelite tennis club and Albert Park, so you might get to watch an amateur game or two! :)


Since we planned to visit a few places that morning which means that our tummies will be stretched, we decided to share our food.


As usual, the drinks came first.



I insisted on the order of corn fritters as it came highly recommended by many food bloggers.
Unfortunately to me it was only so-so. The bacon was fabulous though so if I'd visited this place again, I'll probably skip this and just go for the full breakfast with the usual bacon, eggs, mushrooms, bake beans etc.

There's something about this cosy bright place which makes it very relaxing and comforting. Great place to unwind by having a nice leisurely slow breakfast, browsing the newspaper or chatting!! The other thing I like about this place is that its situated VERY NEAR St Kilda beach, about 5mins (at a brisk pace) or about 10mins (for slower casual walkers). So if you plan right, you could indulge over a relaxing brunch before 'working it off' gently browsing at the Esplanade Market St Kilda which opens every Sunday 10am - 5pm. Great way to spend a nice non-wet Sunday!! Or if you are adventurous enough, you could rent a bike or roller blades to explore the area.

Banh Mi (aka Vietnamese Roll)

Yes still covering Melbourne, hope you are not bored yet. Will try to finish everything by this week so be ready for more food spill!!

My first taste of Banh Mi was in Hanoi. It was a small slightly warm crusty roll (almost like a shorten version of baguette) cut in half with a generous slab of pate. Very basic but oh so good especially paired up with a slow black and strong dripped Vietnamese coffee!!

Banh Mi??? My Aussies friends call them simply as 'rolls', giving me a wrinkly look as I start chatting animatedly about them ~ like are you seriously getting excited over a roll???

Anyway, before my trip read about a 'Banh Mi' show down by local foodies from 10 different Vietnamese shops in Victoria. Great work guys as this means I get to know which one is the tastiest, tks!

* ding ding*

From Richmond (along Victoria St):
1. Lee Lee
2. Huong Huong
3. Phuoc Thanh
4. Saigon Bakery

From Footscray:
5. To's - 122 Hopkins St
6. Nhu Lan - 116 Hopkins St
8. Ba Le - 28A Leeds St

From Preston (along High St):
9. Tina's
10. Mai Lan

and the WINNER.....

Nhu Lan Bakery from Footscray.

You can read more here:
halfeaten
jeroxie
footscrayfoodblog

Must have been my non-stop babbling that drove my friend nuts granting my wish/taste for a Melbourne Banh Mi erm roll (thanks chewy!).

Phuoc Thanh @ Richmond.

Selection of meat fillings.

The roll comes stuffed with assorted vegetables including fresh fiery (but not enough ummph ie not pedas enuf) chillies!

It was interesting to see them assembling this roll - spread of pate, then a slice each of various cold cuts, then the assorted vegetables. Could do with more herbs IMHO!

It was good (especially since it was the only banh mi I'm getting on this trip).

Aussies are BIG on D.I.Y. meaning do-it-yourself.

So here's my diy - best with a Casa Vienna White Roll from Baker's Delight and preferably warmed in an oven for 10 min for the extra crispy exterior!

And my version has no vegetables...just a thick generous layer of pate!!! ;) YUM.

Tien Dat

3 Carrington Road, Box Hill

homepage


Mentioned earlier that my "MUST EAT LIST" cleary states....Vietnamese.

So when dear K asked what I wanted to eat I practically shouted:
"VIETNAMESE PLEASE"!!

And so we ended up here.
This used to be my regular humble joint for Vietnamese food but many years ago, the business management changed hands. While the food is still decent, it still isn't the same. Its now pretty popular especially with the ang-mos and so do not be surprised if you get turned away without a reservation!!

Vietnamese Crepe (Banh Xeo) filled with pork, prawns, mung beans and bean shoots.

It was OK, tasted better one in Richmond which was much crispier!


Tear away a bite size portion of the omelet and eat it with a slice of lettuce and fresh herbs with some dipping fish sauce.



Vietnamese styled Laksa Noodle soup (Bun Bo Hue) - chili beef broth with rice noodles and slices of preserved meat.
This was interesting and a first for me. First taste was like watered down and slightly sour chili or dipping sauce soup. After a few mouthfulls, got used to it and was not bad. No wonder its K's husband favourite noodle dish.



We were both thinking that we'd ordered a side serve of grilled lemongrass lamb,

so we were surprised when this was served....

Sizzling lamb with garlic and ginger sauce.

We polished all of it anyway!! *burp*

On a gluttonous whim, we decided we needed some coffee and finally ended up at Pancake Parlour for a longer chat, rant and chew. :)


Which is a good choice since they are open 24-7. Especially more since there are not many places in the burbs that open to late on a working week day.

Babka Bakery

358 Brunswick Street, Fitzroy Victoria

A Russian bakery cum cafe.

Since it was on-route to the zoo, I begged and pouted until D finally gave in and detoured!!

Perhaps it was a promise of a pipping hot cup of coffee on a crisp cold morning that changed his mind? Anyway, no regrets except that we rushed for takeaways :(

Loved the matryoshka dolls (read more here) wall designs outside the bakery.

For some unknown reason I went a little crazy for these matryoshka dolls this trip - from table top ornament to xmas tree decorations (yep, they are up selling now). Think they are the cutest especially more since they come in a set of 5 in various sizes. So you'd can imagine my absolute delight when I saw these lovely ladies pasted boldly outside the bakery!!

The cafe is rather small and cozy.


Lots of people with take away orders - the usual, a hot cuppa of joe together with a rustic bread to bag!

I did mention that this is a bakery right - look at the trays of freshly baked bread. There's something about fresh baked bread (not the soft sweet confectionary kind) that make me weak and dreamy! hahaha

M ordered a sweet 'escargot' bread to share with D, only for it to be totally polished off by the kids. I only had a small pinch, darn we should have ordered another!!

Filled with lots of huge juicy sultanas, no wonder the kids loved them!


Since it we were ordering takeaways, I opted for smoked south australian salmon with baby capers, cucumber and sour cream, dill on a rye and caraway seed bread. What a mouthful huh?

But it was really good! They also have pies but realized this too late after paying our order.

Some of the food on the menu.

While waiting for our coffee takeways couldn't help but noticed these large 'snail' looking bread!

Love the taste of chewy rustic fresh bread. Unfortunately no one else share my taste so end up not getting any as they are all quite big loafs and didn't want it ending up in the bin if I couldn't finish it. *sigh*

They also serve a selection of sweet desserts.
They'll just have to wait when I have the opportunity to dine in, darn!

Mosey on to find out what local foodies have to say:

eatandbemerry

katkattales

sassychix

kongkay1

michelle