Dining Review – Syrup Cafe Watsonia

Syrup is what I believe to be the gem of Watsonia.  Syrup is run by sister duo Denise and Kathy and for what this small café lacks in size, amongst the surrounding mediocre offerings in the area, Syrup certainly makes up for by serving up high quality food and beverages. To walk in and spot the Allpress coffee cups stacked up in a high tower alongside the coffee machine is always a good sign, but to taste the well prepared, good coffee was even more comforting!

(On a side note, I recently downloaded the Allpress Espresso Coffee Roasters smart phone app! You can use the ‘café finder’ app to locate your closest stockist or café using Allpress coffee no matter where you are! Now available free in the Go Store and iTunes store.)

Breakfast options included variations of eggs, as well as a selection of melts and toasted sandwiches. The menu appears a little limited, but don’t forget to take a look at the baked goods including freshly baked , house-made muffins, scones, cakes and slices.

I was drawn towards the description of the Avocado Smash, ‘fresh avocado, feta, parsley, mint and chilli flakes topped with a poached egg on quinoa and soya sourdough. This dish was really enjoyable; a winning combination of ingredients and the egg was cooked to perfection. Eggs may seem easy to cook, but as someone who gets squeamish at the site of an unappetising string of translucent raw egg white amongst an otherwise presumably ‘cooked’ egg, I was so happily surprised at the perfectly poached egg that was served as well as the use of high quality ingredients.

Avocado Smash at Syrup Watsonia

Avocado Smash at Syrup Watsonia

The owners shared their preference to use locally sourced, organic produce and use bread from South Melbourne bakery Brasserie, and jam from Yarra Valley. The Devonshire scones deal was fantastic value. For $10 you get two lovely home-made scones with jam and cream and one great coffee.

Devonshire Tea Scones at Syrup Watsonia

Devonshire Tea Scones at Syrup Watsonia

If I had to stress a point of improvement, it is this. I understand this cute little café is a casual eatery and the owners are quite approachable and friendly, but I found it a bit uncomfortable to be told to have to call one of the workers when we were ready to order, and then asked to call out our order across the café as our order was taken by the lady who continued to remain behind the counter. However, that being said, I think Syrup has set itself up wonderfully in a great location, close to Watsonia station if you need to grab a quick coffee before heading to work and it is a stand out addition to the area.

Allpress Coffee at Syrup Watsonia

Allpress Coffee at Syrup Watsonia

Syrup Watsonia Menu

Syrup Watsonia Menu

 

Syrup Watsonia Menu

Syrup Watsonia Menu

 

Syrup Cafe on Urbanspoon

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Dining Review – Hammer and Tong 412

I had been particularly looking forward to dining at Hammer and Tong 412 after reading and hearing about the multitude of glowing reviews it has received from many happy diners. Some even claimed it was the best brunch they had ever had! The result of a partnership between two prominent chefs who created a partnership after working at Vue de Monde together, Hammer and Tong is located just off Brunswick Street, at the rear of 412 Brunswick Street to be precise, which is across the road from Brother Burger and the Marvellous Brew and just behind Karton, the cardboard furniture store. The main entrance and seating areas overlook Westgarth Street, so unless you know specifically where Hammer and Tong is, you would most likely miss it as if you were just strolling down Brunswick street.

Hammer and Tong 412 is open from 7am til late Tuesday to Saturday and 8am til 5pm Sunday, serving breakfast, lunch and dinner. When I arrived the café was already bustling for an early morning. You may recognise the bright, white interior which previously housed the restaurant ‘The Brix’ in a bright, very long and narrow setting where each square centimetre was used to fit in as many tables and chairs as possible (probably more of an issue for staff having to walk through the tight walkways all day than for patrons). We were seated quickly on a share table, luckily we didn’t have to move but I did feel sorry for the other party next to us that were made to do a couple of reshuffles each time the staff tried to fit a few more diners onto our share table. If I were to eat here again, I would recommend sitting by the windows if you don’t mind sitting adjacent to your fellow diners, as the bar seating that ran across on one side of the café was directly under open windows, which was lovely on a sunny day.

Our waiter provided us with menus and proceeded by immediately asking us if we would like to order coffees. Now, is it just me or do other people also get annoyed when they are asked for their coffee order as your backside barely hits the chair, let alone having been able to possibly even sneak a quick glance at the menu? I like to take a look at the beverage menu first and see what coffee blends they have on offer in addition to other drinks. Yes, I may be a caffenatic, but I can still function for two whole minutes to read the menu before I crash without a morning coffee. I was happy to find out that Hammer and Tong use Duke’s Coffee, but found it odd that they charge a small but never the less, additional charge of 50 cents to choose the single origin blend as usually there is no additional charge for this option.

Hammer and Tong feature two menus, a daytime menu and dinner menu. We were offered the daytime menu which featured some really interesting items including the ‘yabbie tail omelette’, ‘duck egg’, ‘pork belly’, ‘lamb ribs’ and their take on the ‘french toast’ all sounded like interesting choices but we couldn’t go past the Soft shell crab burger and corn & zucchini fritters, both which had a been majorly talked up by diners before me. I don’t think I have ever eaten a burger pre-noon before, but having heard the praise for this soft shell crab burger, I had to give it a go.

The food was served extremely fast, especially considering how busy the café was. I will admit that plated up, the soft shell crab burger appeared a little underwhelming, small and sloppy. I know it’s a burger, but in comparison to the delightfully presented fritters, maybe the presentation of the burger could’ve been helped with a small side or at least a skewer to help hold it upright and look a little more appealing. Luckily however, all hope was not lost as the taste test considerably saved the appeal of the coveted Soft Shell Crab burger. The crab meat was delicious and substantial and the brioche buns were extremely soft and buttery. In all, the burger featured a fantastic combination of flavours that tasted succulent and juicy. I’ve had beef and pork burgers but this is definitely the best seafood burger I have ever had (and actually a worthy competitor to my favourite beef and pork burgers also).

Soft Shell Crab Burger at Hammer and Tong 412

Soft Shell Crab Burger at Hammer and Tong 412

On the other hand, the fritters ended up having the opposite effect to the burger. While they was presented very well, the fritters themselves were a little bland and dry. They possibly could have done with a more corn, less zucchini ratio, as I felt the zucchini didn’t translate too well in the fritter. It just ended up tasting like a dense, bland and dry stuffing. The fried coating was also a little too thick, oily and hard for my liking. However, that being said, the dish did taste good, but I believe this all came down to the winning accompaniments of the manchego cheese, avocado and chilli tomato relish that really created that delicious pop of flavours.

Zucchini and Corn Fritters at Hammer and Tong 412

Zucchini and Corn Fritters  (without egg) at Hammer and Tong 412

Prices were average for what you’d expect for the increasingly popular breed of oxymoron dining variety, what I like to refer to as the ‘fancy casual ‘ eateries, or hipster eateries if you will. Service was quick and to the point (although maybe some better planning would have prevented the case of musical chairs I spoke about earlier). The coffee was good, although not as good as Story in Docklands who also use the same, Dukes coffee. The Soft Shell Crab burger was definitely the highlight for me, but I also enjoyed the interesting ingredients that starred on the menu, the bright sun room and the buzzing atmosphere.

Coffee at Hammer and Tong 412

Coffee at Hammer and Tong 412

Hammer and Tong 412

03 9041 6033

Tuesday – Saturday 7am – late

Sunday 8am – 5pm

Rear 412 Brunswick St.
Fitzroy, Vic 3065

View menu online

Hammer and Tong on Urbanspoon

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Short Round – Dining Review

The name of the café Short Round may have you recalling the pint-sized sidekick character of Indiana Jones, as an employee informs me this character is the café’s namesake. Alternatively, the location of this café may have you recalling visits to the pet and animal supply store that previously occupied the same site, as one former Thornbury resident informs me. Before stepping inside Short Round, I was told of the memories of a former Thornbury resident, visiting the same address with her father in the seventies to purchase chicken manure for their veggie garden. Well, that definitely was hard to picture once I stepped inside, as this place has been completely transformed into a bright, spacious and modern café. The space itself is open and fresh, with tables inside as well as a lovely outside balcony area. I particularly liked that table areas were quite spacious, and chairs and tables were not crammed in together, which is pleasantly appreciated considering this is becoming an increasingly common feature at popular cafes that try to cram in as many patrons as they can.

Short Round Coffee

Short Round Coffee

Between our group of four, I tried the Vanilla Bean Oat Porridge, the Butterscotch house made waffles, the Potato, Chorizo and Manchego Omelette and the Bacon and Cheese Scramble on Brioche Sliders. Honestly, my group shared the same opinion, the food was nice, but there was no real standout. While each dish was cooked well, the dishes just tasted a little blander than expected. The service was attentive and the wait for food was reasonable, but while the food ultimately was true to its menu described, it managed to deliver just a little short. Considering this café is quite new, the potential and quality is definitely there, I would have preferred bolder flavours to make the dishes a little more memorable. The relatively small serving sizes didn’t help either, especially given the price, which is not to say the menu was more expensive than other great cafés around town, but for the simplicity of some of the dishes and smaller serving size, the meals did seem a little overpriced. However, that being said, with meat from local butcher Velimirovic, and Proud Mary coffee, Short Round knows good quality, and the coffee was hands-down fantastic. Many great baristas make good coffee, but tend to prepare it a little on the milkier side, but I loved that the coffee from Short Round was refreshingly stronger than usual, and it was marvelous!

Although I didn’t get to try it, the Bloody Mary’s breakie looked like a standout, and sounded like a more exotic and interesting dish that would be worth a try! The menu is available online, which is always helpful, and I can imagine this would be a new favourite for locals, I know I would come again, just based on the coffee… and maybe to try that Bloody Mary’s breakie!

Butterscotch house made waffles

Butterscotch house made waffles

Vanilla Bean Oat Porridge

Vanilla Bean Oat Porridge

Potato, Chorizo and Manchego Omelette

Potato, Chorizo and Manchego Omelette

Short Round Cafe Interior

Short Round Cafe Interior

 

Short Round

731 High Street,

Thornbury, 3071

Tel: 03 9484 3904

Hours:

7am -4pm Tuesday – Friday
8am – 4pm Saturday -Sunday

Short Round on Urbanspoon

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