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TamiSweet, Melbourne CBD

Paul
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0
TamiSweet, Melbourne CBD

MELBOURNE | TamiSweet is a Vietnamese cafe and patisserie that opened in St Albans in 2016. What began as a business primarily catering to the neighbourhood’s large Vietnamese population, soon grew as word of owner Minh “Tami” Hà’s cakes got around. Late last year, Tami opened a second store on Lonsdale street in the CBD. I popped in to visit for What’s On Melbourne.

The space is small and relaxing, especially popular in the evenings for those looking for a post work sweet treat to take home. On the menu you’ll find a selection of cakes, cookies, and desserts, along with coffee and non-coffee lattes.

The signature item that Tami has been making since day one is her salted egg yolk (nông lan trứng muối) cake. Like most of the cakes at TamiSweet, it’s available in three sizes – cupcake, small share cake, or large celebration size. The must-order signature cake is a light and savoury, ever so sweet sponge cake, layered with salted egg yolk sauce, and topped with pork floss. An intriguing and delicious blend of flavours and textures.

Other treats include things like a moist strawberry cake, earl grey cake with boba and cheese foam, and red velvet cookies. If you’re after something to drink, there’s regular coffee based drinks, as well as things like cà phê sữa đá (Vietnamese iced coffee), cà phê muối (Vietnamese salt cream coffee), and matcha lattes. If you’ve not tried cà phê muối before, I highly recommend giving it a shot.

TamiSweet

145 Lonsdale Street
Melbourne
Victoria 3000
Australia

Telephone: 0406 011 292
E-mail: [email protected]
Website

Open
Mon – Tue: 9:00am to 7:00pm
Wed – Sun: 9:00am to 9:00pm

Mamao มาเมา, Melbourne CBD

Paul
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0
Mamao มาเมา, Melbourne CBD

MELBOURNE | Mamao มาเมา is a Melbourne Thai restaurant that opened on Queen Street in August last year. Loosely translating as “get drunk” in English, it’s proven a hit with Thai expats and students looking for an affordable feed and lively atmosphere. I recently visited to get some photos for What’s On Melbourne.

It’s a small, fun spot that gets quite vibrant in the evenings, as the lights turn colourful and low, and the live band starts playing from the small stage at the back. Posters plastered on the walls and ceiling from the more risqué segment of the Thai movie industry complete the vibe.

The focus at Mamao is on keenly priced Thai street food. There’s an extensive menu that stays true to what you’ll find being sold by vendors on the streets of Thailand. Boat noodles come in a broth made from pig’s blood and Thai spices, filled with bean sprouts, morning glory, fried garlic, fried pork fat, beef tripe, and your choice of beef or pork meatballs, meat slices, and noodles. It’s legit, and it’s delicious.

Mamao’s Mama tom yum hot pot is another must order. Fragrant tom yum broth filled with instant noodles, deep fried pork belly, prawns, pork loaf, egg, pork crackers, and coriander.

Other dishes include things like som tam with salted crab, gai yang (Thai grilled chicken), and grilled ‘crying tiger’ beef. It’s an extensive menu overall, one you can enjoy as part of a large group sharing a whole lot of things, or a solo diner ordering one of the meal combos.

To drink it’s well priced beer and cocktails, along with an assortment of non-alcoholic drinks like Thai milk tea, pink milk, and longan juice.

Mamao มาเมา

338 Queen Street
Melbourne
Victoria 3000
Australia

Telephone: 0422 919 169
E-mail: n/a
Website

Open
Mon – Sun: 11:30am to 4:00pm, 5:00pm to 1:30am

Lovey Patisserie Cafe Featuring Xplayground, Melbourne CBD

Paul
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0
Lovey Patisserie Cafe Featuring Xplayground, Melbourne CBD

MELBOURNE | Lovey Patisserie Cafe Featuring Xplayground is a pop art café from Lovey Patisserie Cafe, and online pop-art collectible store Xplayground. I recently stopped in for What’s On Melbourne to find out more about the collaboration.

Lovey Patisserie is the creation of pastry chefs Karsin Zhang and Julie Zhu, both alumni of Le Cordon Bleu. Their original cafe opened in Doncaster in late 2022, offering a delectable selection of desserts, cakes, and drinks. Everything is made on site daily, using the best quality ingredients from local independent businesses like Duke’s Coffee, Zen Wonders, and Mörk Chocolate.

There’s a seasonally driven focus on French and East Asian flavours at Lovey Patisserie Cafe, with a leaning towards creations that are light, balanced, and not overly sweet. There’s things like a gluten-free coconut pandan Basque cheesecake, blueberry and elderflower Swiss roll, and matcha strawberry panna cotta.

To drink, there’s espresso based coffee drinks, along with flavoured lattes like matcha, taro, and black sesame. There’s also things like house-made grape and lime soda, and sparkling iced tea. A ‘canimal’ behind the counter means that you can have your drink canned to go, to enjoy later in the day.

As for the Xplayground side of things, you’ll notice several walls, especially the almost art gallery-type entrance, filled with limited, rare, and high-quality designer collectibles. The Melbourne-based online retailer has built a reputation globally for its range, and this is their first physical store.

There’s collectibles from the likes of artist Takashi Murakami with his signature “Superflat” style, POP Mart, Kaws, and BE@RBRICK. I’ll admit that I came very close to buying the NBA x BE@RBRICK Michael Jordan 1998 LAST SHOT collectible that was calling to me from the display.

Lovey Patisserie Cafe Featuring Xplayground

26 Berrbang Lane
Melbourne
Victoria 3000
Australia

Telephone: (03) 9314 6101
E-mail: n/a
Website

Open
Sun – Thu: 10:00am to 6:00pm
Fri – Sat: 10:00am to 8:00pm

Lao Liuzhou Noodle (墨尔本老柳州螺蛳粉), Melbourne CBD

Paul
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0
Lao Liuzhou Noodle (墨尔本老柳州螺蛳粉), Melbourne CBD

MELBOURNE | Regional Chinese noodle dishes have really taken off in Melbourne in recent years. Walk through the CBD, and there’s no shortage of restaurants specialising in dishes that were rarely, if at all, available in this city. A recent opening that’s added to this diversity is Lao Liuzhou Noodle (墨尔本老柳州螺蛳粉), which I visited for What’s On Melbourne.

Luosifen /螺螄粉/ Snail Rice Noodle is a speciality of Liuzhou, Guangxi. As far as I can ascertain, Lao Liuzhou Noodle is the only place in Melbourne where you can find it. Nobody is quite sure who created the dish, with various origin tales floating about. What is certain is that it dates back to around the mid 1970s or 1980s.

It wasn’t common to find Luosifen outside of Liuzhou until it was featured in a documentary that aired in China in 2012. By 2014, instant versions of the dish started being produced, and during COVID lockdowns, it became a nationwide trend. Today, there’s over 8,000 restaurants across China dedicated to Luosifen.

Owner Cathy and her husband hail from Liuzhou, and when they realised that there weren’t any luosifen spots in Melbourne, decided to take matters into their own hands. When you walk into Lao Liuzhou Noodle, the pungent smell of the luosifen is unmistakable. Cathy’s family recipe sees river snails, pork bones, and assorted herbs and spices simmer for 10 hours, resulting in a surprisingly mild, sweet broth.

The snails and bones are discarded, and the broth clarified. Added to it are fermented sour bamboo shoots (the source of the pungent smell, not the snails as many assume), yuba (dried tofu skin), fungus, pickled green beans, peanuts, dried radishes, and al dente aged rice noodles. This is the base bowl, to which varied toppings are added.

There’s several bowls to choose from, which you can customise as you please. I’m a fan of the “big happiness” bowl, which gets you chicken feet, pig’s trotters, fried egg, and fried tofu. Other toppings include things like braised beef brisket, sliced beef, chicken schnitzel, and braised quail egg. Choose from one of six spice levels, and you’re good to go.

For sides and snacks, it’s things like mala braised beef, spicy pig’s ears, and pickled cucumbers. There’s also a skewer menu featuring options like lamb, beef, and fried potato.

Lao Liuzhou Noodle (墨尔本老柳州螺蛳粉)

221 Russell Street
Melbourne
Victoria 3000
Australia

Telephone: 0416 228 168
E-mail: n/a
Website

Open
Mon – Sun: 11:30am to 1:30am

Fox Friday Melbourne, Richmond

Paul
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0
Fox Friday Melbourne, Richmond

MELBOURNE | Since Fox Friday was taken over by current owners Benn and Sarah Hooper in 2019, it’s gone from strength-to-strength. They’ve built a reputation for brewing some of the best beers in Australia, and have expanded their reach from Tasmania, to all across Australia.

In December 2013, Fox Friday opened a Melbourne brewery and brewpub, just around the corner from craft beer hotspots The Royston and Mountain Goat. It’s proven a hit with no just beer lovers, but those looking for a drink of any variety and a good feed.

Inside the converted warehouse you’ll find a space which holds up to 200 people. Rather than the usual converted warehouse aesthetic you find at a lot of breweries, Fox Friday has more of a industrial warehouse meets old school pub feel about it. Bronze and steel compliments timber and natural materials for a surprisingly cosy space.

On tap, it’s the full core range of Fox Friday beers, along with a big selection of rotating limited and seasonal options. Beers from across the style spectrum are on offer, with a particular focus on hoppy, hazy IPAs. For non-beer drinkers, there’s a decent selection of Aussie wines, classic cocktails, and non-alcoholic options.

To eat, there’s a menu of small bites and larger dishes inspired by the US South. Things like burgers, smoked half chicken, Cajun shrimp skewers, and fried chicken tenders.

Fox Friday Melbourne

148/150 Murphy Street
Richmond
Victoria 3121
Australia

Telephone: 0409 950 178
E-mail: n/a
Website

Open
Sun – Thu: 12:00pm to 11:00pm
Fri – Sat: 12:00pm to 12:00am

Fuwa Kakigōri, Melbourne CBD

Paul
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0
Fuwa Kakigōri, Melbourne CBD

MELBOURNE | Fuwa Kakigōri is a new kakigōri that’s opened up on Guildford Lane in Melbourne’s CBD, that I recently visited for What’s On Melbourne. It’s one of a few new kakigōri spots that’s opened in town in recent months, and you might be asking yourself “what’s kakigōri?

Kakigōri is a Japanese shaved ice dessert, flavoured with assorted syrups and sweeteners. It dates back to Japan’s Heian period (794 to 1185), when ice was saved during the winter, to be shaved and served as a summer treat to the country’s aristocracy. These days, it’s a popular dessert enjoyed by all. So much so that July 25 is known as kakigōri day in Japan.

Unlike snow cones and ‘regular’ shaved ice, kakigōri has a light, fluffy texture reminiscent of freshly fallen snow. And unlike Korean bingsu, there’s no milk base, just ice. If you’ve tried Hawaiian shave ice you’ll know what to expect. The Hawaiian desert is a direct descendant of kakigōri.

At Fuwa Kakigōri, blocks of ice are shaved to order using a special ice shaving machine. It’s hand shaped into a large mound before flavours and toppings are added. Matcha topped with cream and adzuki bean (red beans) is a popular option for those who don’t want something too sweet. Also popular is the strawberry cheesecake. It contains a strawberry compote filling, and is coated in torched meringue and fresh strawberries.

Beyond kakigōri, Fuwa Kakigōri also offer DIY daifuku sets, and drinks like strawberry matcha latte and hōjicha latte.

Fuwa Kakigōri

28 Guildford Lane
Melbourne
Victoria 3000
Australia

Telephone: n/a
E-mail: n/a
Website

Open
Sun – Thu: 2:00pm to 10:00pm
Mon – Fri: 2:00pm to 11:00pm

Lil Lane, Melbourne CBD

Paul
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0
Lil Lane, Melbourne CBD

MELBOURNE | Lil Lane is a new focaccia spot that recently opened in the CBD which I popped into in to grab some shots for What’s On Melbourne. It’s a place that you need to know about to find, tucked away at the end of narrow Corrs Lane.

Most of the trade happens from the service window that faces out to the laneway, and there’s benches if you want to sit and enjoy your focaccia in the laneway. There’s also some indoor seating at what’s also the entrance to nightclubs ‘House of Maximon’, and ‘Pulp’, along with stalwart of Melbourne’s bar scene, Berlin Bar.

Co-owner Giulia Dal Corso hails from Venice, Italy, and has experience working in bars in Melbourne and Venice. At Lil Lane, Giulia ensures that the focaccia and fillings are made to the highest standards, be it the traditional, or contemporary options.

Thick, airy, focaccia Genovese is baked daily, and all of the condiments and sauces are made from scratch using the best quality local (where possible) and Italian ingredients. Cheese comes from That’s Amore, and the end result is delicious.

The two most popular options are the classic ‘Focacaia Mortazza’, filled with Stracciatella, pesto, mortadella, and crushed pistachios; and ‘La Veneta’. The latter, which contains a filling of Sopressa, Stracciatella, mushroom sauce, and confit garlic, is particularly good.

If you’re thirsty, it’s quality espresso-based coffees, hot chocolate, and chai, along with speciality lattes. Flavours like tiramisu Kinder Bueno, and pistachio white chocolate. There’s also Italian sodas from Cortese, and a small wine, beer, and cocktail list.

Lil Lane

18 Corrs Lane
Melbourne
Victoria 3000
Australia

Telephone: n/a
E-mail: [email protected]
Website

Open
Mon – Fri: 9:00am to 3:00pm

FOC, Melbourne CBD

Paul
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0
FOC, Melbourne CBD

MELBOURNE | FOC is a new focaccia spot from the team behind (and in the original location of) popular CDB sandwich shop Sloppy Joe’s Deli. I recently visited to grab some shots for What’s On Melbourne and find out more

Focaccia is having it time in the sunlight at the moment in Melbourne. Following a similar blueprint to Sloppy Joe’s, FOC is all about classic focaccia fillings, along with options inspired by Melbourne’s globally diverse dining scene.

The menu has been developed by chef Adrian Li, who you might know from La Madonna, Rina’s and his appearances on Masterchef. It includes things like the ‘Rare Beef’ – sliced roast beef, salsa verde, pickled onion, and horseradish mayo; ‘Mortadella’ – Stracciatella, mortadella, and pickled green aoili; and ‘Green Beans’. The latter is a vegetarian option that’s proving very popular. It’s filled with garlic green beans, aioli, whipped ricotta, roasted peppers, rocket, and harissa.

If you want something sweet, there’s a selection of doughnuts delivered fresh each day by Peck’s Road. To drink, it’s top notch coffee, along with rotating specials like coconut matcha lattes, citrus cream brews, and frappes.

FOC

423 Little Collins Street
Melbourne
Victoria 3000
Australia

Telephone: n/a
E-mail: n/a
Website

Open
Mon – Fri: 10:00am to 3:00pm

Rosso Coffee Experience, North Melbourne

Paul
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0
Rosso Coffee Experience, North Melbourne

MELBOURNE | Ramez Abdulnour is one of Melbourne’s third wave coffee pioneers, helping take the city’s coffee scene to the next level in the mid 2000s. He’s been roasting coffee under his Rosso Roasting Co brand for many years, mostly supplying cafes and restaurants around town.

Recently, Ramez opened The Rosso Coffee Experience. It’s a concept café and roastery in North Melbourne, inspired by the many informal coffee lessons he’d give customers who visited his wholesale roastery in Tullamarine. I was invited in to take a look, and Ramez was on hand to show me what his new venue is all about.

The Rosso Coffee Experience features many of the hallmarks that you’d expect from a Melbourne roastery and café. It’s housed in an old warehouse, beans are roasted on-site, and used to make any kind of filter and espresso-based coffee you could want. There’s a snappy all-day brunch menu, with a retail counter filled with freshly sealed bags of beans and coffee equipment for home.

What makes Rosso unique, is the long DIY coffee bar, where with the guidance of one of the venue’s baristas, you can have a go at making your own coffee. There’s high tech grinders, tampers, and milk steamers, and decidedly low tech equipment like V60s. Decide on the kind of coffee that you want to make, and you’ll be taken through the process, learning a lot along the way.

It’s quite a personalised affair, so you can learn something no matter your level of expertise. Even me, someone who owns seven kinds of brewing equipment at home, and brews coffee each day, learned a few tips and tricks to improve my home brew game.

On the food side of things, the all-day brunch menu has been designed by Alain Ducasse and Neil Perry trained French-Mauritian chef Michael Berneger. It’s seasonal, globally-inspired menu that caters to all dietaries. Think okonomiyaki-inspired fried fish and waffles, a pretzel steak sandwich, and chorizo chilli folded eggs

Rosso Coffee Experience

117 Dryburgh Street
North Melbourne
Victoria 3051
Australia

Telephone: (03) 9329 3560
E-mail: n/a
Website

Open
Wed – Fri: 7:00am to 3:00pm
Sat – Sun: 8:00am to 3:00pm

No22 Cafe, Melbourne CBD

Paul
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0
No22 Cafe, Melbourne CBD

MELBOURNE | 90s fashion and pop culture have been having a revival as of late, so it’s fitting that focaccia is also enjoying a resurgence (sans the sun dried tomatoes). Deli-style focaccia sandwiches have been popping up across Melbourne, but one cafe where focaccia is anything but a trend is No22 Cafe. I recently popped in to grab some photos for What’s On Melbourne.

No22 Cafe opened 18 months ago, before Melbourne focaccia resurgence. It’s owned and operated by Gaetano ‘Tano’ and his wife Jess. Gaetano was raised in a small town in Puglia, Italy, while Jess grew up just outside of São Paulo in Brazil. Their small cafe is simple and humble, a place with heart that reflects them.

Tano is an affable guy, passionate about his cafe and the food that he and Jess are making. You’ll find him chatting to customers about the food at No22, his background, and anything else that might be worth talking about at the time. You’ll be made to feel at home before you’ve even eaten a thing.

The focaccia that most Australians are familiar with, that you’ll find at places that have jumped aboard the current focaccia wave, is focaccia Ligure or Genovese. The version being made each day by Tano and Jess, however, is one you might not have seen before. It’s focaccia Pugliese, made using dough that’s left to rise only once, resulting in a flatter, almost thick crust pizza-like focaccia.

There’s around 20 different focaccias to choose from, with any one of five types of top quality Caputo flour from Italy being used. The classic ‘Authentica’ is filled with Stracciatella, mortadella, and crushed pistachios and is a great choice if you’re not sure what to order. Another popular option is the ‘Tartufata’. It’s filled with Prosciutto di Parma, Stracciatella, rocket, and shavings of real black truffle (Tano and Jess refuse to use truffle oil). There’s plenty of vegetarian choices, and the option of swapping out Stracciatella for burrata.

Along with focaccia, there are a few sweet treats in a display cabinet. Things like mini bombolini (Italian doughnuts), Nutella cornettos (Italian croissants), and (depending on how much time Jess has free in between all of the baking) tiramisu. To drink, there’s Italian sodas and Campos coffee.

No22 Cafe

140 Flinders Street
Melbourne
Victoria 3000
Australia

Telephone: (03) 9996 9542
E-mail: n/a
Website

Open
Mon – Fri: 7:30am to 2:30pm
Sat – Sun: 9:00am to 2:00am

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