DUN-DUN-DUNDAS AND FAUSSETTS (Albert Park)

I just LOVE breakfast. I love Melbourne cafes. I love travelling to woop-woop for pretty food. I love catching up with good mates that I haven't seen in yonks (a week technically). I love the smell of freshly roasted coffee wafting through the vibes of chit chat through the sound of the steam wand of a coffee machine. Oh and puppies. I LOVE puppies.
What I don't like is gloomy weather. But that never stops me from going out for food.
Today's special guest is my very good friend, Ben. Say hi, Ben!!

"Noooooo, staaahhhpp" 

Just kidding, he looked back because I was gushing about how nice the area was. 

Once again, a new area. Sitting on the corner of Dundas Place and Faussett Street (sound familiar??) (yeah don't worry, I was mindblown too!!), is a cafe full of amazing food, a huge menu, friendly staff, pretty interior and spectacular vibes. 

THEY EVEN HAD LITTLE BLANKETS FOR THE COLD

The entire time I was here, I was constantly like "Oh my goshhhh AHHH, I'm so excited!!!" '"aaaahhh!!!!" in my little squeaks. 

The waiter who served us was super friendly, and he was CANADIAN. Top notch service. 

We were given time to scan the menu, and oh my goodness, I just kept squeaking. The menu had sooo many options, probably the most broad menu I've seen. Your options are definitely not limited, as there are so many under the categories for breakfast, lunch, and even a section for Asian food. In the Breakfast section, you've got sweet and savory (always a conundrum for Mich) from smashed avo to smoked salmon and eggs, french toast, baked beans and corn cakes. There's more! 

In the Lunch section, you're separated into mains, salads, foccacias and wraps such as a Waygu Burger, Thai Beef Salad, Crispy Skin Caramalised Salmon Fillet and more! 

Just being so overwhelmed by the variety, I couldn't stop saying 'Ahhhh I'M SO HAPPPYYYY' with Ben shaking his head every time. 

Each table had cute little flowers and along the booth was a line of windows for a nice view.. of the next door cafe BUT STILL, letting the light shine through and I totally love that.

After much debate and back-and-forth conundrums, Ben and I made a final decision. Ben ordered the Caramel Milkshake and the Soft Shell Crab Burger with Fennel Salad, Peri Peri Mayo and Chilli Wedges. Lunch food, right? Myself on the other hand, had ordered a Cappuccino and the Ricotta Hotcakes with Banana, Palm Sugar Caramel, Hazelnut Crumble & Fresh Berries. "Ah, breakfast!" the waiter said as he took our orders at around 4 o'clock in the evening. I LOVE breakfast. I was so happy with our choices, because not only did they look good, but they tasted even better.

LET'S START WITH THE SOFT SHELL CRAB BURGER.
Now for those who love a good soft shell crab burger, Dundas and Faussetts are definitely a go-to. Pair it with a milkshake, and surely you can't go wrong. One bite of this burger and you're greeted with explosions of flavour from sweet to salty. The wedges come with sweet chilli for dipping and they are nicely crisp and salted moderately. Nothing bad about this burger, but I guess I only had the one bite with a few wedges.

Soft Shell Crab Burger with Fennel Salad, Peri Peri Mayo and Chilli Wedges (20.0) 

Ooooooft. The ricotta hotcakes. Now I've had my fair share of ricotta hotcakes, but this one is currently standing at the top of my favorites. There was just so much going on in the dish, it was so overwhelming and just so exciting!! Flowers on hotcakes, does it get any better?! Oh but it so does. Soaked with palm sugar caramel, topped with fresh berries and hazelnut crumble. Oooh my, it was so difficult getting everything onto the fork haha! Underneath the pile of berries and flowers, were banana halves too which just added to the perfection of the dish. It was small yet filling, I wasn't able to finish the second hotcake. But I loved the texture of the hazelnut crumble, with the beautiful caramel (that was more of a syrup). Absolutely amazing. And relatively moderate price too! (Heart-eyed emoji) 

Ricotta Hotcakes with Banana, Palm Sugar Caramel, Hazelnut Crumble & Fresh Berries ($14.50) 

Ben and I demolished the dishes within a solid ten minutes (I guess we were just really hungry?). When we went up to go pay the bill, you are faced with a whole display of desserts such as cakes and doughboys donuts, and butterbing's cookie sandwiches. They just looked so teasingly delicious but made me sick at the same time because it had reminded me of how full I was. 

 As we strolled through Albert Park, I was just so happy and intrigued by the area. It was so nice and pretty, with old buildings and houses. The photo below doesn't do much justice to the town but you've just gotta walk through it to really see. I took in every moment through this area by pointing out all the nice houses, the nice cars, the nice trees. Everything nice. 

Overall, a nice adventure in a new area, all within the time frame of an hour and a half since Ben had work. Are we good, or are we good? I was so happy with the cafe, the food, the service and overall happy spending time with a good friend! ALWAYS appreciate those friends who would drop anything for you, those are the kind of people you want in your life forever.  

Adventure awaits, 

Love Mich xx

The Premises (Kensington) and SCIENCEWORKS

Today I promised my very good friend Liam that we would have an adventure day today. However that was ruined by my appointment with the optometrist (sorry Liam) but regardless, we still went to a cafe and headed to SCIENCEWORKS. (Caps for scienceworks to express my excitement!!)

Based on time limit, I chose to check out The Premises in Kensington because it wasn't too far of a travel to get to Scienceworks in Spotswood. 

The Premises sits on the street of Bellair (cue the fresh prince theme song), just a solid two minutes walk from Kensington station. This cafe is known to be popular amongst locals in Kenso, and I can definitely see why. Walking into the cafe, you are surrounded by wooden tables with hanging lights and black chalkboards on the white wall. Liam described it very cosy and I couldn't agree more. 

 The menu had a broad range of options to select from, such as your typical poached eggs on toast to salmon and green salads. But what really caught my eye was the Pumpkin Pie French Toast with Baked Custard, Cinnamon Mascapone, Pretzel Crunch and Maple Bacon. That sounds like Christmas on a plate. 

Once again, the whole 'sweet or savoury' came into play, but the delightful waitress had steered me towards the French Toast, whom had also added in that the dish was really sweet. 

Let me just tell you, when the waitress tells you a dish is REALLY sweet, please take their word for it. It was such an indulgent dish that I felt sick, and I do have a bit of a sweet tooth. But this French Toast did not have anything that wasn't sweet at all. Two thick slices of French Toast, smeared with pumpkin puree, some sort of candied toffee with pistachio pieces, candied bacon, candied walnuts, pretzels, and a spoonful of mascapone was diabetes on a plate, and I applaud anyone who can handle it. 

Pumpkin Pie French Toast ($17.50) 

 In addition to the already-sweet French Toast, instead of usual cappuccino I had ordered the Hot Chocolate. BUT this wasn't your usual hot chocolate. It came with Coconut Blossom Sugar, and those words rang a bell from Auction Rooms when I had fallen in love with the Iced Coffee. So with the magic of coconut blossom sugar, I had ordered the Hot Chocolate. It wasn't anything too fancy though, but I was right about the sugar. I'm tell ya, it's always the coconut blossom sugar that makes it all better. PS. Wooden board? BONUS YAY

Liam on the other hand had ordered the organic toast with butter. That's right. Just plain toast. With butter. Yeah so I just shook my head in disappointment. (That's right Linus, I expect more from you)

After our nice breakfast, we headed to....SCIENCEWORKS. Yes, it was voluntary. No, we didn't go because we had to. Yes, we went because we want to. 

Personally, I love Scienceworks. I find it so exciting and fun every time and it's just so amazing!! Everything is interactive, and it's educational!! It did indeed make me feel better about not staying home to study, because technically I was still doing something productive, right? 

Getting there, we were faced with a huuuuuuuuuuuuge line up of parents with their kids outside that stretched outside the building too. School holidays, so I guess I wasn't so surprised that all these kids would go to Scienceworks. 

OH and Liam and I had made ourselves a profile of our future occupation. Space tour guides. Give us a buzz when you need a tour guide, Here, take our card. 

Today I learned that there is only so much sweetness on a plate that I can handle. Oh, and how much I get annoyed at children. Especially the kids who cut in line, and take too long with their games, oohhhhh and especially the cocky ones?! They all grind my gears. Liam had to constantly tell me to calm down because I had gotten a bit worked up with the children. Occasionally you get the really cute kids, but the rest are just so goddamn annoying. 

But, who doesn't love a day out at Scienceworks? Next stop, the Melbourne Zoo. (Hopefully) 

Adventure awaits, 

Love Mich xx 

Industry Beans (Fitzroy)

3/62 Rose St, Fitzroy

'Take me somewhere healthy. Preferably with juices!!" Alright, Ton.
In a lofty warehouse down in the trendy suburb of Fitzroy on Rose St lies a quirky cafe called Industry Beans. The title fits the decor of the cafe as it builds it's own character within a modern warehouse. Walking in, the setting of the area has a complimenting contrast of industrial fittings in the exterior, and modern fittings within the interior.
Today was a day that marks the beginning of something beautiful of Antonia and myself. It was an official first date and we were hyped for some good food and good company.

Getting there, Tonia and I were put on the waiting list because it was so busy. Which is fair enough because of the long Easter weekend (Oh and happy Easter btw!!), so we patiently sat out on the wooden porch stalking instagram photos to decide what to get.
After we were seated inside the building with a high table, I scanned the area only to be impressed with how nice the interior was and took in the buzzing atmosphere.

Ton and I started off with fresh juice: Apple, Spinach, Lemon and Rosemary which was so refreshing with a zing in each sip. Sounds like a weird mix, but it was one of those flavours that just really work together, and I was very impressed. 

We ordered two dishes to share, which were the Crispy Beans and Quinoa Salad with Chilli Pickle, Avocado, Tomato, Spanish Onion and a Poached Egg with added Cured Salmon, and the Blue Swimmer Crab Omlette with Lychee, Green Apple and Herb Salad with a side of Medley of Vegetable Chips with Green Tea Sea Salt, Coriander and Lime Aioli. We actually had so much difficulty in choosing what dish to order, because we were so overwhelmed by the unique variety on the menu. I must say, I was so happy with our choices, And if you know me personally, you would know that I usually lean towards the sweet dishes, but today wasn't those days. 

Even though the vegetable chips were basically drenched in oil, they were still addictively good and technically they're vegetables.. 

They were good to have a nibble on whilst being able to catch up and discuss the conundrums of life. Think of those type of snacks that you can't stop eating no matter how full you are because you just keep picking them whilst your mind is occupied on other things. 

Medley Of Vegetable Chips (7) 

The Cripsy Bean and Quinoa Salad definitely intrigued me because I had totally disregarded that the beans were CRISPY. There was a good combination of texture of flavour, and contained pretty much everything that Ton was craving: poached egg, quinoa, avocado. We also added cured salmon because 1) why not and 2) Salmon. It was one of those guilt-free meals made of only fresh and organic ingredients which is extra yay points!! The satisfaction of cutting through the poached egg and having the yolk ooze onto the salad was just one of those little parts of the day that make you appreciate poached eggs. 

Crispy Beans and Quinoa Salad (18 + 5) 

Blue Swimmer Crab 

The Blue Swimmer Crab was definitely a different tasting dish that I've had, but it was refreshing and had a zing to the flavour. It was basically an egg omlette with crab on top, sprinkled with bean sprouts, lychee, cherry tomatos, chilli, other herbs and even slices of pomelo. The flavours came together nicely and it was actually chosen because we saw another lady eating it and we were like 'wow ok what is THAT'. 

But wait! There's more! 

Autumn Cappuccinos with Almond Milk

With a name like Industry Beans, surely they're pretty serious about their coffee. And they definitely were. There was a separate coffee menu offering multiple blends, providing an insight to the origin of the coffee blend, process and flavour notes. Ton and I finished off our date with two Autumn Cappuccinos with Almond Milk which had flavours of Hazelnut, Caramel and Cranberry. Getting really hyped for the coffee, the first sip was a bit disappointing. I was impressed with the coffee itself, but I was expecting a heavy flavour of hazelnut, caramel and cranberry. The first sip had just tasted like normal coffee. But as you sip your way through the drink, you do eventually begin to mildly taste those flavours. They formed a nice palate on the tongue that ends with a crisp taste. 

Ultimately, you can definitely understand why there is such a big hype over Industry Beans. It is a coffee lover's dream with a huge variety of food AND coffee, in addition to fresh juice with organic produce. With relatively good prices and excellent service, you can note Industry Beans as one of my favourite places. An amazing place for a first date with Tonia that kept us sitting there for hours chatting away. 

Adventure awaits, 

Love Mich xx 

Auction Rooms (North Melbourne)

103-107 Errol St, North Melbourne

A long overdue catch up with Jess was needed so of course, what else but brunch?
After much thought of where to go, we had settled on Auction Rooms in North Melbourne.
Jess was running (literally) a bit late, so I had gone in first to get a table and so I didn't have to awkwardly stand outside to wait. It was one of those moments where I just sorta sat there looking around, sitting on my phone, reading the menu for the 50th time and making it seem like I really did have a friend coming and I wasn't being stood up. The waiters kept coming to me asking if I needed a drink, or if I wanted to order already, and I JUST COULDN'T HANDLE THE PRESSURE ANYMORE. So I had ordered an iced coffee to start off.



20 minutes later, a wild Jess appears, running in, sitting in her non-assigned seat and immediately taking photos of the place without a word. Yep, things just haven't changed.
I had already ordered our food so that the wait wouldn't be too long when Jess had came. We ordered the Brulee French Toast with Cripsy Pancetta, Poached Rhubard and Glazed Strawberries and the Corned Beef Brisket with Potato Hash with Shredded Cabbage & Leek, Poached Eggs & Sriracha Hollandaise. Along with the side of two of the Iced Coffees - Espresso over ice Schulz milk & Coconut Blossom Sugar. 

Starting off with the Iced Coffee, I actually had two of these babies because 1) I had to order something at the start to avoid awkwardness with the waiters, and 2) It was just so goddamn amazing. The first sip of the iced coffee is an eye-widener. It's one of those drinks that only the first sip is spectacular. And then it gradually gets more bitter as you keep drinking, BUT THE FIRST SIP THOUGH. Bursted with coffee flavour with an explosion of the kind of sweetness that you taste when you try candy as a kid for the first time. I'm tellin you, it's the sugar that makes the difference. Quote from Jess: "Best iced coffee I've ever had" and I definitely agree.

Espresso over ice with Schulz milk & Coconut Blossom Sugar (4.5) 

The Brulee French Toast melts in your mouth within each bite. Once again, Jess hit the mint-bomb that were garnished on the dish, which I found quite humorous because of her loathe of mint. Not much to say about the French Toast as it was fluffy, crispy on the outside that just melts in your mouth. Presentation could've been a bit better but it was a nice and simple dish that you can't go wrong with.

Brulee French Toaste with Crispy Pancetta, Poached Rhubarb and Glazed Strawberries (16)

On the other hand, the Corned Beef Brisket was definitely a good choice too. There was a solid mix of ingredients that you needed a bit of everything within each forkful. The Sriracha Hollandaise sauce was definitely a different twist to your usual, that added a bit of a spicy kick to the dish. Now I'm probably the worst when it comes to chilli or anything spicy. But this was a good sort of spicy that I could handle and actually relatively enjoyed.

Corned Beef Brisket & Potato Hash w/ Shredded Cabbage & Leek, Poached Eggs and Sriracha Hollandaise (18.5)

The service was nice though, but the beauty of the cafe just made the whole experience worthwhile. Outside with the brick walls and trees, and inside with hanging lights and pretty interior. Every angle of the cafe was just so breathtaking and I wasn't sure how to take photos without making it obvious I was taking photos. Yknow what I mean? It was a mix up of 'I don't want to make it look like I'm taking photos of the place" and "I have no shame at all".
But it's okay, I got the photos I wanted.

Adventure awaits,
Love Mich xx