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La Miel Et La Lune

As another uncharacteristically warm winter weekend rolled around, Dave and I decided it was about time we found a new breakfast spot.

A few weeks ago I stumbled across an article about La Miel Et La Lune and it was nothing but glowing!

This quirky little cafe is perfectly situated between Lygon Street and Melbourne Uni and I have a feeling that it’s always bustling with hungry students and Carlton regulars. I’m pretty sure that after my recent visit I now fall into the second category.

The decor is rustic yet modern, with cute illustrations and oddly shaped mirrors adorning the walls. For such a small cafe, there is a pleasant feeling of space, which I personally like when dining.

Upon walking in the place was full, and we were shown to the last little table. Our waiter was charming and efficient (what more can you ask for?) and we promptly received our strong lattes, which looked every bit the Melbourne coffee we all know and love.

We were pleasantly surprised to find that the coffee bean was by Proud Mary – I’m going to say it: they are my favourite coffee purveyor in Melbourne. And they do it justice; I will definitely be coming back here regularly for coffee.

Upon reading the menu, we were a little sceptical. It wasn’t that the prices didn’t seem reasonable, just that the explanations of the dishes were quite simplistic. I feel like we should’ve known better than to feel that way, as the food that came out was exactly the opposite.

I ordered the pork belly potato hash. It’s a dish that I rarely see, in any form, on Australian brunch menus. It was a gourmet ode to a classically American breakfast dish – two thick potato hash ‘patties’ topped with crunchy red capsicum, piled high with meaty, flavoursome Enoki and Shimeji mushrooms, sliced pork belly (surprisingly not the focus, though), drowned in a rich, gravy-like sesame sauce, with one perfectly poached egg on the side. Needless to say, I was blown away.

The perfect balance and complexity in this flavourful dish was sensational. It’s difficult to make something this heavy taste fresh and borderline healthy, but they really nailed it.

While I was devouring this in speechless bliss, Dave sat equally enamoured by his sweet, pleasantly aromatic french toast. It was the epitome of breakfast gluttony. This dish was pretty much a dessert, masquerading as a savoury morning meal with the help of bacon and some nuts.

A perfectly caramelised banana sat atop two thick, crunchy pieces of french toast, bacon layered in between, with warm butterscotch sauce drenched throughout, some pistachios thrown on top and lightly dusted with icing sugar. If my meal hadn’t been so precisely what I wanted at that moment in time, I would have been grossly jealous.

I think what really makes this place a cut above the rest is that the meals are prepared with such care and ingenuity, not surprising considering their chef is Jung Eun Chae, formerly of Proud Mary. Neither of our dishes were monodimensional in any way and both of us left feeling like we’d really tried something new that day. The service was friendly yet professional, and there was nothing wrong with a bit of background hip-hop music of a Sunday afternoon.

We’ll definitely be going back here regularly, even if it’s just to pop in for a coffee and to sample their impressive cake selection.

FOOD - 5/5

SERVICE - 4.5/5

AMBIANCE - 4/5

VEG/GF OPTIONS - YES

330 Cardigan Street, Carlton (03) 9043 9767

Mon to Fri 7am–4pm Sat 8am–4pm

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Brother Burger and the Marvellous Brew

I've walked past this place on many occasions (usually very late at night) and often stopped to read their menu, mentally storing it away in my must-do list. 

So as we strolled down Brunswick Street on Sunday morning pondering our options, with the Autumn sun shining warm on our backs, burgers really felt like the festive choice. But not just any burger, it had to be brutal, cheesy, bacon-laden and preferably served with onion rings. Naturally, Brother Burger won our breakfast competition and we walked on in. 

Upon entering this joint, the place sure makes a good first impression. It's one of the largest diner-style restaurants I've seen in Melbourne, decked out with lots of interesting oddities and fun decor. The open kitchen is massive and the bar sports an impressive array of boutique local beers on tap (this puts these guys in my good books right away). We plonked ourselves down at our usual window-bench position and got to reading. The menu is a neatly designed single-page spread providing options for every kind of hungry hipster. It didn't take us long to make up our minds - anything with double bacon is really a given. So we both ordered the Hot Stuff with added double cheese - (100% Wagyu Beef patty, double bacon, cheese, house-made: pickles, mustard mayo & chilli jam). For a $13 burger, we were both very impressed. They really nailed the American-diner-style burger, in that it was not lacking for delicious sauces, and the cheese was the best kind of drip'n.  The bun wasn't brioche (for once) and the sesame was perfectly paired for this style of burger. They're baked in-house every day, and this doesn't go unnoticed. The meat was cooked perfectly, and the onion rings were crispy and humongous, though a little on the salty side.

Their staff were lovely, the service was fast (though it wasn't busy at the time), the food affordable and the relaxing atmosphere will definitely have me coming back for more. The menu has so many interesting options, in fact I'd happily order any of their burgers! Though I am pretty keen to swing by again just to try their pulled meat options. 

So far, this has to be one of my favourite Brunswick Street restaurants, and it's certainly in my Top 10 Melbourne burgers. Give them a go, if you haven't already, these guys know what they're doing, and it does not disappoint! 

FOOD - 4.5/5

SERVICE - 5/5

AMBIANCE - 4.5/5

413 Brunswick Street, Fitzroy (03) 9419 0088

Mon to Fri 5pm–late Sat 11am–1am Sun 11am–10pm Have a look at their full menu here: http://www.brotherburger.com.au/

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Milkwood

I decided that for my second review we should go to a place that's been on my to-do list for a while now. Milkwood is an easy 5 minutes from me and I've heard so many great things about it over the years. 

It's has gorgeously simple decor and when we were there the girls were playing old fifties pop songs. We sat down at the bench overlooking the street and ordered our ice-y coffees (Melbourne's last burst of summer you see), and began surveying the refreshingly simple menu.

I decided to go with the pea and mint smash, served with two perfect poached eggs, topped with deliciously sharp cheese. I got the side of chorizo (being a meat lover it's hard not to), but to be honest it really didn't need it, this dish is pretty much flawless. The pea smash was creamy and fresh, on top of crunchy, baked-this-morning toast, and the mint just brings all the strong flavours together perfectly.

That's not to say I regretted the chorizo in the slightest. Such chorizo it was!

Dave went with the sweet choice, as he so often does - the ricotta pancakes topped with banana, drowned in maple syrup and yoghurt, covered with decimated coconut. He loved it! I tried it, and I have to say, for pancakes, they were damn fine. 

There are many things I love about this place, but mainly that the service was great, the coffee bean they use is delicious, the dishes are extremely fresh and interesting, and the meal sizes are plentiful! To be honest, I don't really have any criticisms of this little place, they really have it down-pat.  I'm looking forward to adding this spot to my regulars list and giving the pancakes a go for myself!

120 Nicholson Street  Brunswick East  (03) 9380 4062

Mon to Fri 7:30 am - 4:30 pm Sat to Sun 8:00 am - 4:30 pm

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The Blog Begins - Local Burger Co.

So it seems like the logical place to start my blog, with this gem of a burger joint around the corner from my house. The Local Burger Co opened up on Rathdowne St in Carlton North last year and I have to say, I have frequented this many a time since then, with bacon and sauce options on my mind.

What I love about this place is that both their regular menu and their specials are always interesting, fresh, and brutal! Most of them are all about some kind of delicious meat coupled with a healthy dose of mayonnaise, fresh tomato and melted cheese on bread that is refreshingly not brioche (love it though I do).

My favourite burger is the Meat, Bacon & Cheese Burger (naturally), and they sure aren’t afraid to pile on the cheese. Coupled perfectly with some sweet potato fries and one of the most killer milkshakes in this town - a dense, salted caramel shake served in a mason jar complete with stripy paper straw. 

Pictured below is a game-changer of a special from last year - The Juicy Lucy. It’s their take on the Minnesota classic, the characteristic trait being that the patty is stuffed with gooey cheese, rather than layered on top.

Pure. Genius.

I really like that they’re embracing the innovative burger philosophy so ingrained in the eating culture of the States, and completing the picture with a generous selection of hot sauces both from around Australia and America. It really is wonderful to have a place 2 minutes away that transports my taste buds to the other side of the world.

This place is one I just keep coming back to, so there will be more photos to come :)

Two hungry thumbs up!

The Local Burger Co.

687 Rathdowne Street  Carlton North  (03) 9347 7561

Wed to Sun 11:30 am - 9:00 pm

www.thelocalburgerco.com.au