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

Eat. @ Candied Bakery

81a Hudsons Rd, Spotswood 3015 ph (03) 9391 1335

The kidlets love going to Scienceworks, and the trip across the bridge gives Hubby and I a good excuse to grab a bite from one of our favourite brunch spots The Duchess.  On our recent trip across town though, we tried out the new bakery kid in town, and had a fabulous lunch of baked goodness at Candied Bakery.  "An Aussie Bakery with an American twist, and a dash of European Influence" - this can only mean good things for the bakery-loving crazy chick in me!  The only negative was that I wanted to try everything but we could only eat so much in one sitting!

How was I supposed to choose from all this goodness??!!

We settled ourselves at one of the benches in the bakery and got into the serious business ordering.

Hubby and I started off with a mocha each.  I'm usually not impressed with coffees at bakeries but this was an excellent mocha.

The older 2 kidlets shared a Milo milkshake ($6.5) and gave it a big thumbs up.

I love a good Croque Monsieur ($8) and this one did not disappoint.  Perfectly creamy and served on brioche!

The beef pie ($5.6) oozed with tasty beef filling, with a beautiful flaky pastry.  This was served with the bakery's own home-made ketchup.

Likewise the sausage roll was delicious.  The sausage meat tasted rustic and home made (in a good way!) and had lashings of vegies through it (so I didn't feel as guilty having ordered two.......)

I was so excited to move onto desserts!  We couldn't decide between the two different doughnuts so....... we ordered both ($3.8 each)!  I liked the Zuppa Anglaise one better, entirely because I unconditionally love custard, but the jelly one was also yummy with the tangy jam oozing with every bite. 

I often use the almond croissant as a yardstick for comparing bakery standards and am happy to report this one ($5) was a winner!

And last but not lease we tried their home made soft serve ($4.5).  They had 2 flavours including peanut and jelly on the day, but Mini Me is a fan of vanilla so we had this, served with their sprinkles and crumble topping.   Perfect for this incredibly hot weather we've been having in Melbourne lately.  

The service was friendly and efficient, and plenty of families popped in for a bite during our visit.  Outdoor seating is available (perhaps not on an unbearably hot Melbourne day) and can be good for those with pets or bulky prams.

We will definitely be returning here the next time we come over this side of town, whether it be for lunch, or a quick pop-in to buy some baked goodies to take home.  Again I'm jealous of you west-siders!

Eat. @ Wonderbao

Literature Lane, Melbourne CBD ph (03) 9654 7887

I know we're really late hopping on the "Bao" train, but we finally got our groove on and tried out Wonderbao, in the RMIT precinct up towards the top our city.  Confession : I was never a fan of the "bao" when I used to go to yum cha as a kid.  I always found the "bread" to be bland and boring (obviously not a carb fan when I was young!), and never had an appreciation for any of the fillings.  It takes a bit to change me from my set opinions but Wonderbao has certainly made me think twice!

There always seems to be a long line in front of this little shop, with queues of people grabbing a quick bite on the go.  We were lucky to get a seat along the bench at the shop front.   As soon as we were seated the friendly staff brought our "baos" out.  First up the Roast Pork Belly Gua Bao ($3.8 each).  I know you've heard it before, but "Bao Wow"!  I really liked this combo of thickly sliced pork belly with a refreshing carrot and cucumber combo in hoisin sauce.  The bun itself was actually soft, and not at all heavy or doughy; perfectly complementing the heavier meat filling!

The Braised Pork Belly Gua Bao ($3.8) was slightly heavier but equally delicious.

Being less adventurous with Chinese food, Macaron Monster went for the good old Cheung Chay Bao ($2) with the chinese sausage.  Hubby topped up his meal with a traditional Char Siu Bao ($2) filled with BBQ pork.  Both were above the standards of the offerings out of a dim sum cart at yum cha.

One "bao" I've always loved is the custard bun.  Okay I'm biased as I'm a fan of custard in any shape or form.  The Nai Wong Bao ($1.7) filled with egg custard was one of the better ones I've had around Melbourne.

For drinks there's a fridge full of Yeo's drinks in different flavours.  Cheekily advertised as F.O.B drinks! ($1.6)

Or you can try their homemade soya milk ($2.8).  We had ours cold as it was a hot day, but you can order it as a warm drink.

Wonderbao offers a quick pit stop for those after a cheap snack.  Order a few items and you've got yourself a budget smorgasbord for lunch!  The shop is small so it's hard to get a seat, especially with a pram, so line up, buy your food and eat it outside like everyone else!   Eating Chinese street food whilst soaking up the graffiti-ed laneway ambience?  That is so essentially Melbourne nowadays!

Toilet and Highchair - No

Cook @ Home - Orange Madeleines

So my instagram followers would have seen lots of photos of my madeleines, as I became a bit obsessed with these little delicate French cakes over the course of last year.  Finally here is the recipe I use most often.   I found this recipe a while ago from Le Delicieux and it's my absolute favourite one as a) it's so easy and b) these madeleines are so light and delicious!  I love making the batter the day ahead when I'm expecting guests, then after dinner I just grab my bowl of batter, fill the pans, bake the madeleines, and have impressive little cakes to serve with a cup of tea for dessert!  

Orange Madeleines

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup plain  flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• Pinch of salt
• 1/3 cup of caster sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
• finely grated zest of 1 orange
• 2 tablespoons of freshly squeezed orange juice
• 80g of butter, melted

Method:

1) Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt and set aside
2) Using the whisk attachment,  add the sugar and orange zest to the mixer bowl and mix on the lowest setting until the sugar and zest are well combined (sugar becomes slightly orange!)
3) Add the eggs and whisk until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture becomes light and fluffy
4) With the mixer at its lowest setting, gently add the flour and vanilla extract, and mix until just combined
5) Add the melted butter and orange juice and again mix until just combined
6) Cover the bowl with glad wrap and refrigerate for 1 to 2 hours (overnight if possible)
7) Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius (355 Fahrenheit)
8) Grease your madeleine pan (I use butter), and fill with the batter to 2/3 full. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until cooked
9) Dust with icing sugar and serve

They are really quite easy and are soooooo very good with a cup of tea!

The trick to the pretty shell shaped is in the special madeleine pans which are quite readily available at most kitchenware sellers.

Filling the pan to 2/3 full will yield little delicate cakes.

Some people don't like the "hump" on their madeleines, others say it's not a true madeleine unless there's a hump!

Tips - 

• Madeleines are best eaten whilst warm, so take them out of the tin, cool slightly on a rack and serve them up straight away
• I use my KitchenAid to whip these up but it can easily be adapted for the Thermomix

Eat. @ Akachochin

33 Dukes Walk, South Wharf 3006 ph (03) 9245 9900

I have always wanted to visit Akachochin (named after the distinctively Japanese Red Lanterns) after seeing beautiful pictures of the food there on instagram.  I love shopping at South Wharf DFO, but for some reason had never figured out that South Wharf Promenade is just on the other side of the building!  We've been here for lunch a couple of times now, and to our delight we have found delicious, freshly prepared food and surprisingly kid friendly service.

On weekdays, Akachochin offers a $20 set lunch menu.  Essentially this is a Bento set with miso soup and steamed rice, with a side of yasai ohitashi (pickled vegetables), with an entree choice of either salmon or kingfish sashimi, and a choice of main.  Pictured below is the one with the grilled chicken with a spicy teriyaki sauce.  

The chicken was incredibly tender and the sauce was a perfect teriyaki sauce - not too salty, adequatetly sweet, with a hint of spiciness to make it interesting.  

Mini Me had the one with the grilled pork belly main.  I was really impressed that they thought to serve the sauce separately, as they were worried the sauce would be too spicy for children - something that I hadn't even thought of until they mentioned it! (Naughty Mummy!  Mini Me loved the sauce by the way, it wasn't too spicy for her!)

The other option for a main was a crumbed, fried fish fillet with a special tartare sauce.  There are also options available for vegetarians and for cold soba on the lunch menu.

On another occasion I tried the Fish Ochazuke ($15) from the regular menu, which was soy marinated sashimi on rice, served with hot green tea, wasabi, kizami-nori, spring onion and oshinko.  I quite liked this as a lunch, it felt like a bowlful of tasty, healthy Japanese comfort food.

We've also tried the Unagi Avacado Roll ($14 for 6 pieces).   I love unagi, and these rolls are a refreshing take, using cucumber as a wrap rather than nori.

We were fortunate enought to try their Nabeyaki Udon which was a special of the day during one of our visits.  A hot pot of udon topped with an abundance of seafood and a wonderful broth.

To be honest I had been really keen to try Akachochin but was worried that bringing kids there would be difficult, so was resigned to the fact it's one of those places I would eventually get to try on one of our rare dinner dates.  I'm really glad we tried lunch here, as the service was excellent and friendly, and we felt quite welcome (even the time we went as a party of 11, with 5 children, 3 of those 2 and under).  We kept the kids entertained at the table and got to enjoy some excellent freshly prepared Japanese food.  I'm already looking forward to my next shopping trip to South Wharf!

Toilet - Yes, spacious enough for a pram
Highchair - they have one!