Twenty and Six Espresso

Without any doubt, I crowned Twenty and Six Espresso as the best brunch spot in Melbourne to date. Food there is always innovative (not just some random stack of greens with some proteins and simple yolk porn you can put together easily at home), coffee backed up by Proud Mary's blend has never been disappointing and service is always awesome, therefore giving us the actual Melbourne's own brunch experience.

my all time favourite - the hunter. mushrooms and chorizo just couldn't get any better with their dressing combined.

my original love - the traveller. amazing moroccan sort of taste - hummus, flat bread, amazing lamb sausage hidden beneath the glistening spicy sauce. too bad they've stopped serving this.

and they've replaced it with this - the cassoulet. fancy name for baked beans and sausage drowned in sinful duck fat. it stands equal to the traveller in terms of presentation and cooking method but to me the traveller is still the winner.

this poor little fellow looks too ordinary sitting next to others at the table. there, there.

Apart from their marvelous food aesthetic, owners of this successful little cafe - Nedin Rahmanovic and Majda Falan - are graphic and interior designers. No wonder every details the eyes caught in the place also seems to be thought of carefully despite the limited space and the deceiving simplicity. Both the eyes and the tummies are satisfied at once. What's more to ask?

notice anything unusual here?

it's the water glasses! certainly not some crappy-dented plastic cups. they used to serve water with these when they started but as they grow very crowded, sadly they've stopped. 

innovative use of empty bottles, light bulbs and pot-pourri. no?

crates as racks. brilliant.

more crates as seats with old coffee sacks as cushions; industrial chic done right!  nigahiga should have made an ad about crates rather than the inflatable green ball, agreed?

wonder what is he throwing?

a paper plane!

that ends on the other side.

i just have a thing for cream and this shade of greenish-blue. and they have it all.

Oooh I know. Ask them to be open on Wednesdays as well, maybe? And also bring back The Traveller? Or maybe a slightly expand the location? Or make bookings available so we don't have to queue up on weekends? Okay I better stop here, I'm starting to ask for too much.

Patisse

Tempted by MasterChef's episode when the master of dessert himself set the elimination challenge of creating his perfume-inspired dessert, we immediately cabbed to Patisse the next morning.  

le chic friend busy looking for a cab

pretty sign; chic, as expected.

the maestro!

fashionable reads available while waiting for the cakes to be served.

vanilla mille-feuille; any vanilla person will surely go to the seventh heaven.

looking good from any angle.

mango cake. reminds me of the oriental mango pudding, simply melts in the mouth.

pistachio and rose cake.

the three musketeers

 As soon as we arrived, we were looking for the perfume cake of course. Unfortunately they were only about to prepare that batch for the next day, so we compromised with what they have ready in the counter and ended up with the vanilla mille-feuille, pistachio and rose cake and the mango cake. Delightful desserts, served in the best place to chill; we were seriously in denial to leave the place. If only we got the chance, we would certainly come back for the perfume cake!

Messina

Been so blessed to get to visit Messina thanks to God and my human GPS buddies. It is said to be one of the best gelato  in Australia and I totally agree. How can one go on a diet when faced with these?

yuzu sorbet surrounds a salted caramel swirl, encased in orange scented chocolate

This fellow right here is named the Samurai for looking bloody and fierce for one stick of ice-cream, but it tastes more like a geisha hidden under the fierce facade of a samurai. Delicate and refreshing, perfect for those hot (or not so hot, if you're a glutton like me) days.

the extended family

can you spot the mushroom?

too good to be true.

 Samurai and his buddies belongs to the category of Monoporzione (whatever it is, it sounds and tastes good!) and the gelato bar is located just next to this.

fig and yoghurt-berries flavoured gelato.

 So much for cutting down the sugar.