Eat. @ Mr Hendricks

469 Whitehorse Rd, Balwyn 3103 ph (03) 9830 7579

A new addition to Balwyn's cafe line-up is always an exciting thing for me.  As much as I love all the cool cafes in Fitzroy and Collingwood, a nice, dependable coffee hangout nearer to home is always welcome.  I've quickly fallen in love with Mr Hendricks (new man in my life?  Sorry Hubby!)  and have had quiet a few visits since.

My first visit was a coffee catch up with my good friend Helen.  The mochas here ($3.8) are exactly the way I like them.  Smooth, rich coffee with no bitterness and the subtle chocolate giving them the perfect amount of sweetness.  I'm also happy to report that they have been quite consistent (despite different coffee-art) on my subsequent visits.

Bubs had no kinder that day and tagged along and of course I had to get him his favourite "eggies".  The Crispy Eggs ($18) are soft boiled eggs which are then crumbed, served with smoked ham hock, sweet potato puree, fennel, radish, and walnuts on sourdough bread.  The house made honey mustard dressing lifted this delicious combo to amazing.  Everything on the plate was yummy, and I could see this becoming my go-to dish when I visit.

The next visit was for Saturday brunch with Hubby, and we sat outside in the back courtyard and enjoyed our coffee with some vitamin D.

Even though I wanted those crispy eggs again, the Blogger in me made us order something else.  The things we do for a photo op!  We shared a serve of Mr Hendrick's Big Breakfast ($19), which had fried eggs, bacon, sausage, black pudding, potato hash, tomatoes, mushrooms, baked beans, housemade BBQ sauce and some sourdough to top it all off.  A very tasty and decent sized serve of a "big brekkie" dish, and quite comfortably shared between two.

But of course we have to have something sweet, and the French style crepe with lemon curd ($9.5) was one of the nicest crepes I've had.  The house made curd was perfect in tanginess, the crepe was thin and light.  I swore THAT was going to be my go-to dish from now on!

I loved it so much that we came back 2 weeks later for my birthday brunch, because I'd been hanging out out for more of that crepe!  But wouldn't you know it the menu had changed and you should've seen my long face when I found out the crepe's not on the new menu!!!  It's my birthday and I'll cry if I want to!  Okay, I didn't cry, but I did order the next sweet thing on the menu which is the Brioche French toast ($14.5) with vanilla poached pears, caramel sauce and double cream.  Indulgent and oh-so-delicious, this is a fantastic dessert-as-breakfast dish.  I still love the crepe though so I hope to see it back on the menu!

Hubby had the Breakfast Cassolet ($19) served with confit duck, toulouse sausage, persillade and fried eggs.  This is a delicious but pretty heavy dish, and combined with the brioche french toast we didn't eat anything that day until dinner!

The staff are friendly and helpful, and on my first visit with Hubby they took the time to warn us that the food might take a little longer as they were very busy and a bit behind on the day, which we appreciated to help us plan the morning, but ultimately the food was ready in under 20 minutes which was quite reasonable.  The seating inside is quite cozy, with an ancilliary room off to the right for more seating, and the decked out courtyard out the back more friendly for kids.  Mr Hendricks is currently one of my favourite locals and I hope that they can keep up the great standards so far and look forward to many future visits.

Toilets - yes
Highchairs - yes

Eat. @ Scarvelli and Goodies. @ Lune Croissanterie

143 Whitehorse Rd, Balwyn 3101 ph (03) 9816 8887

I finally got an opportunity to catch up with Jo and the Angmoh from The Hangry Bitch a while back when they graciously came over to my side of town and had brunch with me.  I'd been to Scarvelli a few times with Hubby for coffee and dukkah eggs at breakfast.  The cafe wasn't super busy and I enjoyed a lovely chat over brunch, it's always so much fun meeting other bloggers!

I had a tea on the day, but the mochas ($3.8) here are quite nice, and I've always been impressed with the coffee art!

Jo had a prana chai latte ($3.8) and the Angmoh had a Lindt hot chocolate ($5), which were unfortunately both too milky.

Jo had the Smashed avocado ($15) with a poached egg ($3) which was served with persian feta, roasted vine tomatoes and toast.  She quite enjoyed it but would've liked it with a squeeze of citrusy lemon or lime.  

The Angmoh likes Dukkah Eggs ($17.5) and of course he ordered this.  These are crumbed poached eggs, served with cauliflower puree, pinenuts, pomegranate and sauteed spinach.  I have ordered this dish the last few times I'd been there and had enjoyed the crunchiness of the pinenuts, the tart sweetness of the pomegranate combined with the creamy, comforting cauliflower puree.  The Angmoh liked the dukkah eggs but suggested that bread would be a great addition to the dish to mop up the generous serve of puree. 

I decided to go for something from the lunch menu and had the Cured ocean trout ($16.5) which came with pickled radish, cucumber, fresh dill and horseradish creme fraiche.  This dish was ultra healthy as there was a lot of greens, and protein from the delicious house cured trout.  The creme fraiche was too heavy in a giant dollop though, and I would've preferred if it had a drizzle of citrus to give the dish a bit of a lift and moisture, and some carbs in the form of potato latkes or some bread would make this a fantastic lunch.

Overall Scarvelli is a great addition to Balwyn's cafe culture and I particularly like their wider range of dishes and more roomy setup as compared to nearby eateries.  

I was a lucky, lucky girl that day, as Jo had gotten up early and visited Lune Croissanterie in Elwood, and generously gifted me with some of the goodies she got there.   I love, love, LOVE good quality pastries and have been dying to try the "best croissants in Melbourne", but have never been able to juggle my love of sleep and children well enough to wake up that early (some queue from 5am!!)  and make the trek across town to queue for these goodies.    

The Cruffin was filled with..... wait for it.... peanut butter custard!  And it was absolutely as awesome as you would think this combo would be.  

The Kouign Amann was layers upon layers of buttery goodness with the the perfect amount of sweet.  

Let's just say that there was a no-sharing rule at my house when these arrived home!

I had a great time catching up with Jo and the Angmoh and I really do enjoy meeting other  bloggers and chatting about a shared passion for good food!  I cannot thank you guys enough for your amazing pastry gifts and look forward to brunching again with you in the near future!

Eat. @ Caffe Romeo

319 Doncaster Rd, Balwyn North ph (03) 9857 6625

So my Littlest starts kinder this year, but instead of having some more "child-free" days I'll be kicking up my work hours.  Last Thursday morning was my last "morning off" to run errands and I had 30 minutes before kinder pick up so I stopped by Caffe Romeo for a quick coffee and snack.  Caffe Romeo is almost a Balwyn institution and it's well loved by the locals.  Most mornings the cafe serves as a meeting place for young and old and it's rare to see it not packed out.

I have been here often and always get the mocha. Smooth smooth smooth with just a hint of chocolate.   

I couldn't go past a lovely custard croissant for morning tea.  

The staff is friendly and although space is limited, tables outside accommodate prams and pets.   A beautiful local secret.

Eat. @ Snow Pony

95 Whitehorse Rd, Balwyn ph : 9816 8911

Having been to quite a few interesting and cool cafes that serve good coffee and great brekkie/brunch/lunches in the inner suburbs, it's great to see that Snow Pony lives up to similar standards while being much more travel-friendly to Eastern Suburbanites.

Having never been here before, I ran in to check for the availability of a pram friendly table before Hubby got our precious luggage out of the car.  The waitress was very friendly and helpful and found us a spot in the semi-outdoor corridor seating area towards the back of the cafe.  Snow Pony is divided into little dining areas, with 3 table-for-twos on the side walk, main dining area in the shop, a few cosy little rooms coming off the corridor seating area, and a few communal tables in small courtyard out the back.  It was a bit chilly out the back today, but baby was rugged up and it made us appreciate the warm drinks and hearty food all the more.

Hubby had the Giddy Up, which is the Snow Pony Big Breakfast.  The "Happy Eggs" come as you like it, and he had them poached (so very in vogue right now!)  These were done very well, with the gooey centre oozing out over the crunchy bread as you cut through the firm egg white.  My favourite bit of this dish has to be the smashed avocado.  Simply done with a bit of lemon juice and a dash of pepper, it gave the hearty breakfast a tangy freshness. 

The cappuccino came with the now expected pretty latte art.  Hubby felt it was a little bit too cool, but was otherwise a fine coffee.

The McPony, which is the Snow Pony "McMuffin", was not exorbitant at $4.90.  A comforting arrangement of ham off the bone, emmental cheese, and "creamy dreamy scrambles" between 2 perfectly toasted english muffins, this was very pleasant.  For some reason I kept thinking this would be pretty good as the perfect brekkie for a hangover!?  I just felt it was missing something, and it hit the spot after I stole a bit of smashed avocado and roasted tomato from Hubby.

My choice of a small savoury item like the McPony was made because I wanted to have some scones and tea.  Their lemonade scones were served with Bonne Maman 4 fruits jam and Chantilly cream, and went fantastically with a pot of English breakfast tea.

I've read a few negative reviews for Snow Pony, but based on our visit today, we were very happy with the service and the food we ordered, and will definitely return.  We had a 25% discount by using an Entertainment Book Voucher, and the normal prices are comparable to most inner suburb cafes offering the same fare, which mostly do not offer discounts with any programs.

Eat.Play.Shop. Recommends : The Giddy Up for big eaters.  The scones were great for any time of day.

Give it a Miss :  if you want to use your credit card.  It's cash only!