Eat. @ Fat Boy Thai Kitchen

850 Glenferrie Rd, Hawthorn ph (03) 9818 7728

We stumbled across Fat Boy Thai Kitchen one day when we went for ramen at Hakata Gensuke but they were undergoing renovations.  The kids thought the name was hilarious and so we gave this place a try, and so happy to report that it was actually a really nice meal without any hype.

We started off with the fish cakes ($8.9).  Nothing fancy, but a tasty morsel of fish cake with a great sauce.

The crying tiger ($11.9) was a portion of marinated scotch fillet grilled medium.  Another tasty starter.

We couldn't go past the sticky pork ribs ($21.9) on the chef's recommendation in the menu.  These were fabulous, fall off the bone tender, with an amazing caramelised sauce with a touch of chilli.  The broccoli provided the healthy antidote.

We always order mussaman beef curry ($16.9) when we have Thai and that night was no exception.  The beef was tender and the sauce was perfect.  The kids loved this as it's not as spicy as the other curries, and it goes a long way with a nice bowl of jasmine rice.

Lastly we tried the red duck curry ($18.9).  You can't see much in the photo but here's some very nice pieces of roast duck in a delicious red sauce.  I always like the lychees in red curries as it gives a nice sharp contrast to the spicy curry.

We've been back a couple of times since the first time we stumbled across Fat Boy.  The service has always been courteous and efficient.  The upstairs area lets us come along with in bigger groups with friends and family and the lack of hype means we can go for a good feed of Thai food without too much planning or trouble.  Keep up the good work!

Eat. @ Lights in the Attic

38 Camberwell Rd, Hawthorn East 3123 ph (03) 9813 5042

Bubs and I ventured down to Lights in the Attic on one of our brunch roulette adventures.  Like a lot of new cafes in the area, it's on the ground floor of a new small apartment complex.  I've always wondered what it's like to live above a cafe, would the fragrance of coffee and breakfast wake you everyday, or would you get sick of the smell?

Anyway, Lights in the Attic is bright and cheery, and we were quickly seated when we arrived.  I really liked the pendant lights in the over the counter, and also over the bar seats.

I ordered a mocha ($3.8) which utilises Atomica beans.  It was sweet, dark and rich.

I pretty much chose to come here because of the amazing photos of the Birds Nest ($18) I had seen on instagram, so ordering was easy!  This was a scotch eggs with potato chips nest and kransky chilli beans base, and grated parmesan cheese on top.  The beans were delicious and the nest was of course an absolute hit with Bubs, but somehow I didn't love the coating on the scotch eggs as I found it quite sour.  After chatting with the staff who spoke with the chef, I was told that it had vegemite in the mix and bingo!  Not being a fan of vegemite that might explain why I didn't really like it.  The eggs themselves were quite nice though.  

There were lots of interesting menu items I'd like to return to try and hopefully I'll get a chance to pop back again soon!

Eat. @ Sardi

111 Church Street, Hawthorn ph (03) 9818 6140

Still missing my Japanese holiday and hanging out for some matcha goodness, I spotted a picture for a matcha latte on my instagram and beelined to Sardi for my green tea hit.

Their matcha latte certainly looked the part.  The taste was pleasant if only a little too weak for my tastes.  I still prefer the near perfect one down the road at Tana.  

I chose the Brekky Board ($17.5) which is always great for me as I can never decide. (Having brunch with Hubby and kids on the weekend is the best, partly because we can order quite a few things and shared!)  The Brekky Board here had granola parfait, croissant with passionfruit curd, pea and haloumi fritter, with poached egg and coffee.  They graciously changed the coffee and included my matcha latte in the deal instead.  All the different elements on the board were delicious and perfectly sized.

Bubs not so subtly hinted at the pretty little red velvet cupcakes in the display, so we shared one as a final little sweet.

The rest of the menu is filled with healthy sounding granola, acai, almond mylk and a superfood breakfastbowl (should totally be called a SUPERBOWL I reckon thank you very much!) with kale and asparagus amongst other greens, although they also have good old staples like bacon and eggs in a ciabatta and banana bread french toast.  It's not a large space and it was pretty packed on a weekday so I can imagine it would be a popular weekend hangout.

Eat. @ Tana Cafe

36 Church Street, Hawthorn 3122 ph 0421 965 656

As you can tell from this blog and my instagram feed, I like my coffee.  But there are days I don't feel like one.  And on those days I will be heading over to Tana Cafe, because I seriously think they make the best Matcha Lattes this side of town!

The owners are super lovely people and always greet me with a smile.  

I don't even know how to describe the joy I get from sipping on my matcha latte.  It's just a perfect blend of green tea and frothy milk, not too sweet and oh so soothing.

Bubs is crazy for their corn mayo toast.  I don't blame him, there's just something delicious about the mix of crunchy corn, creamy mayo and that gooey melted cheese. 

Can't wait to come back and try the rest of the menu, and more of that matcha latte of course!

Eat. @ Crabapple Kitchen

659 Glenferrie Rd, Hawthorn 3122 ph (03) 9078 5492

My Sister-in-Law amazes me that she would know about the cool new places to eat in Melbourne even though they have been living in the US for the past 2 years.  At her suggestions we went to Crabapple Kitchen in Hawthorn for Saturday morning brunch and I must say it was an excellent choice as we all loved it.

The cafe is deceptively well serviced by a back room of tables and a heated, covered deck area.  As a party of 7 we were seated in the deck area and even though it was a freezing winter morning,  we were kept cosy by the heaters.  We started with a warm drink as we looked through the menus.  Mochas ($3.5) for Hubby and I.

Latte ($3.5) for SIL.......

 and a short black for BIL.

The kids were busy checking out their own little menus.  The "Little Crabapplers" get to chose a meal and a drink for $13.  I would personally eat any of the dishes on this menu, where were cafes like these when I was little? (I suspect the answer would be - in my dreams!)  The reverse side of the menu are pictures of the whole Simpsons family to colour in, with buckets of pencils given to the kids by the friendly staff.

Readers of this blog will know that Bubs is a bacon and eggs type of dude, so free-range eggs and bacon on sourdough toast for him it was.  Poached eggs with runny yolk of course, nothing less for this little foodie!

Macaron Monster with her sweet tooth went for the pancakes with maple syrup and vanilla ice-cream.  What a lovely, fluffy looking pancake!

Whilst adventurous Mini Me tried the minute rump steak with shoestring fries from the lunch menu.  

Their drinks were served in little bottles with paper straws.   The older tow had milkshakes whilst Bubs went for a water melon juice (not pictured as I couldn't get him to give it up for a photo once it arrived!)  I really can't comment on their food as they disappeared from the plates pretty quickly, so no complaints from my children there obviously!

SIL and I both went for the Breakfast Experience from the Chef's Travels" from Stockholm, Sweden ($18), which was smoked ocean trout on toasted rye bread with shaved cornichon, red onion, capers, seaweed caviar, horseradish creme fraiche and young celery.  A sophisticated combination of interesting ingredients, and a beautiful looking dish I must say.

The BIL ordered a Chargrilled Flatbread with yoghurt, freekah, dukkah poached eggs ($18.5) - I think he added an extra sausage, which he quite liked.

Hubby the Sweet corn, coriander and chilli fritters with Cyprian haloumi, avocado, cucumber, tomato, red onion and mint salad ($17) with a poached egg (+$3).  This was the only dish that we were a bit disappointed in, as we found the flavours quite bland; it could've used a little bit more salt or perhaps a sauce to spice things up a bit.  

All in all it was a wonderful and enjoyable meal.  The staff were friendly and helpful with the little ones, the brunch options were quite varied and they cater to the the kids really well.  

Toilets - yes
Highchairs - yes

Eat. @ La Flaneur - Dinner Service

5 Church St, Hawthorn 3122 ph (03) 9853 8587

I have always loved my coffee and the brunching and lunching at Le Flaneur.  I was very excited when I was invited to try the recently started dinner service on Friday and Saturday nights. Hubby and I were ready for another date night after the fun but noisy school holidays, and we were somewhat excited, to say the least, at the chance to try something new at a place we already knew well.  What we found was a beautifully prepared meal with some interesting twists to classic French dishes.  

The dinner menu at Le Flaneur offers 3 entrees, 2 mains and 2 desserts, and changes every second week.  I think this is a great way to do a dinner service as the chefs get to conjure their magic with fresh, in-season ingredients, and it kind of gives someone like me a chance to try different foods, as I'm someone who would go back and have the same dish over and over again if I liked it the first time!

I started with the House cured salmon, blinis, creme fraiche and salmon roe ($17).  This dish looked gorgeous and I enjoyed the lovely salmon perched atop the perfectly cooked blinis, which were slightly crunchy on the outside, and warm and soft on the inside.  The creme fraiche and roe added interesting textural components to the dish.

Hubby is quite the self confessed mussels connoisseur  so it was no surprise he ordered the Mussels Marinieres, served with crispy sourdough bread ($17).   I'm not a huge fan of  mussels but these were good sized and the sauce was divine.

For the main meal I ordered the Duck Breast, served with wheat polenta, apricot reduction and broccolini ($27).   I really enjoyed the perfectly duck meat, and that crispy duck skin with the salty bite was to die for.  A really lovely dish, and if this was on a regular menu I would order it every time!

Hubby had the Poached Ocean Trout, bouillabaisse, rouille jelly and shellfish ($29).  The fish was beautifully poached and the bouillabaisse and rouille jelly were full of flavour.  And yes, more mussels for Hubby!

The 2 dessert choices were quite heavy and I would have love to have had something a bit lighter as an option.  However both looked really tempting and we couldn't resist ordering one of each to share! (Piggies!)  The Carrot Cake served with orange blossom creme fraiche ($12) was delightful, and the decorative and delicious toffee shard really brings the flavours together.  For the price it was a very generous serve.

The Chocolate Fondant flavoured with raspberries and Tonka beans ($13) was a decadent end to our meal.  Unfortunately the centre was not as flowing as we would've liked but the flavour was beautiful and the raspberries gave a lighter balance to the richer chocolate.  The 2 dessert choices were quite heavy and I would have love to have had something a bit lighter as an option.  

We dined as guests of Le Flaneur on this occasion, but couldn't believe how well priced the dishes were, for the amazing quality of food that were offered.  A main meal at my local bistro costs easily upwards of $30 for most dishes and are obviously nowhere near the standard of meals at Le Flaneur.   We thought the standard of food and services here were comparable to some of the meals we've had in more "acclaimed" establishments charging upwards of $100 a head in the CBD and inner city.  

What's a visit to Le Flaneur without a cup of my favourite mocha?

I have always found the dishes at Le Flaneur to be adventurous yet delicate and immaculately prepared, with a dash of whimsy and surprise.   The dinner service did not disappoint and we were delighted to have spent a wonderful evening in cosy surroundings, with gorgeous food and attentive service.  Highly recommended, do try them out before the delicious secret is out and bookings become scarce!

What's cuter than a coffee inspired door handle?

A tamper for a door knob!

Disclaimer : Hubby and I dined as guests of Le Flaneur.  We thank Tony for the kind invitation.