Eat. @ Kitty Burns

24 Acacia Place, Abbotsford (03) 9427 0164

For our last weekday brunch roulette prior to Little Man starting prep (or as they call it nowadays "Foundation" *why why why?*) we headed down to Kitty Burns. 

This new cafe, like many around Melbourne these days, is on the ground floor or a mid sized apartment complex in Abbotsford.  I'd watched with anticipation as works went under way for the cafe, since we've often utilised the lovely bike path that winds its way along the Yarra past the new buildings around here.

The menu was quite varied, and offered lots of healthy choices like smoothies and raw cakes, as well as the decadent, like the luscious donuts sitting on the counter.  I ordered the Torched kingfish, with kimchi mayo, leek ash, sea succulents, with a roast sesame dressing, edamame beans and Japanese rice. ($22.5)  This is one of the more successful fusion lunch dishes I've had, and it's gorgeously plated.

Little Man shared lots of my brunch as always, but I did order him a Mac n Cheese ($8) off the Kids Under Twelve menu, which he in turned shared back with me.  This is a golden slab of crumbed mac n cheese, sprinkled with more cheese.  I don't think anything more needs to be said about that, and it obviously went down pretty well.

It was a raining and cold summer day, but the bright, cheery and beautifully designed interiors definitely marked a stark contrast to the dull weather. 

Eat. @ Hobba - New Autumn Menu

428 Malvern Rd, Prahran 3191 ph (03) 95100 8336

I have been a fan of Hobba's great coffee and amazing 65 degree eggs since my first visit back in 2011.   So I was super happy to have been invited to preview the new menu that is being launched for Autumn and to experience their new dishes!  Owner Con Katheklakis and head chef Rhys Hunter have been working hard to bring some very interesting dishes to the new menu and it was most impressive to see their passion for a great dining experience for their patrons.

We began the evening with a tasty starter of crispy calamari and Asian salad, which is part of their repertoire for functions at Hobba.  Woah, I didn't know you could have functions at Hobba, but what a cool way to celebrate an event in their cosy dining room!  

The calamari itself was really tasty and I loved the tangy dressing for the salad. The caramelised lime was a lovely touch.

The first new menu item was "Hobba's Vietnames Banh Mi".  This was my favourite dish of the night.   Marinated pork loin, in a brioche bun with chicken liver pate, coupled with radish, lombak and the most amazing pork crackling crumb.  Oh that crumb, I could probably eat that sprinkled on every dish!  The side of slaw was refreshing, and my only gripe was that the dressing soaked the underside of my otherwise crispy and buttery brioche bun.  I had no problems gobbling the whole thing down though, wet buns and all.  More crumb please!

Next up was a pan seared snapper, with a cauliflower puree, potato gratin, asparagus and heirloom beats and purple cauliflower.  The dish was very pretty, the fish perfectly cooked, and can easily be eaten for breakfast, lunch or dinner.

Then came the first appearance of the 65 degree egg, which appeared in a dish of wild mushrooms (woodear, enoki and oyster), served with sherry jus and green chives.  The egg was beautifully cooked and the gorgeous mushrooms had a delicate yet almost "meaty" taste.  A fabulous option for non meat eaters.

Hobba's chilli con carne followed, and along with a 65 degree egg it was served with a 10 hour confit brisket and goats cheese croquet, topped with shaved chocolate.  A really hearty and filling brunch dish.

Then we moved onto the Alfa Feast, which is a Hobba staple.  Southern style pulled pork, with fried eggs, alfalfa salad, and a pear reduction hollandaise.   Whilst I didn't find the dish super exciting my Hubby would love this combination of slow cooked tender pork and fried eggs.

And last but not least - I always have to end a meal with a little something sweet - Hobba's hotcakes!  Fluffy hotcakes, served with seasonal berries, mascarpone, honeycomb, vanilla bean and house-made maple syrup.  My favourite part of the dish was the honeycomb crumble which gave the super fluffy hotcakes a crunchy textural contrast.  The berries adding the tang.  A really well balanced sweet brunch option.

I think Con and Rhys have come up with a great menu which gives diners an interesting array of brunch dishes to choose from.  The range of flavours and ingredients used would satisfy the fussiest of our city's discerning brunch addicts!

Disclaimer : Eat.Play.Shop. sampled Hobba's new autumn menu by invitation of the owner and the chef.  Opinions are my own.

Eat. @ Little Rogue

12 Drewery Lane, Melbourne CBD 3000 ph 0433 739 148

Down Drewery, tucked inconspicuously in a little shop, are a couple of cool coffee chaps that are serving up lovely cups of brew to those who know about this little place.  Bubs and I ventured here after pictures of their beautiful coffees keep popping up in my Instagram Feed.

Their mocha is top notch and I was not disappointed by the beautiful coffee art in a cheery blue cup and saucer. 

As for something to nibble on, Little Rogue gets their goodies from Pop Up Scroll as well as the amazing crepe cakes from Mille & B.  We tried a slice of the pandan and coconut cake ($7) and there might just have been a little bit of fighting over the last bite between Bubs and I!

A true hidden gem of a coffee place in Melbourne!

Eat. @ Addict Food and Coffee

240 - 242 Johnston St, Fitzroy 3065 ph (03) 9415 6420

Next up on Friday Brunch Roulette Bubs and I visited Addict in Fitzroy.  We liked this place a lot and came back for a repeat visit the week after!

As per usual I started with my usual mocha ($4) which is made with Mork chocolate and addorned with lovely coffee art.

Bubs enjoyed a Kids Bacon and Eggs on Toast ($7.5) and an added potato hash ($5).   A decent serve of brekkie for my little boy.  Yes he's a little hipster and likes his eggs poached!

I tried the Coconut and Chia Seed superfood stack with mango, puree, peach, strawberry and puffed buck wheat ($14).  Wow this dish was a real winner both in taste and sight. (Instagram obviously agrees - it's my most "liked" picture this year.)  It was delicious, and whether it's superfood or not, I felt really healthy!

We came back the next week and tried the Beet and vodka cured ocean trout, with hash nuggets, poached eggs, dill and roe citrus dressing and petite salad. ($18).  The trout was delicious and the hash nuggets were very more-ish.  I really like the pickles in the salad that made it extra refreshing.   

I ordered an extra potato hash to share with Bubs since he's been demolishing our shared brunches lately!

Here's the money shot of the perfectly poached eggs.

We had a 20 minute wait for the coffee on our first visit, and there was a slight hiccup with the delayed arrival of my dish a further 20 minutes after Bubs' bacon and eggs, but our second visit ran very smoothly and the staff remained friendly and attentive throughout both visits.  

I definitely enjoyed our visits and will be bringing Hubby back for a brunch date in the near future.

Eat. @ Lemon, Middle & Orange

25-31 Rokeby Street, Collingwood 3066 ph (03) 9415 1593

Lemon, Middle and Orange is one of my favourite places for brunching.  Never mind that I still can't seem to say their name in the correct order.....(LMAO!).

The cafe is clean, modern yet comfortable, and the staff are always friendly.  We've not had to wait for long for a table fortunately but it can be quite busy on the weekends.

The first time I visited with Hubby, I had just disappointingly missed out on picking up goodies at the Flour Market.  Good opportunity to try a new brunch place though, and their mocha ($4) is wonderful and has the requisite art that we Melbournians must have with our coffees. 

I had the Waffles with caramelized banana puree, Jock's vanilla ice-cream, crispy bacon and banana chips ($15.5).  Whilst some of my friends still find this combo strange, Melbourne cafes have really embraced the bacon + sweet pairing and for one am a big fan.  The banana chips here gives the dish an interesting crunch.

Hubby had The Croquettes of the Day ($16), which changes regularly (I think the one here is corn and coriander).  These are the big lumpy fritters rather than the crispy flat "fritter" ones but are still quite nice with the lovely poached eggs.

I have since been back lots of times with Bubs, as it's on our way to the CBD.  The mochas are always consistently nice.

I've realised I always study their menu intently and have ended up ordering the same dish each time!  Bubs loves his eggies, and the House hot smoked plum cured salmon, served with potato latkes, poached eggs, fennel, horse radish and creme fraiche ($17.5) is a perfect dish for us to share.  The salmon has a very nice smokey flavour, the latkes are a crunchy hit with Bubs, and the fennel adds a fresh and healthy balance to the dish.

There are some nice little cakes, pastries and sweeties in the front display cabinet which I've often picked up on the way out for the kids' Friday after school treats.

On nice days you can sit outside and is a great place for local pet owners and pram pushers to catch up.

And of course the big bonus for me is the Lululemon outlet over in the nearby Rupert Street, perfect for the post brunch retail therapy - buying sports clothing is also healthy for you, right?

Eat. @ Stagger Lee's

276 Brunswick St, Fitzroy 3065 ph (03) 9419 5564

Bubs and I have been playing what I call "Brunch Roulette" on Fridays.  There are so many cafes in the Fitzroy/Collingwood area nowadays I practically just drive that way, find a parking spot, and we wander into the closest cafe for our weekly brunch.  On this happy Friday we parked in front of Shocolate and wandered into Stagger Lee's, which was a wonderful piece of luck as I had wanted to come here earlier in the year but it had just won awards and I was a bit shy of crowds.  

So happy happy us as I sat down and ordered a mocha, which of course brought me deja vu feelings of Stagger Lee's older sibling Proud Mary.

I ordered the Mama's Stack ($19) which on the menu was shaved corn beef, pressed potato, black cabbage, soft poached egg and horseradish cream.  My corn beef was cubed rather than shaved (not that it made any difference!) and it was mighty delicious.

I presume the pressed potatoes makes this a "stack"?  Regardless, Bubs wolfed down more than half of the dish in no time (except for the black cabbage, sigh, my eternal struggle with kids not eating their greens!)

Yet another nice cafe in Fitzroy.  I am so envious of you people that live in the area, so many places to eat awesome brunches and drink great coffees, totally spoilt for choice!