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MELBOURNE | Neruda’s Brunswick is a small South American cafe that I noticed while stuck in traffic on Albion Street, waiting to turn onto Sydney Road. It’s just as well that there was traffic on the day in question, as it led me to a fantastic breakfast. The venue is a bit Chilean, Colombian, and Peruvian. The Chilean flavour is strongest, as it’s where the owners are from, as well as the Nobel Prize winning Chilean poet-diplomat and politician Pablo Neruda, who’s name the cafe bears.
The first thing that catches your eye is the large mural on the side of the cafe by Melbourne-based, Colombian-born artist Julian “Pachi” Clavijo. It’s titled ‘Nature before profit’, and features a child from the Q’ero nation in Cusco Peru. Walk inside and, if you’ve been to the west coast of South America, you’ll be immediately transported back there. The small venue has a homely, welcoming vibe with lots of South American paraphernalia and the sounds of South American music and people speaking Spanish.
The food is mostly Chilean and Colombian, with lots of traditional dishes on offer to try. To start try the empanadas. There are seven kinds available, and the Colombiana, filled with slow cooked pulled beef, tomatoes and potatoes are fantastic especially fantastic. For larger dishes there’s sandwiches, and an assortment of breakfast plates and main dishes. It all sounds tasty and deciding what to order can be hard. Highly recommended is one of our favourites, the weon pobre. It’s a generous serve of thinly sliced beef steak, grilled tomatoes and caramelised onion with three scrambled eggs and your choice of pan asado (home made bread) or arepas.
Along with the cooked dishes, Neruda’s also has a cabinet full of delicious looking cakes and pastries. For drinks, it’s an assortment of hot and cold drinks, from coffee to alcohol and more. You can even get Inca Cola here, a yellow soft drink that anyone who has been to Peru will be familiar with.
As well as food and drink, the cafe often hosts music and art events, showcasing talented individuals from the community.
All in all, Neruda’s offers friendly service, and simple, delicious food done right. The authentic flavours transported us back to our time in Chile and Colombia, and we’re already thinking about what to order next time we visit.
Neruda’s Brunswick
6/210 Albion Street
Brunswick
Victoria 3056
Australia
Telephone: 0403 722 890
E-mail: [email protected]
Website
Open
Mon – Fri: 6:30am to 4:30pm
Sat – Sun: 8:30am to 5:30pm