Eat. @ Hobba Coffee + Kitchen

428 Malvern Rd, Prahran 3181 ph : (03) 9510 8336

Bubs and I popped in to Hobba for brunch on the way to Prahran Market the other day.  Housed in an old converted garage, this cool cafe is a busy hub of activity.  Regular readers of this blog will notice that I tend to visit the "cooler, trendier" cafe spots during the week, as I'm weary of having to wait for a table on the weekend with our family of 5.   I am happy to report however, that this is a fantastic, cool, yet family friendly cafe, and one that I would even be willing to return on the weekend with our "Party of 5" and queue up for a table to sample more of their goodies and coffees.

I started with my usual choice of mocha.  A lovely cup, right up there with the high standards of Melbourne coffee. 

For brekkie, I ordered the Smashed Avocado, Persian Feta, Grain Sourdough and Slow Poached Egg ($11.8) and added a side order of Ottway Free Range Dry Cured Bacon (+$4.5).  The Hobba Kitchen serves up excellent Green Eggs slow poached at exactly 62.5 degrees, and being crazy for poached eggs I was keen to try this out.

All I can say is, WOW!   The egg white was soft, the yolk was "thick runny" but not messy.  If I was more poetic I would embellish this post with a sonnet or two about these eggs, but since I'm not even a good limerick writer, I will just tell you to try this one out for yourself and thank me later.  The egg was the show stealer, but the bacon held its own by being tasty without being overly salty, and the avocado and feta were perfectly balanced.  To be really pedantic, the toast was a bit too crunchy, but Bubs happily munched on it, seeds and all.

The whole seating area is very spacious, kid-friendly and awash with natural light.  (Apologies for the extremely overexposed photo of my coffee above!)  I was comfortably seated in one of the timber booths, with Bubs pulled up along side in the pram.  Towards the back of the cafe are communal tables with ample room for prams and highchairs.  Lots of parents and kids in the area must take advantage of the set up, as I enjoyed my brekkie and watched singles and couples, as well as families and mums, pop in for a catch up over coffee.  Little ones flew in on their little scooters and bikes while their parents picked up a take away.  The service was top notch, the staff were efficient and friendly, and the cool dude who served me even smiled in sympathy as he helped me pick up toys Bubs threw out of the pram for the ump-teenth time.  

Perhaps next time I will try out their eggs with asparagus and poached salmon, or in the Hobba version of the big brekkie?  The lunch menu also looks inviting with their take on chicken schnitzels, beef burgers and crab and salmon patties.  Vegetarians and kids are well catered for, with many menu items suitable or easily adapted for both groups.

As I sit here typing away, Hubby is next to me, simultaneously salivating over the pictures of the food and cursing me for going without him.  Look out Hobba, I will definitely be back!  Even on the busy weekends, with the whole gang, waiting in line and risking a toddler meltdown.  It was that good an experience.  

Eat.Play.Shop. Says - Go the Slow Poached Eggs!  And the coffee will not disappoint!

Toilets - Yes
Highchair - Yes