Small Block

130 Lygon St, Brunswick East; 03 9381 2244

Small Block was the first of its kind in Brunswick East, the forerunner of the cafe explosion that is still reverberating in a suburb previously more notable for being 'north of north carlton'. Small Block is still a trendy place, but these days it can be hard to know who's setting and who's following the trends. Amongst their in-vogue offerings are coffee cups stamped with the cafe logo (as at North and Baba, whereas The Press Club stamps their paper overlays), a Thai-style breakfast dish (Tom Phat) and service that can veer to the brusquer side of cool (A Minor Place).

Speaking of trends, as the first weekend of spring managed to maintain a temperature over 15C, some of Brunswick's best fashionistas were out and about: how about a super-short denim dress with socks and school shoes? This blogger pushes no fashion boundaries, but is happy to buck the trend when it comes to menu choice.

The chosen dish fell squarely into the 'I'm never going to cook that at home' category: herb and mascarpone polenta with mushroom ragout and pecorino. Doing its best to impersonate a baked cheesecake in looks, the polenta delivered on texture and flavour. The outsides were crispy - an important texture contrast to the mushrooms. It's a bland grain on its own but the herbs added enough interest it was subtly bulked by the mascarpone (presumably stirred through as one might parmaggiano). The mushrooms took their cue from the polenta and, with their deeply dark hue, impersonated a chocolate-cherry sauce to top the 'cheesecake'. The ragout had cooked down to a thick sauce, so it clung to the polenta, rather than letting rogue mushrooms escape around the plate. The sprinkle of shaved pecorino added some bite; I would argue for the sharper cheese to be mixed into the polenta instead of the mascarpone and to bulk out the ragout, rather than just topping up with rocket.

SG's choice came out looking ready to attack! Sitting alone on a dinner plate, it represented another trend, followed/set by Gingerlee across the road: the ungarnished, unaccompanied steak sarnie. In other dishes (such as the herbed polenta), rocket regularly shows up unbidden and unannounced. Why not throw some next to the sandwich, or at least serve it on a smaller plate so the customer doesn't notice all the empty space? A gristle-free piece of steak was ably accompanied by sweet beetroot and a not-too-powerful aioli. While there was no salad to pick at, the packed sandwich gratifyingly dripped morsels of food and sauce onto the plate to mop up with the ends of the soft ciabatta.

La Paloma

259 Albert Street, Brunswick; 9380 8520

It's tiny. A modest four tables inside and two outside. A few stools offer up-close vantage points to watch the vinyl spin or the milk steam. Mottled blue walls flout various images of the eponymous bird; sharp black and white tiles contrast against raw wood frames. It all adds up to a cosy place to be, especially when sitting back with a damn fine, single-bean coffee.

As for food, La Paloma is happy doing its own thing. During the week the cafe sticks with lunches - filled sandwiches, soups - from noon. In the AM, the role of satisfying the breakfast munchies falls to a tray of irresistibly alluring Spanish doughnuts lying in wait on the counter.Like the very-in churros, these doughnuts are of the long and ridged, rather than round, variety. Instead of dipping them in a chocolate sauce, however, they have been loaded with a squirt of caramel. Like Julio's filled doughnuts, they need to be consumed as soon as possible after they're made, so it's just as well there are no other menu items distracting the punters from downing these fresh, crisp-on-the-outside, chewy-on-the-inside, sweet morsels (and at $2 a pop, don't stop at one).

On weekends, breakfast options include shashuka, a tomatoey, Middle Eastern breakfast stew with onion, capsicum, coriander, egg and toast. Given the cafe's diminutive size, weekend diners would be well advised to have a second choice in mind. In this part of Brunswick, however, picking a second choice (Green, Cafe 3A, Ray, Small Block, Gingerlee) could be as hard as stopping at one doughnut.

East Brunswick Project

438 Lygon St, Brunswick East

See original entry for Artisan Espresso

The Artisan Espresso site that opened in April has, after a short hiatus, re-opened as the East Brunswick Project. The interior feel is very similar, and many of the fittings are the same. The furniture has been slightly re-arranged, however, and with the back room now lit up and housing a coffee roaster there's a more expansive feel to the place.

It's worth popping in during its early days of operation and having the pleasure of observing and talking to the barista, Marinus, while he's at work extracting your caffeinated beverage. The Padre blend is still in the grinder - a sweeter coffee, aiming for a burnt toffee taste, which, with the addition of milk, makes for a caramelly latte.

There's a small range of muffins and mini slices available, but the focus is undoubtedly on the bean and its proper handling to create a drink of distinction.

(In its original incarnation the cafe featured a noticable, yellow-topped, circular table spruiking 'petit dejeuner'. A gold star to anyone who can identify in which local eatery it has ended up!)

North

717 Rathdowne St, Carlton North; 03 9348 1276

The folks at Where's the Beef posted a good review of North a little while back, on the back of which I'd added it to the 'must try' list. Stories of throngs of like-thinkers over weekends meant I took up a Monday mid-morning opportunity to check it out.

As with so many cafes in this area, North offers a small space. White features strongly, both on the furniture and the walls, offset by black stencilled artwork. The cafe features a great window seat, which is at normal height (rather than a bench with stools), providing an extremely comfy place to sink into a bowled chair and swivel between perusing the blackboard menu and the goings-on of Rathdowne St outside.

On offer for the morning meal is their Champions Breakfast, involving boiled eggs and soldiers. Oh yes, that's a trophy eggcup! I was tickled pink by this arrangement. The eggs and toast come with a fine, sweet tomato relish; the mushrooms are my own addition. There were plenty of soldiers to go around, and to be honest I was a little overwhelmed by two eggs; as a home-cooked dish it would never occur to me to make two. The only downer was that Egg #1 seemed stuck in the eggcup, so I couldn't take the shell out and start over with Egg #2. Happily I had been provided with a little spoon to tap the eggs open in the appropriate manner, so sufficed with doing that on the plate. A big plus about this dish over baked eggs is that the yolk stayed runny, so there was still plenty of dipping action even with Egg #2.

For a good precis of some of the other tempting dishes on offer at North, check Breakfast Out.

Julio's doughnuts

Julio is a wondrous neighbourhood cafe in North Fitzroy. It's set on a corner, only a couple of hundred metres from St Georges Rd, but infinitely quieter. It features a brief menu of very decent breakfast and lunch dishes, but much of its fame owes to its doughnuts.
(Handy that they make it easy to tell which is the jam and which is the custard!)

In the city the other day I saw a sizeable lorry outside a Krispy Kreme, bearing the name of that particular chain. When I considered the size of a doughnut, I wondered how they could ever require vehicular transporation of that size, unless, as is likely, they are manufactured on such a scale and with such disregard to quality that such a vast number of them could be shipped at the one time.

Julio's doughnuts could not be more contrasting to that concept. These sugary delights are so fresh they need to be eaten the morning of purchase - don't pick some up thinking 'ooh, I'll have that later'! As with any fresh-made doughnut, they are at the prime when consumed as soon as possible after the union between dough and oil. At this time, the outer layer retains a crispness that is ever so slightly teeth-resistant, before you plunge through to soft, soft dough.

Their custard doughnuts are the stars. The filling is just astonishing: you know that someone stood over a stove, stirring the egg and milk and sugar until it was exactly right. The flavours of the thick, creamy yellow filling split apart in your mouth, allowing you to savour vanilla and a distinctive lemony taste, reminiscent of an especially creamy lemon meringue filling.

The jam-filled doughnuts are not to be disregarded: filled with a deep, dark red raspberry jam, they combine the fruit's tartness with all that tongue-tingling dipped sugar.

Now I understand what all the fuss is about.

Each Peach

506 Lygon St, Brunswick East; 03 9383 4529; Open Sat-Weds

The minimalist refit is a favourite of many inner north cafes. At Each Peach, the walls display a little more flare than somewhere such as Small Block or Julio, and the reserve is saved for the menu. This is a cafe to stop in on a rainy day, when you want to feel at home but have someone bring warm things to you on a plate or in a glass; or somewhere to bask on a sunny day with light filling the front room as you ponder between paninis and their biscuit selection.

The walls here are decorated with tea towels stitched into quilts; the front room is dominated by a hefty communal table perfect for spreading a newspaper on or resting your elbows as you become immersed in a novel (perhaps a book picked up from the cafe's bookshelf). Out the back there's a fire and subdued lighting, giving the room the feel of the loungeroom of a country relative. It's a good place for kids too, with toys and play area in both rooms.
All this atmosphere would be wasted if the produce on offer didn't stand up to scrutiny. There's no problems there. The staff at Each Peach know their way around a coffee machine and deliver a well-tempered drink. Just about everything served is organic (see right). Choose from one slice or two of sourdough raisin toast or cinnamon toast with fig apple jam; or ask them to heat up one of the paninis on display, perhaps filled with goats cheese and olive tapenade, or biodynamic proscuitto, tomato and fetta; or tuck into a bowl of nourishing toasted muesli.

Addendum: Having walked past Each Peach several times since they opened, I've been impressed to note how frequently they update their menu (a simple affair, chalked up on a blackboard on the wall). The panini fillings change regularly - there was a pork sausage and quince one last week, which I didn't act quickly enough to sample - as does a simple, cooked meal option. It's a great attitude to fresh produce and will keep curious palates sated.

Curiousity will no doubt increase following Matt Preston's glowing review in Epicure, 12.08.08.

Green Refectory II

115 Sydney Rd, Brunswick; 03 9387 1150

I think this must be the quickest return visit in Words and Flavours history. Being prepared for the range of deliciousness on offer at the Green didn't make the meal choice any easier. As is often the case, the dish I had been dreaming about all week - the Summer Chicken Burger - wasn't what my palate was after when I stepped in this time. It was still early enough in the day that I was drawn again to the breakfast menu, but I'd been up and meandering along Sydney Road long enough to have quelled my usual desire for a sweet cafe breakfast. The compromise decision was for homemade baked beans with mushrooms, on sourdough - savoury, but undeniably breakfastesque.

And undeniably delicious. The beans were marvellously textured. Undercooking can leave beans hard and knobby; overcooking turns them to a grainy mush. These instead were soft, chewy and wonderfully complemented by their tomatoey sauce. Sometimes homemade beans come out too peppery, or tasting too much like vegetable soup, but in this case the beans were the stars and the extra ingredients remained effective but subtle in the background. The mushrooms were expectedly fresh and earthy.

My dining partner eschewed the menu and went for two excellent baked options: a steak and cheese pie and a raspberry and pear muffin. I can't speak for the latter item, as it was in the most part consumed later in the day, but I can attest to its attractiveness. I think their muffins are $2.80 and when I think of some of the baking-soda-loaded crap I've eaten for a good deal more than that I can only tip my hat again to the Green's quality and value.

The pie was bursting with shredded meat pieces, each of which truly tasted like a little bite of steak.

And that pastry! You can envision it melting on your tongue like a flake of chocolate. The tomato and onion chutney went a treat with my beans, too.

Sighs of contentment all round, and eager anticipation of the next visit...

Green Refectory

115 Sydney Road, Brunswick; 03 9387 1150

A sunny long-weekend afternoon. A lazy bike ride, the fresh air clearing out the last of the fugginess from a red wine indulgence the night before. The ride leads us to Green Refectory at the Brunswick end of Sydney Rd. The cafe's rustic interior is buzzing. Groups and couples arrange themselves at mismatched chairs around communal and smaller tables. Counter staff take orders from those dining in as well as those wanting salads, cakes or coffee to take away. A grill behind the counter is on incessant duty warming up homemade sausage rolls. Overlooking all of this activity is a trustworthily smudged menu announcing yet more choice from their hot kitchen dishes or breakfast menu (offered all day every day). At the till, enormous fresh muffins - such as raspberry, pear and choc chip - almost steal the menu's thunder as a lunch selection.

I draw my eyes back to the blackboard and instead of homemade baked beans with mushrooms on sourdough, or a roast sweet potato, fetta and spinach focaccia, my lunch choice comes from out of the blue: when I read 'oat porridge, served with stewed prunes and apricots, scattered almonds and a jug of milk' I know absolutely that it's all I want to eat. This is despite its proximity on the menu to french toast, served with pear poached with white wine and vanilla bean, served with ice cream.

We settle into a reclaimed timber table in the window and admire the surrounding furniture and fittings. The cafe is awash with retro chic, down to the saucers for our hot drinks.

The porridge when it arrives looks just as nourishing as I'd hoped:

It is, unfortunately, lacking the promised jug of milk but for moisture content I make do with the stewed juices. The fruit is superb, stewed to softness and oozing flavour. There may have been some orange blossom water in the mix as overlaying the sweet cinnamon scent is an aroma of citrus. The dish is a progression of texture from the soft fruit, to the hearty oats, to the crunch of nuts.

My oaty contentment doesn't stop me noticing how fine SG's choice of the summer chicken burger looks.A chalk sign just next to our table informs diners that all of Green's chicken is free range. This particular sample has been beautifully seasoned and expertly prepared. Rather than a bun it sits between toasted bread, atop layers of crisp spinach leaves, cushioned by crescents of avocado and rounds of tomato, topped with thickishly-cut, unfatty bacon, dotted with sun-dried tomatoes and forming a wondrous partnership with a homemade mayonnaise. It is an utterly delicious lunch.

Homemade comes up a lot on the Green's menu. The atmosphere here is very much of using the best of what's on offer, to greatest effect. There's no gimmickery, no need for fancy fit-outs. Their menu is full of sensible and delicious food combinations and their kitchen is to be commended for so aptly handling baked goods, pastries and desserts as well as plated dishes. I do believe I've found my new favourite cafe.

Journal Cafe

253 Flinders Lane; 03 9650 4399

Enjoy playing with your food? At Journal cafe, a simple request for a pot of chai tea produces a tray's worth of gadgets to entertain. One can swirl the tea in its pot, infusing as much of the cardamon, clove, star anise and cinnamon flavour as possible into the milk. Rest the tea strainer over the tall, clear glass as you pour, then nestle it back into its holder. A pot of honey is provided for the drinker to manage the tea's sweetness at their discretion. There's an additional jug of milk, with a sprinkle of cinnamon on top, perhaps to top up the original pot, which is crammed with tea mix. It's a good chai mix; all the better for settling in with your gadgets at hand to savour a fine cup of tea.

Tasos II

695 High St, Thornbury; 03 9480 6222

My waking thought had been of spreading something sweet onto toast. It was closely followed by the happy realisation that that waking dream could come true by popping into Tasos en route to the grocery shop at Psarakos.

$4.50 at this Thornbury cafe buys two pieces of white toast, a tub of marscarpone and a tub of jam. The jam is not of the chunky nor pithy type; it's a smoothly blended strawberry variety. Being currently overrun with the chunkier-style jam, thanks to our Tasmanian trip and an unmissable bargain from St Dalfour at the Good Food and Wine Show (four, I repeat four, jars for $10!) I would have considered this a less 'artisanal' jam variety. However, while wikiing the distinctions between jams, conserves and the like, I came across this (American) description of the jam-making process:

Jams are usually made from pulp and juice of one fruit, rather than a combination of several fruits. Berries and other small fruits are most frequently used, though larger fruits such as apricots, peaches, or plums cut into small pieces or crushed are also used for jams. Good jam has a soft even consistency without distinct pieces of fruit, a bright color, a good fruit flavor and a semi-jellied texture that is easy to spread but has no free liquid.

And that sounds exactly like what I was eating.

It's a low-tech breakfast, but a satisfying one. You can control the sweetness by loading up on jam, or moderate by favouring the more subtle marscarpone. You can keep it light with a smattering of each, or heap on the creamy cheese.

Devour Cafe

806 High St, Thornbury; 03 9484 8496

Have you ever fancied a hot chocolate that could serve as a meal in itself? Devour offer just such a drinking option. There really should be a size warning on the menu! The $4.50 drink comes in a tumbler, not a mere cup; is exquisitely decorated; and contains a winning amount of chocolate syrup. At that size, it's something you'd want to take slowly, but on this occasion it was somewhat tepid, so it was a matter of get into it or be relegated to slurping a sorta-warm chocolate.

Luckily there was time to be taken. Any trip to Devour leads SG or me to the Devour Burger, a divine, decadent meal that sports a pattie so enormous it carries a minimum 30 minute preparation time. When the burger arrives, it's speared with a skewer in order to keep the tennisball pattie sandwiched between the kaiser bun along with cheese, avocado, sun-dried tomatoes, spinach leaves, caramelised onions and tomato chutney.They've left no filling preferences to chance! The dish comes with a choice of eggplant or potato chips. I'm yet to sample the former, but the latter are extraordinary. They're chips of the long, flat kind, crisp and doused in delectable seasoning.

Devour also does a fine line in specials, particularly on their breakfast menu (eg their famous baked eggs). One of today's options was Eggs Krumpin. Something to do with eggs and crumpets, perhaps? Indeed! Two crumpets done french toast-style: dipped in egg, cream and parsley, then fried and served with bacon, maple syrup and Devour's baked beans (home-made, served with herbs and chilli). All very intriguing, but unfortunately my curiousity remained as unsated as yours...they were out of beans (out of beans! It's a Thornbury tragedy).

Second choice was their Breakfast Burger: everything good about a fry-up, but this time wedged between two slices of bread rather than beside. The bread in question is a Kaiser bun: a huge, round roll with a little pointy bit at the top - looks like an old-school helmet or a crown. Inside said bun is sausage, bacon (happy the carnivore), a fried free-range egg, spinach, tomato chutney and a huge smear of melted cheese on the top half. As if that wasn't enough, nestled beside the burger was a hashbrown: deliciously crispy and salty crumbing around moist, fall-apart potato. Who needs chips?

Devour is a small cafe, always welcoming. The fitout is all warm colours, with teal walls and drapes. The front section is brightened by sun coming through the plate glass windows; the slightly elevated back section is a warm place to sit by the fire, admire the artwork and work your way through a hot drink. There's also a courtyard out the back if you want to take in some sun, maybe with a locally brewed 3 Ravens beer.

Tasmania - Cafes and morsels

Food can be part of both the wonder and frustration of travelling. Finding new places to dine and new cuisines to sample is an exciting and often splendid experience. Sometimes, in unfamiliar territory, it can instead be hard to source a great encounter or, indeed, any dining options at all. Conversely, in a new town, the options are so numerous that the odds of hitting a bad one are worringly high. Happily, our Tasmanian experience was one where things turned out well more often than not.

Bakeries were our breakfast destination of choice. I miss European bakeries, where, while a white breadroll could easily be a culinary event, they offer extensive sweet and savoury options. In Australia it's often all bread, muffins and pastry with cream in (perfectly acceptable in the right place, but not so often for breakfast).

Morning #1 turned out very well, with a vegetable pasty from Sheffield hitting exactly the right spot for fillingness, indulgence and nutritiousness. Now, I have an important question, which I'd love you to answer via the comments: Do you pronounce pasty (as in 'a type of pie in which a circular piece of pastry is folded around a filling'):

a) to rhyme with nasty

b) to rhyme with tasty

c) like a Brit says pasta, ie with a short 'a'? (and if someone can come up with a rhyme for that last option, great!)

We'd been hoping for some woodfired pies in Exeter after our Tamar Valley wine run, but the way the day panned out saw us dodging logging trucks and chasing regeneration fires on the road to Pipers Brook before hunger struck. Luckily Pipers Brook vineyard (makers of excellent riesling and gewürztraminer) had a cafe on site.

Theirs was a simple menu of six or so dishes, averaging about $15 and featuring local produce. Their own wines were generously available for $5 a glass. I selected an open baguette, with chicken, tomato pesto, mushroom, sundried toms, greens, King Island brie, topped with lemon aioli. Phew! A bit like something you'd put together if you needed to use up as many ingredients as possible, and happily something that worked very, very well. I wasn't sure what the tomato pesto would involve, but it was a little like a nutty chutney. The brie was wonderful, the French-style bread held its copious topping well and the aioli added a subtle and welcome tartness. The only downer was that all the wines I sampled afterwards tasted of sundried tomato!

SG got his pie after all, going for the beef pot pie with sweet potato, and tomato relish on the side. It was a fine choice. The beef pieces were chunky and tender, balanced by the sweet pot, and the vibrant, fresh tomato relish added some great contrast. We picked up some astonishing strawberry jam to take home too.

Pies also came to the rescue at Port Arthur. Stops at one too many gasp-worthy clifftop lookouts had us arriving at the deservedly famous site a couple of hours later, and much hungrier, than planned. We were booked on a tour 2o minutes after arrival, and grabbed a locally made pie each from the respectable Felons diner. Mine was chicken and camembert. Crisp pastry, gooey cheesiness and chunks of meat: a perfect belly-filler.

Before heading to the Freycinet Peninsula we'd planned breakfast at Eureka Farm, south of Scamander, which does a range of fresh fruit, berries and preserves and make its own ice cream, which it serves at breakfast with pancakes. The chef was at the dentist though (!) so we made do with a jar of quince butter (extraordinary with Tas brie and crackers), a cone of strawberry ice cream and some apples. Retracing our steps to Scamander's Gourmet Food Shop, which is also the post and trading office, we were at first dismayed by their range, limited to pies and sausage rolls. Happily they were also harbouring savoury muffins: sundried tom, capsicum, mushroom, fetta and parmesan to be exact. No, that's not their range, that's all in the one muffin! Warmed and with butter, it proved a fine start to the day, as did SG's two mini sausage rolls.
Our only cafe breakfast was in Hobart, at Say Cheese on Salamanca Square. A big sign advertising all manner of pancakes hooked us. They served about eight varieties, as well as standard bacon and eggs breakfast fare. My Summerberry Pancakes came with seasonal fruit compote, blueberry ice cream, berry sauce and cream.Um, yes, that's quite a visual delight! Ice cream for breakfast is a wonderful notion, made entirely civilised by the fact I approached it with knife and fork, rather than spoon. The rivulets of melted cream running down the side of the pancake were enormously enticing. The 'fluffy' pancakes spruiked on each menu item were actually dense and doughy, but with all that fruit and ice cream going around I wasn't too bothered.

Artisan Espresso

438 Lygon St, Brunswick East

I think this is a first for this blog: neighbouring posts for neighbouring businesses. 438 Lygon St was a blank shopfront when I was lured by India on Lygon's neon at Number 440 earlier this week. On Thursday morning, however, it revealed itself as Artisan Espresso. Hurrah, I say, finally this ever-burgeoning strip of Lygon St has itself a dedicated coffee shop.

The new shop's owners are currently involved with the Appetite Food Store in North Melbourne. Artisan Espresso is an existing venture, summed up pretty well by its name, that has been roasting small batches of coffee for supply to customers via their website, or to a select few cafes. The roasters will be moved from North Melbourne shortly and the shop already has their own blended, roasted beans available for sale.

The roasting area will be separated from a bright, welcoming dining area. The space has been well-used in the front room: the coffee machine affronts the door, so it has an almost magnetic pull on coffee-lovers, who will find their feet turning and their mouths ordering before they can say Colombian free-trade. The paint job and floor are straightforward, with the colour in the room coming from a range of knick-knacks on tables and shelves: scales, coffee paraphernalia and bottles of drink from the Phoenix range. There are some great canvas prints on the shelves and walls too.

To the drinks. Their house blend is Padre, a mix of Dominican, Brazilian and Sulawesi beans. The coffee formed a bitter crema, but the body provided the smooth start you want to your Saturday. A bowl of hot chocolate resisted being too sweet and would be a happy alternative if you've reached your caffeine limit for the day/week/month. Sip tea and Phoenix Chai are also available.

It's only Day 3 of operations, and I'll be very curious to watch the business grow over the next few weeks, as well as excited to finally have a local coffee haunt.

http://www.artisanespresso.com.au/

A Minor Place II

103 Albion St, Brunswick East; 03 9384 3131

Ah, the mid-week, mid-afternoon lunch. It's a wonderful time to be lazily perusing a menu; taking time over a coffee; stretching out a conversation over repeated top-ups of table water. And A Minor Place is as funky and fitting a venue for these activities as you could wish for.

The cafe uses organic bread and eggs, and takes some care to make standard cafe offerings a little bit unfamiliar. I did notice, to my chagrin, that their french toast has changed. Since it is pistachio season I should use that as an incentive to get some fresh nuts and cheese and whip up my own batch of pistachio ricotta.

My lunch choice was the Xanadu toast:The riot of green rocket covered fresh tomato, wonderfully thick wedges of avocado, and chevre, all sitting atop two pieces of aforementioned organic bread. The bread held its texture well, especially given the sandwich was drizzled with pesto oil. A good sprinkling of dukkah completed the flavour spectrum. It was quite delicious and met my late lunch requirements aptly.

My dining partner went with the fabulously titled 'Forget About It' meatball wrap. Try ordering it without either a straight face or a New York accent!The wrap came with tomato sugo, spinach and yoghurt. Rocket was rather more prevalent than spinach, and I would call that pocket bread, rather than a wrap, but they're very minor points (about a clearly ironically named Minor Place!). Each of the ingredients was subtle, but fresh, which meant they worked together to create a fulfilling lunch dish.

A Minor Place has had a development application in the window indicating that they are going to become licenced. If one can linger as contendedly as we did over a plate of food each and a coffee, imagine what a glass or two of wine will do!

Gingerlee III

117 Lygon St, Brunswick East; 03 9380 4430

Given the timings of our previous visits to one of Brunswick's newer chic cafes, it would seem that Gingerlee + public holiday = our presence. On this occasion we'd met our out-of-town friends at the corner of Glenlyon and Lygon Rds, leaving open as many cafe options as possible (Poached, Sugardough, Small Block to name but some) to suit our brunch fancy of the morning. Savoury was where it was at for me, so the Persian-inspired dishes at Gingerlee got my vote.

The notion of a tagine for breakfast seemed an excellent method of delimiting the morning meal; and while I would in reality be on the footpath of an inner-suburban street, maybe my choice would connect me with a parallel version of myself, on safari somewhere in northern Africa. And perhaps in elevating my choice of breakfast to such metaphysical levels, I inevitably set my expectations too high.

The tagine houses baked beans, a yoghurt lemon dressing and coriander, accompanied by a terracotta side-plate of sourdough.It didn't provide the exotic, spice-filled satisfaction I was after, unfortunately. The beans (chickpea and a yellow bean) were granular rather than soft. My disappointment with the texture could just be down to personal preference, although I would argue that a softer bean indicates that it's been cooked for a more appropriate amount of time. Had the beans and tomatoes had more oomph then the dollop of yoghurt would have been sufficient, but as the sharpest taste on the plate I would have preferred an extra scoop. I should have called in some more butter for the toast too: added to the bean consistency it meant the dish was a little dry.

My next visit, however, will point me towards the poached eggs with rocket, ham, pork and fennel sausages and chutney.Runny eggs, sausages dotted with visible studs of flavour, and a chutney revealing chunks of garlic. If it's savoury you're after, that's a quality breakfast!

CERES cafe

Cnr Robert and Stewart Sts, Brunswick East; 03 9380 8861

It's hot. Very hot. It's also March, not January. Cars are going round and round in Albert Park, a week ago the leaves in the same park were starting to turn yellow in preparation for autumn, and yet here we are, venturing out into the heat to at least nurture our bodies with good food, seeing as we can't keep them cool at home.

CERES is close, so minimises the amount of exertion needs to get there. Sure, it's not air conditioned, but that wouldn't fit with the ethos of the place, whose menu offers organic, garden-grown options wherever possible.

After hanging out with that rogue penguin at Lambsgo Bar last night, a carefully-made, restorative, organic fair trade coffee is definitely in order.

For food, SG chooses the baguette of the day: kangaroo with rocket, goats cheese and tomato relish.The crusty bread clamps on thinly sliced fillet, the tender meat pieces contrasting against the nuts and seeds in the bread.

I faced a tough choice between Verity's famed baked eggs, organic housebaked beans with sourdough, or French toast. I went with the last of these, served with organic maple syrup and a choice of free-range bacon or fruit compote. I chose the latter, which on this occasion was blueberries.It was a wonderful choice. The thick brioche was giving rather than crusty, which also made it much more able to absorb the wonderful syrup. Rather than a sickly sweet pour of liquid sugar, this syrup was more viscose, like a thin honey, and added chewy, almost nutty notes rather than just sweetness. The berries were a great complement, balancing the dish, so that while satisfying it wasn't too filling.

www.ceres.org.au

Sugardough

163 Lygon St, Brunswick; 03 9380 4060


Oh yes, that is a cup of liquid chocolate. It is heated, hence answers to the name of 'hot chocolate', but it is not a name that does it justice. The price of black gold may be through the roof thanks to the weak American dollar, and brown coal may be a source of environmental pariahism in Australia, but here we have brown gold, worth every striving Aussie cent of its $3.50 price tag.

It takes commitment to get through, but if you need pause while alternating between spoonfuls and sips, Sugardough are kind enough to serve their hot drinks on some very sweet saucers, which allow time to reminisce on tea parties past, or gatherings to come.

Vege2Go

452 Lygon St, Brunswick East; 03 9384 6200

The former site of the Organic Wholesalers (now across the road and up a few shops) has been transformed into Vege2Go, a fresh and exciting new cafe and takeaway that is offering something truly innovative. The kitout is very impressive: the new owners have created a bright and welcoming space, proudly themed on the Italian tricolour. Eyecatching canvas prints of the Tuscan countryside and the quinoa plant adorn one wall.

The premise of the cafe is fresh, vegetarian Italian food. The menu is designed with complements: there are mains as well as sides and snacks, encouraging provision of a full meal. The shop is open til 9pm (Mon-Sat), succeeding in that rare venture of providing healthy, inviting and affordable take-home food, at the time when you most want it. Not only is their food accessible, it's also very strong on quality and flavour. The absence of meat is relevant, but no impediment. Instead, a plethora of plant foods are given centre stage: zucchini, eggplant, beetroot, mushrooms, cannellini beans, asparagus, to name just a handful.

The savoury side of the menu is divided into Mains, Sides and Snacks, plus Soups and Desserts. Meal Savers encourage customers to mix and match. Of the mains, the three mushroom frittata is extraordinary, with mousse-like eggs enveloping a trio of earthy mushroom flavours. The asparagus and tomato risotto sings with sweet tomato tang. Jumbo-sized mushrooms are filled with pesto and topped with torn bocconcino and a basil leaf. It's incredibly simple but even a meatlover wouldn't be left wanting for protein or 'fillingness'. Aromatic vegie lasagne and parmiggiana are also on offer.

It's worth getting a Meal Saver to ensure you sample at least one of the sides. These daily-prepared salads all punch a big flavour hit. The rocket explosion (above) - featuring the holy combination of rocket, pumpkin, pinenuts and feta - is superb. The pumpkin is perfectly cooked and deliciously seasoned. I could happily sit down to a whole tray of grilled peppers (below), doused simply with olive oil, sea salt, garlic and parsley. Other sides include broccoli tossed with garlic and the Mediterranean rice salad, which flies the flag of all that is wonderful about the region, with a mix of antipasto, artichokes, olives, capsicum and brown rice.

Desserts on offer include a ricotta tart and vegan chocolate cake. The coffee, from Jasper and hence Fairtrade and organic, is excellently made. Soy, rice and lactose-free milk are all available. Juices, smoothies and Phoenix drinks are also stocked.

There are two aspects of this venture that are worth highlighting. One is the quality of produce. This is well-made food, prepared fresh and with love. Secondly, while it is a vegetarian cafe, and that is a strong philosophy amongst its proprietors, nothing is lost in terms of flavour, nourishment nor satisfaction.

http://www.vege2go.com.au/

Mains: $7.95; Sides: $3.25; Snacks (inc. calzone and pita pizza): $6.95

La Dolce Vita

181 Nelson Place, Williamstown; 03 9397 1800


After a lulling boat ride from Southbank to Gem Pier, and an architecturally inspiring walk around Williamstown's foreshore, it was time to top off a fine morning with a fitting lunch. When we'd first disembarked, a bakery had caught my eye and pies were on my mind, but the hour's walk in the sun meant something more summery was in order. La Dolce Vita, with its shaded rear courtyard, tempting cake display in the window, and a promising Italian-inspired menu, looked like it fit the bill nicely.


Should have gone the pie, frankly! I settled fairly easily on a roast chicken panini with rocket and tomato chutney. My dining partner had been lured by the promise of quiche and salad: it still met the bakery cravings, but was also appropriate to the heat. But alas, no more quiche was available (it was about 1pm on a Monday). Multiple specials boards were dotted about the restaurant and while the one in the window proclaimed a primavera style as the risotto of the day, our at-table insert offered only seafood, not what we were after at all. Rightio then, perhaps another of the chicken paninis, but could this one be without tomato chutney? Astonishingly, no, the paninis come pre-prepared. Now even my easily-met order didn't seem such a good choice. What on earth is a cafe doing, charging $11.50 for a panini they haven't made themselves? Unfortunately we had a boat to catch, and didn't want to use more time choosing another venue, so my dining partner went for Choice #4, lasagne. That they could do.


The food came in good time, but wasn't overly impressive. The ciabatta (above) was OK, though very floury and the chicken was too dry. The tomato chutney was a nice addition, however, and the accompanying salad had a light but flavoursome dressing. The lasagne looked very appetising and proved to be filling without being too heavy on the mince. The flavours, however, were also a little subdued.


The cafe stocks a large range of bottled drinks at around $3.50 each, including various carbonated drinks from Phoenix.


It was all a bit surprising really: on spec the restaurant had appealed on all the right levels and certainly it kept its atmosphere while we there. Unfortunately, however, the food didn't live up to expectation.

Filou's Artisan Patissier

Cnr Lygon and Fenwick Sts, Carlton North; 03 9347 4029

Filou's has the look of comfortable suburban cafe, somewhere that, should you live nearby, would mean you had no need to keep fresh bread or coffee in the house. The homey feel comes from the hand-painted signage and residentia local; it stays in vogue with its sassy burnt-orange concrete and aqua wrought iron paint job.

Filou's does a fine line in artisan breads, particularly sourdoughs. The baking smells that have wafted over to me on a late-night ride home have kept me eager to try it in the daytime. On weekdays they serve filled baguettes, which was actually exactly what I felt like on this sunny Saturday. However, weekends are for decadence, a time to throw aside the lettuce and tomato extras and embrace flaky pastry!

To that end, I plumped for the savoury baguette, avec jambon and fromage. They had cheekily sneaked in some veg within the darkened, buttery folds of pastry: tomato and leafy greens no less! The ham had kept its flavour and the cheese wasn't so stringy that it took over from the pastry as the dominant texture. Paris is, alas, many moons behind me, but I was satisfied with this Melburnian version of the ubiquitous Gallic baked good.

The beef and guinness pie was a little less exciting. Perhaps it was more in the French style; I can't profess to sampling them there. Then again, one does expect 'beef and guinness' to come in the style of a particular country. Vegies had again been snuck in amongst the sauce, and it was the sauce where care had been taken with flavour, more so than with the meat. Which, particulary for brunch, may be for some more acceptable.

There's much more to be had from their bakers' oven: quiche, eclairs, muffins, tarts. Save time next time you're riding to a friend's and stop to fill your basket with some tres French goodies.