Patterns Cafe

Patterns Cafe

254 Swanston St, Melbourne

(Ph) 9650 8868

A new cafe opened up on Swanston Street, which happens so frequently that it doesn't surprise/interest me usually but there was a poster on the window saying they sell Hong Kong Style Egg Waffle! <3 My favourite! And there was an opening special - $3.90 down from $5. Still quite expensive (usually only HKD$10 which is AUD$1.20 =P) but I've never seen it sold in Australia before so had to come try it out!

Bonus, on this day they were handing out 20% off vouchers =) It's a small cafe with some tables at the back and a bar area with high stools too. I wondered why they would call this cafe "Patterns Cafe" but then realised they were priding themselves on the patterns on their coffee. We didn't try any 'cause it was such a hot afternoon but looking at other people's it just looks like normal leaf etc coffee art - how does it compare to Manchester Press?! Oh and they need some help with their English/grammar - lots of spelling mistakes and random typos on their menu =/

We were really thirsty so P got a Watermelon with herb jelly $5.50

I cringed at the sound of this - watermelon with herbal jelly?! I don't like grass jelly normally though P thought he would like it as he normally likes pearls and other jelly in his bubble teas, but thought it was very slimy and didn't go well with the watermelon juice =/

I got the Taro Ice Blended $3.90

Forgot to tell them I didn't want cream =( Delicious love taro <3 P who usually doesn't like taro really enjoyed this =) even though this doesn't taste like real taro (is it like some taro syrup or something?) and doesn't look the colour either (bright purple? =P) it's a good substitute and definitely quenched my thirst =)

P wanted something savoury so he got Fried Calamarine (spell check?) $5 - we figured they meant calamari =P

Was quite good though there was only $5 pieces - $1 per piece? Very crunchy and not overly battered.

Last came the highlight, the reason we came into the cafe - the Hong Kong Style Egg Waffle!

It wasn't as good as the ones in Hong Kong =( The batter was quite crispy so the edge bits were good, but the inside was filled with cakey batter. It's meant to be slightly hollow inside so when you bite into it it's mainly crunch, but it was more like little balls of cake =( They didn't have the batter consistency quite right but I guess it was better than nothing given I haven't had it in a while!

Food~
5/10 - egg waffle was slightly disappointing, maybe next time I'll try their macaroons and cakes in their dessert cabinet =)

Atmosphere~
3/5 - small cosy cafe

Service~
3/5 - not bad for an Asian eatery, but it is new so you'd expect that =P

C.
xo

First Taste Restaurant

First Taste Restaurant

604 Station Street, Boxhill

(Ph) 9890 8788

I had been to First Taste a few years ago with my parents - they're famous for their double-boiled herbal soups and claypot rice dishes. The door is a big heavy wooden door - not very friendly looking, but inside is a typical Asian eatery jam packed tables.

How does 頭啖湯 translate to become First Taste?! Nothing related at all lol

P and I decided to get a double boiled soup each and a claypot rice each - we were starving =P P got the Dry White Cabbage Stew with Pork $4.50

It was super delicious and full of flavour - I really like cabbage in soup and the pork was so soft and tender. We couldn't get enough of it - wish there was more liquid and less "stuff" in the soup.

I decided to get the Ginseng & Herbs Stewed Chicken Soup $5.90 - thought I should get something with lots of goodness =P

Maybe because we're not used to drinking herbal soups, but the ginseng flavour was too powerful and there was too much herbs in it made the soup really bitter =/ bitter stuff is usually good for you right? I kept wanting to swap soups with P - his was so much tastier =P

P's claypot was the Black Pepper Beef Fillet with Rice $9.50

His beef was so ridiculously peppery and there was wayy too much sauce it nearly drowned out the rice lol.

I got the Plum Sauce Spare Ribs with Rice $8.80

And mine lacked in sauce =( why can't they get it right?! The plum sauce spare ribs were quite flavoursome but it was quite dry and there was definitely not enough sauce to go with the massive bowl of rice. There was quite a bit of crusty rice on the bottom but it was a bit too dry that it became difficult to chew - not sure if it was sitting on the stove top for too long or something 'cause it's meant to be crunchy not chewy =/ At least it's not burnt?

Food~
5.5/10 - double boiled herbal soups are a definite must, but get something that you know you'll like instead of try be fancy like me and get ginseng when you know you don't like it =P maybe next time I'll try their other dishes instead of claypot rice

Service~
2/5 - soups came out very quickly, we thought maybe they have like 10+ pots brewing in the kitchen? or maybe they're all precooked and just reheated in the single soup cups?

Atmosphere~
2/5 - quite loud and typical of Asian eateries, was surprised to see Causasian people in there!

C.
xo

Alimentari

Alimentari

251 Brunswick St, Fitzroy

(Ph) 9416 2001

Fitzroy! The cafe central area =) W suggested Alimentari for lunch - a deli but also a cafe.

Behind the front counter are lots of delicatessen foods and sandwiches and other premade meals like lasagne etc, and above it hangs strands of garlic and other things. The cafe has 3 rooms with a few large wooden communal tables and some stools to sit against the window.

On the weekends they do breakfast all day long so of course I would go for breakfast =) I went for Poached eggs, hash brown, hollandaise, bacon, spinach $16

Hash browns are homemade and super crunchy! Eggs were poached beautifully with slightly runny yolk =)

P got Corn cakes, avocado salsa, bacon, poached egg $15

The corn cakes were not as crunchy as we would have liked but the inside was quite fluffy =) Slightly sweet so even though the bacon was a bit too salty it went well together. Too bad they only gave ONE poached egg?!

Food~
7/10 - breakfast food was quite good! Would love to come back and try the lunch menu next time =)

Service~
4/5 - very friendly waiters here

Atmosphere~
3/5 - a very cosy deli/cafe, W sat here for a few hours studying and they

C.
xo

Menya Ramen

Menya Ramen

437 Elizabeth St, Melbourne

(Ph) 9328 8928

The Menya Ramen at the alleyway leading into Melbourne Central used to be P's favourite place to eat during uni - he'd always get teriyaki chicken don. It's a very small packed restaurant but it was cheap and the food wasn't too bad, or so we thought back then anyway. We hadn't been back for a while - we were on Elizabeth Street and actually wanted to go to Coconut House to eat but it was packed so decided to go next door... Menya Ramen!

We didn't even know there was a Menya Ramen here... looks really new and big and spacious! So different to the Melbourne Central one =)

You order and pay at the counter and there's a self-service cart in the middle of the restaurant where you get your own water or tea and utensils. Water with lemon and some leaves and a tomato inside? Slightly sweet and slightly tangy - strange, but I kinda like =)

I ordered the Curry Katsu Don - the serving is massive! I only ate about half the rice. The katsu was alright - the batter was very crispy but the meat was a little dry. I should have ordered the normal Katsu Don - it would have come with omelette which I would have preferred instead of the curry. The curry was quite sweet and tasty but was full of potatoes and only a few pieces of carrots - they were super generous with the curry sauce, is that why they gave me a soup ladle instead of a normal spoon?! There was way too much sauce - made the katsu pieces soft =(

P got the Bento Box with Teriyaki Chicken - it comes in a disposable takeaway compartment plate?! We forgot how ridiculously sweet their teriyaki is - kinda tastes like Chinese actually. There's lots of vegetables in the teriyaki which is not very traditional but was quite nice. There's not enough rice to go with the teriyaki chicken so P took alot of my rice which I was fine with =P There were 2 fried prawn pieces and 3 takoyakis as sides, as well as a seaweed salad and something like a tofu and beanshoot salad? P quite liked his dish - a bit of everything =)

Food~

5/10 - not bad, reminds me of university years again. Food comes out really quickly - I guess everything is pre-cooked already? This place is owned by Chinese people so if you don't mind your Japanese tasting a little like Chinese then it's alright =)

Service~

1/5 - not much of service here since you pretty much self-service everything

Atmosphere~

3/5- quite big and spacious here, much better than the Melbourne Central store!

C.

xo

Proud Mary

Proud Mary

172 Oxford St, Collingwood

(Ph) 9417 5930

Had been meaning to come try out Proud Mary for a while - rated ☆☆☆ by Cheap Eats Guide and 3 coffee cups by the Good Cafe Guide =) We came here on a Sunday morning, and to no surprise, it was packed =( There was a 30min wait - we were tempted to leave, but we had driven all the way here for it so we had to stay with our tummies grumbling! It's not a very big cafe and they don't cater for people waiting very well. There are only 3 stools for people to sit on, and since it was a cold morning everyone was huddling around inside - we were fully in the way of the waiters bringing food out and reaching behind us for the water and menus =/

Scales on the food cabinet with plates on the scales?

Finally we were seated! They have some pretty interesting decor around - large stereos with old school records! Who uses them these days?! =P It wasn't on so I wonder if it even works?

And on the other side of the cafe there's a thing that looks like a chemistry bunsen burner thing with a wheel on the side?! Maybe it used to be a machine to make coffee like a syphon?

We sat on some cute little stools - with a foot rest! P thought it was too high for his legs but it was very comfortable for me =)

We didn't want any coffees but P ordered a Strawberry Milkshake

Nothing too special - strawberry syrup frothed with milk. They had some strange flavour called Blue Heaven or something like that and we thought it was blueberry but it's actually candy flavoured - would have been even more sweet and artificial lucky we didn't order it =/

We had already decided what we wanted to order while we waited - they don't have a very large menu here so it wasn't too difficult to choose. P ordered Potato Hash - grilled bacon, spinach, a poached egg, bagna cauda (traditional Italian sauce of anchovies, garlic & cream) $16.50

Sounds very interesting, but it wasn't as good as we had hoped =( Firstly, since when do you just give a single egg on a breakfast plate?! Eggs always come in pairs! And secondly, you'd expect hashbrowns to be crunchy on the outside, that's what you order hashbrowns for - the crunch! The potato hash was a massive block of homemade hashbrown - quite bland in flavour and was barely crunchy at all, maybe because it was sitting on the sauce but was a bit disappointing. The sauce was quite interesting - quite strong flavours of anchovies and garlic, it did make the dish more flavourful so I guess that's a plus.

I got the Roasted Mushrooms - chipotle butter, brioche, whipped goats cheese & a poached egg $16.50

P thought I got jipped ordering a vegetarian dish but I love mushrooms and brioche so I couldn't resist! The brioche was quite good - slightly sweet and nicely toasted =) Would have been nicer if they were more generous with it though - there was way too much goats cheese to go with the small piece of brioche. The chipotle butter didn't feel like it fitted in with the dish, small block of slightly chilli butter - was quite clashing flavours with the whipped goats cheese. P and I both loved the whipped goats cheese - he stole some of it to go with his bland hashbrown =P The single poached egg is another boohoo =(

Food~
6/10 - maybe because we had high expectations of it, but both our dishes had their cons =( maybe we'll come back on a weekday and try some of their other dishes

Atmosphere~
2/5 - usual Sunday brunch feel =) the waiting area is way too small though - felt quite claustrophobic standing in the corner =/

Service~
2/5 - food came quite quickly once we were seated and ordered, but they really need to work on their waiting arrangements!

C.
xo

Mrs Parma's

Mrs Parma's 

25 Little Bourke St, Melbourne

(Ph) 9639 2269

B's birthday! =) She loves parma so where else but Mrs Parma's!

It's a pub at the top end of the city - famous for their beers and of course their parmas. They say all their chefs are trained in the Art of Parmalogy.

The Art of Parmology - Invented, taught, trained & perfected by the chefs at Mrs. Parma’s…
Size Matters – 230g chicken breast hand crafted to the perfect thickness for guaranteed even cooking. Crumbed Daily – coated once in our special crumb mix daily to ensure crispness.
Traditional Napoli – Imported Italian tomatoes enhanced with onion, garlic and herbs then slowly simmered for hours.
Quality ingredients – award winning mozzarella and the finest ingredients sourced for sauces and toppings
Sides to compliment – crisp salad with tangy dressing and quality chips. Sides are never placed under the Parma to avoid wilted salad and soggy chips.
Love – prepared and cooked with love. Never processed, never frozen and never, ever deep fried.
Best enjoyed with a cleansing beer.

They also have bistro foods here but we weren't really interested in these =P P got a cider here (can't remember which brand) but it was quite bitter and neither of us liked it very much =/

With their parmas, you get a choice of chicken $24, veal $25.50 or eggplant $20, and about 10 toppings to choose from. And all parmas come with chips & salad on the side to share.

P went for the Original - double smoked ham, napoli & cheese with chicken

The parma is so big - pretty much fills the whole plate! It wasn't as good as we thought it would be - first few bites were good, but after a while the crumb went soft and soggy =( P thought there was too much cheese but I didn't mind it =P I thought the chicken was a bit too tough and dry but then again I'm not a fan of chicken breasts normally.

I decided to go for the Mushroom - baked field mushrooms with oregano with veal

This doesn't look as good, the meat was broken in some bits, you can see the hole in the middle of it =/ Pretty much was just a few mushrooms with some cheese and napoli sauce - would have preferred if they cut the mushroom smaller and have more pieces. Likewise, the crumb got soft and soggy - bit disappointing =( I did like the veal more than the chicken breast - not as dry. But there's seriously way too much meat - even the boys couldn't finish theirs.

The sides come separately - chips and salad.

Between the 8 of us, they only gave 2 bowls of chips and salad to share. Salad was alright, nothing too special, but the chips were quite crunchy and delicious - one bowl is definitely not enough between 4 people. We thought they would refill it so we didn't complain about the lack of share bowls, but after finishing our bowls, the waiters came and just took the bowls away and didn't ask if we wanted refill or anything =/ Very disappointing - and after reading other blogs seems like many others thought similarly too.

Food~
4/10 - nothing too special, and very disappointing about the lack of chips =(

Service~
2/5 - food took ages to come! You'd think at a restaurant that serves predominantly one thing that it would be quite quick to come out?

Atmosphere~
3/5 - quite a nice pub, and quite brightly lit compared to most pubs which is a plus

C.
xo

J Cafe

J Cafe

167 Exhibition Street, Melbourne

(Ph) 9650 9877

Sushi Burger! P used to love coming here back at uni but we haven't been for a few years. A friend was visiting Melbourne so decided to come visit again =) They've changed the layout since I last came here, the takeaway area takes up a large part of the entrance now - makes the cafe look really small now =/ They have pictures of cute sushi burgers everywhere now - pretty cute =)

They're famous for sushi burgers here, so of course have to get one. It's not the first time I've had sushi burger, they serve it at Mos Burger too but I like them better here =)

Their sushi burgers range from $5.50 to $7.50 dine in, but $1 cheaper if taken away. They have a minimum spend policy now ($12) which I don't remember them having a few years ago, but no matter - one sushi burger is not enough anyway.

Their most famous sushi burger is the Soft Shell Crab one - takeaway $6.50, dine in $7.50

A and I both decided to get the Soft Shell Crab Sushi burger with the Sushi Burger Bento Box - chosen meal & a choice of sushi burger served with miso soup $15.00
A) Gyoza (3p) - Japanese pork dumplings
B) Kani Croquette (2p) - deep fried creamy mashed potatoes with crab meat
C) Tatsuta Age (2p) - deep fried marinated chicken

I got C) Tatsuta Age, big pieces of deep fried chicken, nothing too special, and definitely not the star of the bento box.

The Sushi Burger didn't disappoint - really tastes like sushi mashed into a burger. The rice patties are made from sushi rice - sticky and vinegary. The highlight is definitely the soft shell crab - a WHOLE soft shell crab deep fried <3 Coupled with teriyaki sauce, tartare sauce and lettuce - wish they were bigger!

The rest of the bento box was quite ordinary - a potato salad, a seaweed salad, some fruit, and a miso soup. Next time I should just get 2 sushi burgers <3

Food~
7/10 - definitely get the sushi burgers here... especially the soft shell crab one!

Service~
3/5 - food came quite promptly

Atmosphere~
2/5 - the cafe is quite small, think the old layout was better and more spacious

C.
xo

Eden Espresso

Eden Espresso

121 Glenferrie Rd, Malvern

(Ph) 9509 9119

J decided to take me to one of her favourite brunch places =) A little cafe in Malvern - I don't think I've ever eaten around here before but lots of little cafes nearby.

There's a choice of sitting inside at the tables or couches, in the small backroom or in the courtyard outside. It was still a bit chilly so we decided to sit inside.

Menu is not extensive but their dishes are quite unique - not your usual Big Breakfast and Eggs Benedict. I decided to go for the Middle Eastern Eggs - 2 poached eggs, served in a spiced hearty tomato concasse, topped w pan-fried haloumi, chopped spring onions and a side of crusty Turkish bread $16.90

Love the presentation of the dish! The turkish bread was toasted to a crisp - perfect for holding the eggs+sauce. Eggs were perfectly poached - soft poached =) Love the haloumi in it - wish they were more generous with it =P The tomato concasse was rich and full of flavour - there was a bit too much sauce to go around, would have been better if they gave less sauce or more bread to go with it.

J got Mushies on toast - sauteed seasonal mushrooms, cooked with garden fresh herbs w marinated goats cheese and a sprinkling of cumin served on toasted Noisette's Sourdough $12.90 It's her favourite dish here and she gets it every time =)

Looks delicious - <3 mushrooms!

Food~
7/10 - food is quite tasty here, would love to try some of their other breakfast items!

Atmosphere~
4/5 - not too busy on this weekday morning, quite comfortable sitting in the main area, but looks a bit squished in the backroom. Would have liked to sit outside, I'll come back when it's warmer =)


Service~
4/5 - very friendly staff, and food came very quickly

Will be back!


C.
xo