Eat. @ St. Ali North

815 Nicholson St, Carlton North 3054 ph  (03) 9380 5455

St Ali has a new outpost, and it's bigger and better than the original in my humble opinion!  Apart from being a great place for cool young things, coffee aficionados, bike riders and Carltonites in general, this is probably THE perfect cool cafe for parents' with kids!  

We've been here quite a few times and each time the staff and patrons have been super helpful and friendly, and it's so lovely to feel welcomed.

Just past the railway line on Nicholson St in Carlton North, I was most impressed that I could actually get off street parking right near the cafe, a bonus when you have a wriggling, energetic toddler who likes to run and is not a fan of holding hands!  This of course is partly due to the fact that a lot of the patrons are bike riders, and locals who walk there.  

Being bike-friendly, it also has a "ride-thru" where you can grab your drink without even hopping off your ride (also excellent for take-away coffees).  You can also grab the excellent baked goods and baguettes on the go from there.

Speaking of coffee, the mochas ($5) here are fantastic, as one would expect from a St. Ali outpost!  The chocolate comes in a separate little pot so that you can control the amount of cocoa you want with your caffeine.  A tad more expensive than the usual at $5 but it's worth it!  

Their big breakfast is the Big English Ex Spanglish ($20.5), with eggs anyway (ours were poached), sour dough, house bacon, bean ragout, pork & veal breakfast sausage, field mushrooms and roasted whole tomatoes.  Enough to feed quite a few kids, or a hungry husband!

You can also build your own meal, starting with Just Eggs ($9.5) - I had poached, but good to see the 63 degree egg as an option here - on a choice of sourdough, multi-grain or gluten free breads.  I of course added an avocado and feta mash ($4.5), and  a side of house bacon ($4.5) ,because bacon makes everything super duper!

The kids have their own "Little People's Menu" complete with colouring pencils for entertainment after ordering.

The kids menu offers small versions of some of the big people's dishes.  Bubs had a half serve of Eggs Anyway ($8.5), served with a couple of slices of sourdough.

The inscription on the plate is just too cute! (And kinda lucky Bubs can't read yet?!)

I couldn't go past the Sweet 16 & Never Been Kissed ($17.5) which is the roasted stone fruit, with brioche, bacon ice-cream (!!!!) and fruit jus.  Bacon ice-cream sounds strange but it totally works, with the taste of the caramelised bacon infused in a vanilla based ice-cream, melting over the sweet stone fruit and brioche.  I will definitely have this again!

When you're done with the food St Ali North is conveniently situated right next to a park, which happens to be a good bribe incentive for the kids to behave during the meal so they can have a play afterwards.

If they just can't wait to play outside you can always grab one of the picnic mats and eat and drink outside whilst the kidlets run around to their hearts' delight.

When visiting without the family I like to sit at the coffee bar for a bit of coffee gazing and peace and quiet of dining out solo.

The baked goods here change regularly and are fantastic, very hard to leave without taking some with me!

And yes I am guilty of getting a danish (or 2!) as a take away for a sneaky afternoon tea when the kids are tired out from all the eating and playing.

Highchairs - yes
Toilets - yes