Holy smokes The…read moremanager of the Ovolo South Yarra hotel sent us here Earl grey excellent, I'm a bit of a snob about my tea and this please knocks it out of the park. Super flat white Prompt service and outstanding food My husband ordered the pork belly and I ordered the eggs Benedict. Love the have GF options and the GF toast excellent We are here for class reunion and I can see us coming back to this place several times before we go home.

Came here with my family, 4 of us in total on a weekend for brunch and was able to be seated very…read morequickly. Everything was fantastic, staff was very pleasant and food was amazing!!! Description from restaurant: Two Birds One Stone is one of the best canteen cafes in South Yarra, VIC. It's where you can have a delicious vegan breakfast with your favorite items. Whether you want to just have a cup of coffee or enjoy a delicious brunch, this French café has everything you would need to enjoy your café time. Moi: Everything they said is accurate! I had the ricotta pancakes and it was soft, flavorful with fresh fruit. Also had the braised pork belly, bacon and a poached egg. The pork belly had the perfect mixture of crispy and fatty bits, delish!!! Definitely worth a try! -ODL Follow my IG: @AOEAT

The latest addition to Queensberry Street is Proud Mary's newest offshoot - Twenty & Six Espresso…read more This part of town has recently started to really take off, with the sandwich mecca that is Beatrix and the much-lauded Auction Rooms just a short stroll away. Easy to pass if you don't know what to look for, the cafe is housed in a nondescript space with minimal signage. Inside sits around 20 people with outside space for the taking when rain doesn't threaten. The team have kept things simple - white walls with decals by Melbourne artist and Rose Street Market regulars Able & Game. Above the cream-coloured La Marzocca coffee machine, copper piping frames the counter with coffee paraphernalia displayed on a wooden shelf. The sporadic but thoughtful splashes of colour include an art deco minty-turquoise in the cups and saucers and hot-pink spray-painted twigs, which breathes life into the otherwise understated space. Bare bones industrial lighting and wooden milk crates line the walls - some crates are topped with coffee sacks for extra seating - we especially love the rustic wooden chairs outside with their geometric paint-dipped designs. The coffee is the Proud Mary house blend - Angel's Wings. With touches of sweet orange, plum and light notes of hazelnut the team sticks with what it knows best. The menu is short and sharp. Egg-based dishes comprise of most of the four special offerings with a breakfast selection of cranberry and nut granola, sourdough toast and fruit bread with preserves to round the menu out. The shelf in front of the coffee machine has some of the sweet offering for those looking for a quick bite or something to take away. I ordered the Hulk Smash - but substituted the eggs for beautifully charred Istra Bacon. I don't tend to pick something from the breakfast menu, but in the absence of a lunch menu the sourdough, minted avocado and bacon with the wonderfully zesty-sweet addition of slithers of pink grapefruit is a well thought out inclusion. WordMonkey went for the safe option - mainly due to the fact that she was saving herself for dessert at Beatrix (review here) - the last time we visited Beatrix she was under the weather and unable to eat anything. She went for the poached eggs on sourdough - supplemented by a few forkfuls off my plate - why do girls do that? What's there to say about poached eggs? Runny on the inside and perched on two slices of crunchy buttered toast. It might not be about to set the world on fire, but it joins the ranks of Melbourne's solidly good coffee and brunch places. Well done folks.

Could this be my favourite new brunch spot?…read more The soba noodle Toyko salad was light, yet utterly satisfying. With plenty of roasted chicken, crunchy veggies and pickled ginger, it was a great alternative to "regular" breakfasts. Not that anything at Twenty & Six is "regular", each dish inspired by a different part of the world and presented in a fun and innovative way. My friend's Scandinavian breakfast of smoked salmon, poached egg and avo came with a 1.5inch thick slice of grainy bread, the avo splayed out and stood on its end - Opera House style. Coffee comes from a range of Melbourne specialty roasters and is made with care. The smoothie is creamy and the presentation in a little milk bottle is super cute. Everything *feels* a little expensive when ordering but there's no doubt you feel like you've got good value when you walk out after a generous meal served with friendliness and efficiency.

When only having one meal out per week because you are in money saving mode after the holiday…read moreseason, the meal better be worth it. Brunch rarely ever disappoints and when it's as good as what you are served at giddiup then your day is made. Located around the corner from Coventry street is this small cafe with both outdoor and indoor seating. As soon as I arrived on a Sunday, I was immediately seated. No queues here. The menu has a range of breakfast options with interesting items like chai toast, bread butter pudding with mascarpone, smoked trout rillette and stuffed mushrooms with gruyere and pans-something cheese. There were a few people waiting for takeaway coffees and the cafe offers various coffee blends. I went immediately for the mushroom dish whereas my friend grabbed the pudding. The salads on the menu also looked delectable but alas they are only offered mon to Fri. My massive brunch dish included two large field mushrooms stuffed with cheese and garnished with rosemary. Omg I could smell it from faraway and each bite into the mushroom was creamy and succulent. The sourdough toast had seeds on it and was delicately buttered and just enough. I also got two poached eggs and was full halfway through my meal but it was so good. The bread butter pudding sorts of tastes like a baklava with its crispy yet soft layers and is balanced by the creamy mascarpone. Definitely a nice sweet indulgence and quite filling. The coffees came in babycino cups and were awfully astringent. Not to my liking but nice and creamy and extra hot. Service is quick, efficient and friendly. Seating is crate style, small stools - non posture friendly and wouldn't recommend this place for groups.

On the Corner of Francis and Coventry Streets, South…read moreMelbourne, Giddiup has been around for a while. This seems to be an unintentional trademark of mine; reviewing hot spots months after the fact. But I do get onto all the cool places eventually. To start, I ordered the double mac- Pretty ace. It's a small little space at Giddy, so it hold seats a few. Hence, it's good to snare a seat/table if you can. This can prove a challenge. Low key menu offerings, but lots of good things; breakfast, little snacks and small pastries. BLT Brioche bun- Crispy Bacon!!! Awesome, tiny, but good. Gruyere and mushroom toastie; it's simply heaven. Pizza type dough, folded and grilled w/ button mushrooms simple, clean and rich flavours. Indulgence! The focus here is on quality coffee; it's good to see this as a burgeoning trademark of many new and emerging caffeine dealerships. Giddy is a small little space removed from Sth Melb Market, and the hustle and bustle of Chez Dre. Enter through Francis street. Wow! the day i come to review, a review is printed in the weekly review Blimming brilliant.

This place is home to the best breakfast in Melbourne ladies and gents…read more That's really all I need to write if you value my option, but some people might need a bit more persuasion. The crispy eggs at Mr H actually made my eyes roll back in my head. I called people on the phone after I finished eating to discuss it.... so ya, it's that good. The sweet potato purée is the perfect nest for the crispy fried poached eggs. The fresh cos lettuce salad with homemade ranch cuts through the luscious ham hock perfectly and the sliced sourdough toast is an excellent tool to tie it all in. I'm drooling just typing about it. I went back a second time, but made sure to but take my husband because I wanted to share the love. While he ate, I snapped a photo of him that is cringeworthy, but you can see the expression on his face while shovelling the remnants of a crispy egg that he is indeed in food heaven nirvana. I decided to get the brocolinni salad my second visit which was outstanding as well, really high caliber food and so healthy and fresh. My only, only complaint would be smoking outside on the patio. In 2016, and that is a huge turnoff while enjoying a coffee or a splendid meal. Love ya Mr Hendrix. Mrs Hendrix is a lucky lady

Took us a while to get here from some really good word-of-mouth, but glad we eventually did, and…read morehave been back a few times since. Yet to circle in on a firm favourite - always torn between the breakfast and lunch menus too - but everything is great, service is good, and make sure you try to nab a seat in the courtyard to enjoy some of Melbourne's summer weather while it lasts.

Well, we went for a bit more of a wander to find some more places to have a coffee, though my mate…read moreisn't a huge coffee drinker, at least when he isn't at home. We decided to come here, and I must say that I was pretty impressed. The coffee was actually pretty good, and the service wasn't all that bad either. I ended up only having a coffee, namely because there didn't seem to be much space to sit down inside, with restrictions and all, but it was still a pretty good place to check out.

VINTAGE AND RETRO BOOKS (At home feel) SEPT 23RD 2016 1:30PM…read more I once knew a collector back in the US that had a vast majority of vintage books from a long time ago till now. All of which were printed with a very stiff cover and harboured a glosses illustrated tint to them. Some of you reading this might recall such examples like Nancy Drew and The Hardy Boys or Jack London's "Call of the Wild" the first fascination to me was the menus in Batches, as they took vintage. Retro styled books and pasted the menu inside them. Curiously, one might be compelled to even start reading them. But its all together a magnificent intrigue of it own and adds character too Batches. There is a sparkling celery tonic drink in the non-alcoholic category of the menu. And as my close friend had remarked its rather refreshing and not too sweet. She would recommend it! She recommends the dish she had also as just and perfect for anytime hunger. Poached eggs over Hash. My dish was the scrambled eggs with sourdough toast And side of spicy baked beans! I have to admit I looked at the other tips and reviews of this place and they were right about getting an egg plate if your not sure cause it was soo filling. And soo perfect for the appitite I did have. One thing that took the .5 away from them was the size of my iced coffee. I'd rather not get into too much detail, but a mouse wouldn't be satisfied with that either... (Sorry no picture of it cause it was that embarrassing) Although I must admit; Prior to receiving the drink at my table I thought it great the server asked if I wanted it over ice cream or just milk. Most places I've already been to here in Melbourne assume- ice cream unless you say otherwise. If it was taller and little larger then a water glass then I would have given them full 5stars. The novelty of Batches is its "homestead" feel and a go to Grandma's home and read book feel!! Get full and come back again! Loved it!!

I like it here. The place took a while to grow on me, I first visited when it was brand new and…read moredidn't rate it, it took me a while to venture back and I am glad I did. The Californian superfood salad is my pick of the current lunch menu. All the salads are pretty delicious, but the heirloom tomato, grilled corn, goji berry, salted ricotta, wild rice and quinoa combination is pretty darn special. They also do a cracking smashed avocado, another measure of a good Melbourne brunch. Staff are cool, pretty much anything goes and coffee is always excellent. And check the specials board!

Was recommended to go to this place from a local Melbourne resident!…read more I went on a Saturday afternoon for some afternoon brunch! Expectations where set high , with a half hour wait given to us at the door (which in reality we had a table in like 10mins) and then told 45mins for food to come which came 20mins of us being at our table! (Such a Melbourne thing to do, create demand) I started with a coffee, and this was a great tasting coffee. we then ordered the waffles as my sweet tooth took over me! But wow what a decision I made! This waffle with peanut brittle and peanut sort of moose was such a delight! The interior of this place was spectacular, we sat at the back of the cafe in the outdoor section, and on a nice summer day this was beautiful! A must try for the cafe seekers, as food was sensational and coffee was up there! Glad to have visited and been recommended such a place and will defiantly return :)

Felt like Cambridge Mass in Melbourne, more specifically Central Square on a good day, lots of…read morefriendly hipsters, plenty of ink but not aggressive amounts, very chill attitudes. I ordered the sweet potato/feta hash with basil, spinach, poached egg, more like two fritters and very good. Wife had the muesli, a bit dry, she asked for some oat milk which improved it. The coffee was diabolically good. Fresh squeezed OJ rounded out this ample breakie. We'll be back for more!

Galleon has been on my to - do list for a very long time. Today however, feeling a bit under the…read moreweather, I decided to go somewhere I didn't have too travel to far to and Galleon popped into my mind in an instant. Pretty popular spot amongst the locals and I love that feel of it. I wanted breakfast a good breakfast so chose 'eggs any way I wanted' scrambled and just one, with a side of mushrooms avocado and smoked salmon. The good thing is that you get what you pay for so $6 for scrambled egg on multi grain toast and $3 for extras. Great deal. I found their coffee to be delicious too. I like how the interior is decorated with posters of perfomers playing and I like how you can grab a random business card - I grabbed a few yoga/meditation ones. I enjoyed my Galleon experience, glad I finally got to tick it off my list Its So St Kilda.

Best porridge I've ever had, and so beautifully presented. Caramelized bananas, blackberries, and…read moreother things I'm not even sure of! My husband had the baked eggs with potatoes and sausage and said it was delicious as well. Place is welcoming and pretty cozy, and service prompt and friendly. We can't wait to try the other items on the menu.

This place is definitely worth a visit! The café has a welcoming atmosphere, and even though it…read morewas busy, the service was friendly, attentive, and efficient throughout my visit. I ordered eggs with salmon, and it was delish! The salmon was fresh and paired really well with the eggs, making for a simple but delicious breakfast. The quality of the food and the great service make it well worth the visit. I'd happily come back the next time I'm in Melbourne.