All posts tagged: Brunswick

Padre | East Brunswick

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We’ve been living in Brunswick for two and a half years, a part of the world where the entry requirements include knowledge of specialty coffee (the border patrol stop everyone at Brunswick Road – we take your coffee credentials real serious around here). We have a number of favourite coffee roasters that we visit on a regular basis, and they all offer incredible brews, obviously. The first coffee roaster we would like to highlight is Padre. Practically a Brunswick coffee institution, originally named The East Brunswick Project, this project soon became the fully formed entity that has spread its wings across a number of Melbourne’s cafes. From East Elevation just down the road to newer places like Heresy in the CBD, their beans are readily available, and thank god too! There’s clearly something in the beans, because everyone who ever visits Padre comes away with a smile. Even the staff are fantastic, and we often visit at 7am on the dot; right when they open. Their shop is hard to miss on Lygon Street, with a strong black …

Phase One Coffee / Brunswick

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Hidden away in Brunswick is a new little gem, Phase One Coffee. They’ve taken something the locals love (coffee and bagels) and combine it together with a spacious garden to make a unique cafe. The current arrangement is temporary, a part of the new urban hub being built with Neometro and Jewell Station apartments. It will grow as a community space, to include independent retailers, art projects and a bike workshop. Phase One do some fantastic brews. We’ve tried dine in and takeaway here and are always impressed. Todays was rich, creamy and a little fruity. Of course we had to choose a bagel to go with our coffee. I choose the local honey, peanut butter and banana on a plain bagel. The toppings were perfect, sweet, nutty and textural on a chewy bagel. There were also other delicious options, sweet or savoury to suit all tastes. We’d recommend you pop in say hi at Phase One and grab a brew and bagel in the garden or to go. Be sure to hit the follow button to …

Steam Junkies / Brunswick

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An in-vogue Eco apartment building in Brunswick is home to surprising cafe, the raw but cool Steam Junkies. It’s next to the train line, and a very cool looking wine bar which we’ll have to return to. It’s an interesting shaped cafe, small but not overly furnished, giving the feeling of a much larger venue. The polished concrete and exposed ceiling make this cafe industrial and sheek, with a few comforting touches and a bit of colour. The menu is interesting, extensive for such a small cafe and with some specials thrown in on top. Steam Junkies serve up a Five Senses ‘Dark Horse’ blend. It’s a rich and fruity brew, tiptoeing the extraction line to get it just right. The milk though was a bit of a disappointment, it needed a bit more creaminess to get the right mouthfeel and texture.We started the meals with a Pulled Pork Eggs Benedict. It was a huge serving, a mountain of pork, topped with asparagus and a poached egg. The pork was wonderfully spiced but tended to overwhelm the …

Little Oscar / Brunswick East

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The Kim Jong Un loaded fries were something else again. A new kind of poutine (that’s the Canadian loaded fries with curd and gravy) this Korean reimagining brought together kimchi, chilli, sour cream and fries in a heavenly medley. The thick cut fries were perfect, hot and soft in the centre, and crispy and light on the outside. Kimchi, a magical fermented cabbage (it’s magical because somehow it’s delicious with everything) is just perfect, it has a bite to it that’s perfect with the fries. If you want an easy and delicious way to try kimchi for the first time, Little Oscar’s Kim Jong Un fries are perfect!

Toledo / Brunswick East

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Our first selection was the French toast, served with berry and lemon mascarpone. The serving size was hugely generous, with two hulking pieces of toast that dwarfed the berries sitting on top. We found the toast to be a little soggy but with a lovely flavour; slightly sweet and no egginess. The lemon mascarpone was deliciously sharp and tangy, conplemented by the bright and sweet fresh blueberries and strawberries. This was a simple but tasty dish, both generous and warming to the soul.

Woodstock / Brunswick East

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Pizza is universally delicious. Fortunately for us, Brunswick and Brunswick East have a huge range of restaurants offering wood-fired pizza. We heard the very best could be found at Woodstock and when the craving hit we knew exactly where to go. The decor inside is the kind of shabby-sheek you’d expect from the area. It’s quite a large restaurant with tables to accommodate parties of any size and an army of staff. The service was quick and easy on a midweek evening though we’re sure the weekend rush may involve more of a wait.  We started with bruschetta, a mix of three different toppings. The tops were served cold, mushroom, capsicum and a more traditional tomato and onion atop char-grilled toast. There was also a light, tangy balsamic and rocket salad in the centre. It was a refreshing and surprisingly light start to our meal.We opted for a San Danielle pizza to share between two. A thin crust with a light tomato base and buffalo mozzarella as well as thin prosciutto. Mozzarella is something rather special, any …

Ramen Misoya Sake / Brunswick

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The newest ramen venue on Sydney road has just opened, replacing an older, European style cafe.  We had watched the fit out for a few weeks and were desperate to visit and try some ramen when they opened. We love the mash of culture and foodie venues along Sydney road and a ramen bar is a perfect new addition to the dining hub in our little part of the world. The venue is simply styled and furnished but with a few more diners we can see how it would quickly become a lively and warm venue. The service was eager and attentive, especially given they’d only been open a couple of days when we visited. The menu isn’t large but there’s plenty of options to personalise and build your meal the way you want it.  We started with edamame, a charred and salted bean, eaten by biting down and sucking/guiding the bean out of its shell. We liked the salty, meaty beans but prefer our edamame with a bit of spice. Chilli salt really gives it that …

Maddox / Brunswick

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Among the litany of cafes on Sydney Road you’ll find Maddox. It’s a charming little cafe with some older and more modern touches.  The front room opens out into a larger back room with a wonderful staircase wrapping around its edges. There’s some art and furnishing with just a bit of character. We loved the roughed up feel, it’s old school charm that makes us feel right at home. It would once have been a delightful house.We started with lattes. We’ve had nice coffees here previously but this one was too hot and borderline over extracted. A shame really! We also tried the more unusual peanut butter hot chocolate. It was rich, creamy and full of flavour. Not to mention being served with peanut m&ms you could dunk or simply eat. If you’re keen for a unique hot chocolate this may be exactly what you’re looking for! We started our meal with a light granola. It was served with a mix of fruits, including strawberry, apricots and fig. The granola itself didn’t have much flavour but it was …

Lux Foundry / Brunswick

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 We’re loving warehouse conversions at the moment, it’s something about the high ceilings, the raw walls and the feeling of space they offer. As Brunswick gentrifies up the cafe strip, beautiful warehouses like the one Lux Foundry occupies are becoming more common. Industrial sheek at the heart height of the design of this Brunswick cafe.   Despite being busy, Lux Foundary has a way of feeling open, it’s rough around the edges, but feels polished. The staff are relaxed but efficient. True to its beginnings as a warehouse, this is a venue with high ceilings And a cooling echo.  We started with our usual coffees. Lux Foundry delivered a deliciously fruity coffee, perfectly brining out the flavours in the bean. It was a light and bright brew but we wish they made some attempt at latte art. Our first dish was the big breakfast, with all the usual suspects. It was a hearty and sizeable meal, a mix of meaty and fried things. If you’re looking for a BIG, big breakfast, we may have just found it! We also tried …