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Cafe Culture: Hardware Societe, Melbourne CBD

Melbourne Review Travel 2 Comments
Sydney Food Blog Review of Hardware Society, Melbourne

Sydney Food Blog Review of Hardware Society, Melbourne: Lobster Benedict, $25

I’ve never been into the whole “breakfast is the most important meal of the day” thing. Heresy, I know. It’s just never worked for me, and forcing myself to eat when I’m not ready is never a cute look.

But for certain breakfasts, I’m more than happy to make an exception. And if Hardware Societe is going to put the words ‘lobster’ and ‘benedict’ in the same sentence, well, now they’re just twisting my arm.

Sydney Food Blog Review of Hardware Society, Melbourne: Lobster Benedict, $25Lobster Benedict, $25

And what a glorious breakfast the Lobster Benedict was. Chunks of perfectly cooked lobster sit on buttery brioche, and form a luxurious bed for oozy poached eggs and a cozy blanket of hollandaise. It’s like every luxurious ‘treat’ ingredient came together and decided to have a beautiful magic baby. I had to stop myself from finishing ALL of the brioche, because I ordered a second breakfast.

Sydney Food Blog Review of Hardware Society, Melbourne: Steak Tartare, $25Steak Tartare, $25

Yes, you heard me right. For someone who doesn’t do breakfasts, I ordered TWO. I never do things by halves. The Steak Tartare was indeed lovely – with finely chopped beef flavoured with a capsicum based romesco sauce rather than the usual mustard/caper/shallot mix. Good, but not as good as the benedict, and so faded into oblivion, a.k.a the recesses of my memory.

Sydney Food Blog Review of Hardware Society, Melbourne: Matcha Latte, $4.50Matcha Latte, $4.50

Besides the photogenic food, the drinks are also beautiful to behold. The barista even has a super cool instagram account dedicated to latte art! How the f**k did that swan get in there?? HOW IS THIS BLACK MAGIC POSSIBLE?!

Sydney Food Blog Review of Hardware Society, Melbourne: French Toast

And just as a kicker, I also took a photo of the food on the table beside me. I’ve no idea what this is or how
it tastes, but it sure looked pretty!

I just absolutely fell in love with the relaxed atmosphere at Hardware Societe. I didn’t feel judged at ALL for ordering two breakfasts, in fact other than a small moment of embarassment on my part when the server said, “are BOTH of these for you?”, I felt right at home with the hilarious, warm staff and people who let me photograph their food.

A must-go when I next go back to Melbourne. Breakfast has never been so cool.

This meal was independently paid for.
The Hardware Societe
118-120 Hardware Street
CBD Melbourne, VIC
Phone: 03 9078 5992

The Hardware Société Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Le Bon Ton, Collingwood

Melbourne Review Travel
The smoker's lot - Beef brisket, chicken, pulled pork and pickles

The smoker's lot - Beef brisket, chicken, pulled pork and pickles

Fire, smoke and brimstone charcoal – is there anything more glorious than a good barbecue? Le Bon Ton in Collingwood is serving up American style barbecue and sides, and we took a trip for some of that deep south.

Crab CakesCrab Cakes – Gulf style with streaky bacon, bell peppers, celery & Old Bay aioli, $16.50

The Smoker's LotThe Smoker’s Lot, $49

Jerk Seasoned Onion RingsOnion rings – Beer battered & jerk seasoned, $10

Potato Salad with Spring Onion, Dill, Pickles and MayoPotato Salad with spring onion, fresh dill, pickles and mayo, $8.50

The Smoker’s Lot is a fantastic tasting platter to begin with, if not a bit on the measly side. The meats were not particularly mind blowing, but it was of a very decent quality. If this was just based on the meats alone, I think The Erko comes out on tops. The Onion Rings were an extremely pleasant surprise – super crisp and light, with a killer aioli on the side spiced with the all-famous Old Bay Seasoning. They also brought a pretty strong potato salad game too, with pops of acidity from the pickles cutting through the creamy potatoes and mayo.

Service wise, it was polite, if not a bit absent, which I can understand because there didn’t seem to be many members of staff around for a packed outdoor AND indoor area. You get more bang for your buck if you’re sharing with friends, and it’s a great atmosphere, especially if you’re sitting outdoors.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to get my hands on some potato salad.

This meal was paid for independently
Le Bon Ton
51 Gipps St
Collingwood, VIC 3066
Phone: 03 9416 4341
Website: http://www.lebonton.com.au/

Le Bon Ton on Urbanspoon

Shira Nui, Glen Waverley

Melbourne Review Travel
Chirashi Zushi

Food guides used to be released every year, telling people where’s the best place to eat at, drink at, or generally be seen at. But there’s one that’s becoming more powerful than the rest, and gives you to-the-minute updates.

And that guide, is called Instagram.
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Shyun, Carnegie

Melbourne Review Travel

Sometimes it it’s so bizarre to me how I live in Sydney, but make friends with a Singaporean, in Melbourne of all places.

And we get along like a house on fire.
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Free Burma Cafe, Springvale

Melbourne Review Travel
Htin baw thee tho (Spicy Papaya Salad)

I must admit that even though I’m from the Southeast Asian part of the world, I don’t actually know very much about Myanmar, or Burma as it was called.

My information was pretty limited to The King and I, and now hopefully, Free Burma Cafe.
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Drive-by Eating: Bing Boy, Chadstone

Drive-by Eating Melbourne Review Travel
Bing Boy Crepe being made

As much as foodies like to pretend that we eat fantastic food ALL the time, the truth of the matter is that sometimes we are driven to settle for the average; to see food as fuel/something to prevent us from embarking on a murderous rampage sparked by irritation borne of hunger.

And once in awhile, those food court solutions turn up something surprising, that make us feel a lot more foodie, and a lot less food victim.
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