Yo-Chi

So this is kind of like a mini post. Big enough to enjoy its own page yet small enough to show you some picczzz. During my day in Balaclava (see previous post), we decided to try out the newish fad in the area- Yo-Chi Frozen Yoghurt Bar.

Maybe I'm a late bloomer, but it seems like these self-serve frozen yoghurt bars are popping up left right and centre. I personally love them- picking and choosing what ever weird combinations till your hearts content. Only thing is I tend to get a bit carried away and the cup ends up costing me a fortune. Irregardless. It rocks.

Toppings to choose from

The offer stewed apple and also poached pears...

Choc hazelnut crunch sauce and sliced bananas in caramel sauce....wad da fuq

We opted for three flavours; chocolate, chai (amazing) and vanilla. We couldn't resist the bananas in caramel sauce, so that had to go in. We also threw on some white  chocolate + granola (winner).

I almost did a little wee when I found out a froyo place opened near my neck of the woods (well kind of). Frozey recently opened in Ringwood North and is exactly the same concept as Yo-Chi, but with more flavours and more toppings (Frozey has cheesecake as well as cookie dough flavour yoghurts....)

SO good on a warm day or a cheeky late night snack. Bit more exxy than your regular Bulla yogurt but hey, serving yourself is always a thrill.

Yo-Chi
292 Carlisle Street, Balaclava

Frozey
204-206 Warrandyte Road, North Ringwood

Las Chicas

The only time I ever venture over to Balaclava is for food. There is really no other reason for me to travel this far across town....unless I am rewarded for my efforts with a trip to somewhere like Las Chicas.

I have been to Las Chicas at least four times now, and every visit it manages to take me an unreasonable amount of time to choose my meal. There is just SO much on the menu. There's about three different flavoured porridges and french toast's, tons of bagel flavours, a whole section dedicated to vegetarian options and a big load of stuff for the meat lovers....(and thats ONLY the breakfast menu).
The lunch menu offers plenty of sandwich and salad options too.

Now, prior to this visit I had ordered the baked bean breaky- house baked pumpkin and polenta loaf topped with baked beans, spinach & a poached egg ($16.50). I was so tempted to order this again...it was pretty much my ideal breakfast. Las Chicas also offers half servings- so you can imagine how big the meals actually are. Heres a little sneak peak of what the baked bean breaky looks like...

Anyway, today I decided I felt like something eggy and went for the breakfast bruschetta- sourdough, folded eggs, spinach, basil pesto & pine nuts ($14). I couldn't believe the size of this whopper. The eggs were dreamy creamy and perfectly cooked- and also went so well with the rich pesto.

Breakfast bruschetta ($14)

My lovely gal pal ordered the breakfast burrito ($17). I suffered a little bit of food envy and died a little inside when her dish arrived. Creamy scrambled eggs, extra crispy bacon, aioli and rocket, wrapped in a soft tortilla bread & topped with avocado, tomato & coriander salsa. I would do bad, bad things to have this dish sitting in front of me right now. Luckily for me she isn't a fan of bacon, so piggy little me got to eat it all :)

Breakfast Burrito ($17)

Just a cheeky champagne for brunch. It would be rude not to.

I always make the mistake of eating too much and being too full to order from the sweet cabinet afterwards... 

This place is a steal. You absolutely get your pennies worth, and I can guarantee the breakfast feeds will keep you satisfied until the late arvo. If you cbf driving all the way here- the cafe is conveniently located underneath the Balaclava train station. You can be sure I'll be coming back and trying more of the 1000 options on the menu...

Las Chicas,
203 Carlisle Street, Balaclava

Cumulus Inc.

Cumulus Inc. has been one destination on my list of places to visit for some time now. I wasn't sure on whether to blog about a wining/dining dinner experience here, or avoiding the sleep in and snagging an early morning table for a breakfast bloggin'. A friend and I decided on the latter.

Inside you'll find a big industrial style room, complete with open kitchen so you can watch the chefs at work.

Breakfast fare ranged from your standard muesli to the full english breakfast. The menu was limited but we eventually decided what we wanted to munch on.

I opted for the baked eggs with roasted peppers and shanklish ($16). I had no idea what shanklish was whilst I was eating it, but did the old google search and apparently its a type of Lebanese cows or sheeps milk cheese. So there you go.

The dish came with two mini pieces of turkish bread- and this was the only criticism I could make. I don't know about anyone else but  I really need more than two little pieces of bread in order to mop up that eggy and tomatoey goodness. I felt like I had to ration the bread due to the stingy bread to egg ratio.

.......I have thought way to much into that.

Shakshouka- baked eggs with roasted peppers and shanklish ($16)

My friend isn't a fan of eggs, so decided to go with the toasted honey granola. There was SO much granola packed into that little bowl. It came with a pot a vanilla yoghurt with poached fruit too. Definitely one of those dishes that makes you feel healthier just by looking at it.

Toasted honey granola & poached fruit with vanilla yoghurt ($10)

At the counter were some delectable goodies, including a chocolate & sea salt brownie. ANY dish featuring salt (within reason) has my vote. I even put salt all over pizza... (theres absolutely no hope for my arteries). I believe the lemon curd madeleines are made to order (give 15 minutes), and are apparently a hit.

English breaky tea

A very popular fancy smansy place at any time of day. Next time I return it will be for a dinner feast. Complete with lots of salt.

Cumulus Inc.

45 Flinders Lane, Melbourne CBD

The Meatball & Wine Bar

As a birthday gift to my best friend, I thought it would be nice to treat her to a special birthday lunch. We are both obsessed with anything food related (cooking/reading/eating/watching) and you can often find us on a friday night watching marathons of Food Safari (and I'm not even kidding...sad?).

She is a lasagna loving italian bella who is a wizz in the kitchen. One of her specialties is traditional Italian meatballs- so I thought we should go and compare her meatballs to those found at the newly opened Meatball & Wine Bar.

Man posing

Two doors down from Chin Chin is where you will find this little beauty. The shopfront is small and high seats are found on entry, with a long bar running down the side of the restaurant.

We were seated at the end of the bar. There was a huge list of wines, and being the non-appreciative wine drinker I am, I left it up to the waiter to decide. I have to admit I am starting to enjoy wine more and more...sometimes I even order it instead of my beloved vodka...

A system exists at The Meatball and Wine Bar. Pretty much, they sell meatballs and, yep, wine. But the deal is, you choose which type of meatball you like (chicken, pork, beef, fish or vegetarian), what sauce you would like with it (tomato, white sauce or salsa verde) and whether or not you want your balls (hehe) with something to sit on (polenta, italian style beans, green vegies, potato smash or homemade pasta). There are also some other goodies like mini meatball burgers, cured meat platters and sides to choose from.

We decided to get a couple of different balls and sides, and share everything. We went with the pork ball (with fennel, sage + orange) with Italian tomato sauce, on creamy polenta ($18).

The chicken (with pistachios, muscatels + parmesan) ball was next. We ordered it with the Italian beans and creamy white sauce ($18).

The caprese salad ($8) was fresh and went perfectly with the balls.

The meals weren't huge, but it was a great for a simple lunch. The concept of the whole place is clever, and after only being open for a month or two, The Meatball and Wine Bar seems to be gaining a strong following and lots of love from city dwellers, bloggers, and food lovers around Melbourne.

In the end, everyone loves good balls.

The Meatball & Wine Bar
135 Flinders Lane, Melbourne CBD

Pope Joan

Up until early this year, I was completely oblivious to any cafes/restaurants/life around the Brunswick and Fitzroy area. It wasn't til I started working in Carlton that I began venturing into the unknown and discovering what I had been missing out on.

A good friend of mine lives on Rathdowne Street and ALWAYS knows of a cool new cafe or restaurant to visit around her neck of the woods. I had read a lot about Pope Joan, and today that's where we headed.

Apparently, Pope Joan was an intelligent medieval woman who disguised herself as man and became Pope. Bit of quirk for a cafe name but meh...what ever floats your boat.

Located in the not-so-busy part of Nicholson Street is where you'll find this place. It's quite isolated from everything else- you won't find any other cafes, shops etc- it's more of an industrial area and then BOOM...theres the cafe. The owners obviously knew what they were doing...but it certainly seems like an odd place to pop in a trendy eatery. The cafe is massive, with a huge outdoor garden area. They have even built a bar on the side (named the Bishop of Ostia) which serves drinks and nibbles later at night.

The bar (and sneaky me in the mirror oops)

The options on the menu had a ye old english trend going on, yet I was surprised not to see black pudding featured anywhere (which I wouldn't have eaten anyway if you paid me). I felt like a omelette so I ordered....the omelette.

Fetta omelette, herbs, green olive gremolata + corn bread ($17)

A bit steep for $17, and not an omelette I would travel across the city for, but still a good feed.

Mmm...donuts

So go visit Joan (or the Bishop of Ostia for a cheeky drink), have a seat out the back and breathe in all the indi-ness and chilled atmosphere Pope Joan has to offer (complete with vegie garden and deck chairs).

Pope Joan

77-79 Nicholson Street

East Brunswick

Milkwood

A friend and I found this cute little cafe by accident one morning whilst strolling around East Brunswick. Milkwood is a teeny weeny eatery on Nicholson street that offers an assortment of simple and delicious breakfast & lunch treats.

The interior is plan and simple, with old-fashioned hanging plants dangling from the high ceilings. Seating is limited and spaces are small- not ideal for big groups- but noice to meet for coffee or a feed with a buddy.

Interesting options on the specials menu

 At this stage in the morning, we popped into Milkwood just for a coffee, but couldn't resist sharing the toasted pear, fig and walnut loaf with cinnamon ricotta & honey ($9). The cinnamon ricotta was so delish spread on the toast and drizzled with honey....

I'm a big fan of chai's. Powder, syrup, spice, whatever. I would like to someday bathe in a giant pool of chai milk. Milkwood delivered a top notch chai. I was that little bit more excited when the waitress delivered my chai to see it was made with the REAL chai spices...which is my favourite. It was even enough chai to have 3-4 cups!

Sorry for the chai repetition. Chai chai chai chai chai.

Chai milk with winnie the pooh style honey twirler 

Latte

I think one of the best things about this cafe are the options available in the sweets cabinet. There was more yum scrum sweet options then you could poke a stick at. Everything was homemade too :)

Homemade monte carlos getinmybelly

They had samples of their homemade caramel slice on the counter and holy shit, it was incredible. I may have stolen a couple more pieces when the chick at the counter wasn't looking. A great little place to stop by for a coffee or snack- I highly recommend you try the sweets cabinet (or just steal lots of samples).

Milkwood

120 Nicholson Street, Brunswick East