MOB | Camberwell

586 Burke Rd, Camberwell
(03) 9804 0155
website
opening hours: 7 days until 5pm
Rating: 8/10

You can’t see MOB from Burke Road but if you head down the ally way you’ll find this Camberwell hotspot with parking on the doorstep, loads of outdoor seating and a welcoming chilled vibe.

Serving up a comprehensive all day menu of brekkie faves and lunch options which focus on sustainable produce and superfood ingredients – Granola bowls, Nutella Waffles, Smashed avo, Sriracha Salmon and Braised Lamb Rolls. The coffee is great (Inglewood is the brew of choice for both house and single origin), and there’s a huge range of alternatives available including smoothies, juices, beer, wine and cocktails.

What we had…

Eggs Benny 19 – southern fried chicken with chipotle hollandaise black ink bun with TWO poached eggs and Korean chilli + bacon 3

THis is such an impressive looking dish – a shiny black bun stuffed full of meaty chicken, plump poached eggs and that glossy sauce. The chicken was nice and fresh and not at all oily but we would have liked a little more punch from the chipotle. This is great though if you like your heat more on the mild side.

Smashed Kabocha pumpkin 19.5 – with feta, pomegranates, crispy kale served on multigrain with dukkah poached egg & beetroot hummus

A huge pile of sweet soft pumpkin smash perfectly punctuated with the feta and pomegranates with a nice touch of kale. There was loads of beetroot hummus too, which made a nice change, and the multigrain was fabulously crunchy and perfect with this dish

French Toast 19 – with crusted brioche, salted caramel, roasted stone fruit, cherry, mascarpone & dark chocolate crumb – you can add bacon for $3

• 

• 

Possibly the best French toast I’ve ever had! The brioche was sweet and gooey, covered in caramel but also coated in crispy cornflakes. The mascarpone was soft and sweet and there was oodles of delicious salted caramel. Loads of moisture and super sweet, JUST this side of making me feel sick – AMAZING! You can add bacon but personally I don’t think it needs it.

Final thoughts…

MOB should definitely be on your to do list! The dishes are all fresh and tasty, the coffee is great and they have some creative items on their menu. If you have a sweet tooth we recommend you make the trip just for that French Toast!

*Eat Play Live Melbourne dined as guests of MOB, however all photos and opinions are our own

Snow White Bakery | Albert Park

1/1 Victoria Ave, Albert Park Vic
0402 546 429
website
opening hours: M-F 6.30-4.30 | Sat 7-4.30 | Sun 8-4.30
Rating: 8/10

This is such a cute cafe – located on a bustling intersection in Albert Park there is loads of street parking, plus the tram stops right out the front. The front does look like a fairytale house – a converted garage with comfy seating and beautiful big balloon lamps, some communal tables out on the street under the shade of big shaded trees; a cosy nook right outside the front door where you can enjoy coffee and cake on fluffy rugs.

The inside is broken up in to different rooms which creates an intimate feeling plus provides a great space for working on laptops while you enjoy the yummy food.

They have a cute menu of fairytale themed lunch and breakfast dishes plus some specials and pre-made items. The coffee is really good (Dukes is the brew of choice), plus they do a range coffee and milk alternatives, super shakes, smoothies, and they’ve just added smoothie bowls to the menu. Pretty much everything can be adapted to give a veg or vegan options and they also have a kids menu.

They make all their own baked goods on site and the cabinet of pre made sandwiches, quiches, slices, cakes and cookies looks SUPER inviting! The smells of fresh baking fill the air and are driving me crazy while we wait for our brunch 🙂

what we had…

I’m addicted to Shrooms at the moment so just couldn’t go past the ‘Doc’ – Brioche French Toast with sage and thyme roasted mushrooms and pumpkin puree 22 + a poachie $3

A good slab of thick but light brioche, the consistency of cake – sturdy enough to keep it’s form. The mushrooms were meaty and flavoursome and the sweet silky pumpkin puree was the perfect addition

Grumpy – baked eggs in our secret spicy tomato sauce with chilli popcorn, goats cheese and sourdough 19 + chorizo $4.5

This is a good sized dish with flavoursome eggs and perfectly crunchy toast with a big dollop of butter. The eggs were quite mildly spiced in a hearty, rich, wintery sauce – it was nice to be able to use the toast to soak up every last drop. We loved interesting texture of the chilli popcorn. Pro tip – get the chorizo if you like a bit more heat – meaty and delicious with a good chilli flavour. It definitely upped the Grumpy on this dish 😉

Dopey – hotcakes with poached pear, honeycomb and marscapone 19.5

No Wicked Queen poisoned apple here – two thick fluffy hotcakes loaded up with sweet spiced pear, meringue and a dollop of marscapone. The meringue gave a lovely crunchy texture and the whole thing was drizzled with salted caramel sauce!

It could possibly have scored the ‘Dopey’ name due to the happy food coma it produces after you scoff the whole thing 🙂

Snow White supply their baked morsels to cafes around Melbourne, plus they can make you a bespoke Birthday cake and arrange catering for offices or events – they can do pretty much anything really! We’re looking forward to coming back to try more of those delicious dishes.

*Eat Play Live Melbourne dined as guests of Snow White Bakery, however all photos and opinions are our own

Miss Frank | Camberwell

200 Through Road, Camberwell
03 9078 5351
facebook
opening hours: M – F: 7-4 / Sat: 7.30-4 / Sun: 8-4
Rating: 7/10

Located on a side road just off Riversdale Rd, Miss Frank is buzzing with Camberwell locals of all different ages enjoying good food and great coffee. There is a chilled vibe here with warm welcoming staff and a great local feel. The cafe has a large split level interior with a fresh, industrial look – concrete floors, white walls and greenery, minimalist lighting and light pine furniture. They have a small kiddies menu and some shaded seating out the front for fury guests, with enough room for prams on the lower level and the toilet is wheelchair accessible with a removable ramp.

The all day menu covers everything you need – granola bowls and smoothies, fritters, smashed avo and eggs all ways. Plus they have some nice (and naughty!) looking lunchy options including Southern Fried Chicken Burger, Ginger and Lemongrass Congee and a Pan Fried Salmon Fillet with zucchini noodles and ponzu dressing.

Top notch coffee is definitely a priority here – serving Inglewood as the brew of choice. For milk alternatives they’re using Almond Breeze milk which is a barista blend, designed to be heated and tastes really good.

What we had…

Mango Splice Bowl 17.5 – granola, vanilla yoghurt, mango smoothie, rasperry, banana chips, coconut almond & chia seeds (no vegan option)

fresh icy mango smoothie with a lovely vanilla yogurt and crunchy sweet granola. The crispy banana chips were a nice surprise. Quite filling and great on a summery day. Unfortunately there wasn’t a vegan option available, but this is great for the dairy lovers.

Miss Medley 21 – 2 eggs your way with parmesan roost, roasted tomato, bacon and shrooms

The description doesn’t do it justice – this dish is huge! Two poaches, bacon, shrooms, tomatoes AND a rosti on toast. My fave part was the rosti – crunchy on the outside, with a nice shredded salty interior. Sadly I couldn’t finish it all – lucky I had help! 😉

Smashed Avo 18 – herbed avo with feta, dill, parsley, mind, beet puree, radish, chilli, tamarind pepitas & black sesame + bacon 3 + egg 2

Creamy fresh avo with a good amount of feta. The ingredients were all great quality and fresh and everything was cooked perfectly. We really loved the beetroot puree which lent a lovely sweet flavour and a gorgeous pop of colour.

Final thoughts…

Miss Frank is a favourite with the locals and opens at 7am during the week to take care of the school drop off crew! The coffee is great and if you’re still hungry they have a yummy selection of sandwiches and sticky treats in the cabinet on your way out.

*Eat Play Live Melbourne dined as guests of Miss Frank, however all photos and opinions are our own

Coffee Head | Camberwell

8 Railway Pde, Camberwell
03 9882 6441
website / menu
opening hours: M – Th: 7–4 / F: 7am-9pm / weekends: 8-3 | Drinks from 5pm Fridays
Rating: 7.5/10

Off the beaten track in the foodie suburb of Camberwell you’ll find coffee focused cafe and pizzeria Coffee Head. Unsassuming from the outside this restaurant definitely has it’s own unique personality on display with an eclectic array of artwork and retro posters, recycled furniture and a foosball table – we loved the cool selection of individual pendant lights.

Previously a warehouse space, there is loads of inside seating and the ability to cater for large groups & parents with prams, plus seating outside in the puppy friendly courtyard.

The House Brew is roasted on site (this building was initially a coffee roasters) which they sell to the public and also to other restaurants. They called it 1961 (which reads the same upside down) as a symbol of the well balanced nature of their coffee. We had several cups and can verify the coffee is smooth and creamy – some of the best in Melbourne IMO. It really makes a difference to your coffee experience when a cafe knows their stuff.

The impressive looking pizza oven was installed late 2018 and Coffee head now turn out a delicious looking array of wood fired pizzas after 11.30am.

The all day menu has some solid breakfast options like the Smooth Operator house made smoothie bowl; a big brekkie option with the lot; Seano’s Open Omelette with smoked salmon, roasted peppers and shrooms; and the moroccan Veggie bowl with spiced roast pumpkin, chickpeas, cauliflower, beetroot relish and marinated feta. They offer GF Vegan and Dairy free options and will do their best to cater for dietaries.

They also have great dishes displaying their own flare – Smiss Saigon Marinated tofu, rice noodles, chilli and chicken; burgers; Red Lentil Dhal; and their best seller – the Prawn and Calamari Nicoise.

On Friday’s after 5pm Coffee head open as an evening pizza bar with craft beer, wine and cocktails so you can enjoy a cool bevy with your pizza.

What we had…

Salmon Benedict (GF) 18 – carrot and mint hashbrown, wilted spinach, poached eggs, green hollandaise (option ham/bacon)

This is such a pretty dish, two crispy hash patties with plump poaches and rich pink salmon, topped with a gorgeous green spinach hollandaise. All my favourite brunch things on one plate, so I couldn’t go past this dish. The hash was delish, crispy on the outside and just the right level of firmness. The hollandaise was nice and buttery and not too overpowering. I’d totally order this again.

Oi Oi Oi Burger 18 – grilled ground beef, beetroot, tomato, melted cheese, mustard aioli, onion rings, beer battered chips. (option to add fried egg or bacon)

We had our burger with the lot (obviously). It was a very impressive stack that was delivered to our table – a fresh toasted golden bun stuffed with a hand made juicy patty, fried egg, salad and bacon, topped with a stack of golden onion rings – what a feast! The burger patty itself was really tasty and you could tell the high quality of the beef. Everything was fresh and brightly coloured and made with love. Good quality onion rings too – not too oily and just lightly battered. The fries were our fave THICC kind, golden and crispy on the outside and fluffy in the middle.

Final thoughts…

The menu really has something for everyone with a comprehensive range of different dishes. The coffee is seriously good, but there’s a nice selection of alternatives including iced drinks, teas, smoothies and juices, plus wine, beer and cider. We’re looking forward to coming back on a Friday night to sample the pizzas and yummy looking cocktails.

• 

• 

*Eat Play Live Melbourne dined as guests of Coffee Head, however all photos and opinions are our own