Pillar of Salt @ Richmond

As a food enthusiast, I’m so lucky to be living in Melbourne where brunch is a culture and always evolving. While on the search for my next indulgence, I couldn’t help but be bombarded with the endless posts on Instagram about Pillar of Salt’s buttermilk pancakes with matcha jelly and fresh fruit and boy, I was sold. Located on Church street, this establishment welcomes you with the smell of fresh coffees from Five Senses, freshly made baguettes and sandwiches, rustic decor and an impressive menu of innovating healthy dishes by chef Steve Svensen.

I visited Pillar of Salt on Thursday just before noon and it was already gathering a small crowd of lunch patrons, mostly working close by, ordering their lunch takeaways. The waitress greeted us almost immediately and asked us to wait a few minutes before place us at the corner table (“needs the natural lighting for photos”- words to live by from my roommate) and asked for our coffee orders. Now that I brunch more frequently and order the regular lattes or flat white, I find myself becoming more critical of the taste, whether the milk was burnt or if there is enough froth, but Pillar of Salt did not disappoint. It gave me a much needed caffeine boost and woke all my senses up for the long awaits buttermilk pancakes.

perfecting my hand in frames pose

I ordered the buttermilk pancakes and chilli scrambled eggs with hams and spring onions. My face was the epitome of happiness when the pancakes were brought out. It looked so pretty with all the flower petals, jelly cubes, waffle sticks, dollops of cream and icing sugar, almost too purrdy to eat but let’s be honest here, that’d never happen with me. The scrambled eggs were generous in size with lots of ham and cheese, just how I like it. After rearranging the table, got the knowing smile from the girl on the next table, took about 50 photos I feasted on the two dishes. The buttermilk pancakes were so fluffy, not too sweet with the chocolate infused mapled syrup and the matcha jelly cube provides a freshness change to the dish. It left me satisfied yet wanting more. The chilli scrambled eggs were creamy, thanks to the parmesan cheese, the spring onion gives a small crunch and the ham adds a nice savoury taste to the whole dish. Due to my Asian upbringing, the chilli was not hot enough, barely tingling my tongue.

After eating here, I can see why Pillar of Salt is constantly making top 50 brunch spots in Melbourne – good coffee, great food and fast service. It is one of the “must-go” along with other restaurants on Church street. Check out their Instagram for secret item, menu updates and some food porn for your eyes whenever you need a little cheering up. If going back will turn me into a pillar of salt like the biblical story, I’d gladly take the punishment for my crime.

American style buttermilk pancakes w/ matcha jelly, mangoes and blueberry infused pure maple syrup

Chilli scrambled eggs w/ ham, spring onions and parmesan cheese

xx

girleatsmebourne

Pillar of Salt

Mon – Fri   7.30 AM – 4.30 PM

Sat – Sun     8.00 AM – 5.00 PM

541 Church Street Richmond VIC 3121

Rudimentary @ Footscray

Rudimentary Cafe

Wednesday is the hardest day of the week for me, because I get so excited about the up coming weekend but I know I have to make it through another two days before I can embrace my sloth self, lay in bed and do nothing. To solve all that first world/ lazy person problem, my sister and I decided to visit Rudimentary for brunch – treat ourselves because why not, you deserve a celebration for yourself every now and then.

Rudimentary cafe locates in Footscray, the Vietnamese suburb of Melbourne. It is the suburb for authentic Vietnamese food and market with fresh produce, sometimes not so friendly people and cheap bubble cup. Growing up in Australia, it has always been a tradition to buy pandan waffles, Vietnamese breadroll and bubble tea or sugarcane juice every time I come to the market with mum. Now that I’m older, it serves as a great late lunch spot on Saturday pho hangover cure.

Finding out that Rudimentary is located in Footscray, I was curious to see how a cafe consists of three shipping containers can fit into the suburb that has a strong Vietnamese community. Locates just a few minutes walk from the train/tram stop, the cafe itself is simple and spacious, relaxed atmosphere and I love their own garden patches outside. The rustic wooden decoration brings out its charm and sets the cafe apart from the other heavily Vietnamese influenced establishments. My sister and I were there early in the morning so it was quiet, only with a few patrons but the coffee smell was undeniably alluring and we were excited for the experience.

Inside view – love the rustic chairs ❤

As per usual, I ordered a chai latte with soy milk while my sister ordered a flat white. We looked at the menu and decided on the scrambled eggs with ocean trout and salmon roes while my sister insisted on getting the housemade buttermilk waffles with bacon, fried egg and whipped sour cream. We didn’t have to wait long for the coffee to arrive and it is froth to perfection. Being a brunch fanatic and living in Melbourne, I always expect perfect coffee with every establishment I visit and Rudimentary did not disappoint.

The food comes out right after we both each had taken one sip and photos for Instagram. My scrambled eggs is beautifully presented with flower petals, fennel and salmon roe. There is a piece of toast and butter with it and I could see pieces of ocean trout blended in the eggs. My sister waffles is stack with bacon, eggs and rhubarb. The scrambled eggs was light and fluffy with just enough trout for it to enhance the flavour and add some texture without overwhelm the dish with a fishy smell while the salmon roes add the popping texture to the dish. The waffle has a small hint of cinnamon, combine with fried egg, bacon, rhubarb and sour cream is the perfect breakfast/brunch to get you through the day. It is quiet fulfilling as the waffles are decent size and there are a lot of bacon pieces.. and you can never have too much bacon. Ever.

The brunch costs about $50 for two people with takeaway coffees as well. I enjoyed my experience at Rudimentary as it is a breathe of fresh air in Footscray. It brings a youthful and modern vibe to an ever growing community with its modern Australian breakfast/lunch menu, their friendly staffs who are most welcoming and great coffee. Do make time to visit this gem if you are ever in this side of Melbourne and just grab a seat outside, relax, take in the unique atmosphere with your perfectly froth coffee.

Flat white – froth to perfection

Homemade buttermilk waffles with bacon, eggs and rhubarb.

Scrambled eggs with ocean trout, fennel and salmon roes.

One for the road

xx

girleatsmelbourne

• Sorry for the MIA period, had personal crisis but I’m back and ready to share with you all my eating experience in Melbourne ❤

Rudimentary Cafe

Mon- Fri 7.30 AM – 3.30 PM

Sat – Sun 8.00 AM – 3.30 PM

16/20 Leeds Street, Footscray 3011

Mr Scruff’s Bar @ Collingwood

A good burger consists of toasted buns with butter, medium rare meat patties, lettuce, melted cheese, pickles and sauce, usually mustard and tomato sauce – very simple yet getting the all the ingredients and the flavors combinations right isn’t as easy as it sounds. Finding a good burger is like finding the right pillow; something you would want to dive face first at the end of the day.

Mr Scruff’s Bar popped on my Instagram feed a while back for its one-off Tuesdays burger special and half price Wednesday. Located off the busy section of Smith Street, the establishment itself is quiet ordinary. There are limited seating and can be a long wait if you visit during busy hours. Their menu is very basic, you get the typical choices of bar food such as burgers, chilli dog, nachos, etc and many varieties of beer and cider.

We visited them on Wednesday night at about 8 o’clock and it was very packed. The wait for food order was 45 mins because of the half-priced special and there was no seating anywhere. We decided to grab a few drinks and wait, not the best decision as the smell of gravy, chips and bacon suffocating our nostrils and we were drooling everytime the waitress walks pass us with a tray full of food.

When the food was brought to our table, no time was waste in devouring the burgers, poutine chips and the bao buns: pork and beef. My roommate and I have this running joke about me not feeling anything because I don’t have a heart but I can honestly say that I have all sort of feelings for the combinations of gravy, crunchy chips and bacon topped with  layer of melted cheese. The burger is decent size consists of toasted brioche buns, a bed of lettuce, meat patty cooks to medium rare, melted cheese, pickle and onion and Mr Scruff’s special sauce… you know it’s a good burger when every customer stop chatting to each other and just enjoy the burgasm that’s happening in their mouth whenever they take a bite. The bao buns are more appetizers, as their portions are smaller; the pork belly has a crunch due to the crispy skins and the beef one is melt in your mouth softness.

It costs us $21 for all of the food, which is a great deal considering the serving portion, service and the food quality. Tuesday is when they make their one off burger special so come in with you want to challenge your taste buds. It is a lot busier on Wednesday due to the half price special from 6-10PM so either go there early or come after 9 for a late dinner. This is the place where you catch up with your friends over burgers and beer, after clubbing feast as it opens till 4AM on weekend or a casual date and see if she/he can let their hair down and unwind to 00’s RnB music… if all goes well, the room upstairs has poles and couches if things do get raunchy *wink wink*

xx

girleatsmelbourne

Mr Scruff’s signature burger, poutine chips with pork and beef bao buns.

Mr Scruff’s signature burger #strongburgergrip

If you don’t feel excited at the sight of this poutine chips, I’m sorry for all the horrible things that had happened to you…

Mr Scruff’s Bar

Tue – Wed  12 PM- 1 AM

 Thu – Sat   12 PM – 4 AM

 Sun            12 PM – 11 PM

Mon           Closed 

 60 Smith Street

Collingwood 3066

Baba Sus @ Glen Iris

 

Brunching on Sunday is one of life’s greatest joys, especially when you’re being dragged out to thirdwheel your roommate and her boyfriend at 2 in the afternoon. We decided to drive out to Glen Iris for Baba Sus because my roommate has seen the now famous HK egg waffles and girl has cravings.

The cafe is located in the suburb, next to the train station. As it is about 2.30 pm on a Sunday, we were seated almost immediately while the group after us has to wait a few minutes or so. The cafe itself is smaller than what I expected but the atmosphere was cosy. We had a small view into the kitchen as they prepare each dishes and you are spoil for choices as the waitress brings out different dish on the menu. We ordered our dishes and the wait for these was about 30-40 mins and it seems a lot longer as we watched instagram worthy dishes brought pass us by the waitress and at 3 pm, the hunger was real.

When the food finally comes out, it was worth the wait. The pork belly is soft, melt in your mouth with the crunchy skin and the salad is a nice cleanser for your palate. The wagyu beef burger is cooked medium rare with melted cheese and the chilli mayo is the perfect compliment to everything. I prefer small fries over thick chips any day but these homemade chips are crunchy with a slight hint of salt and herbs, similar to what you get at Schnitz. My roommate was over the moon with her egg waffles, which is still warm with the green tea ice cream on top to add creamiest into the dish, and the berry compote to breaks down the sweetness so it doesn’t overwhelm your taste buds, especially if you’re not a huge fan of sweet.

It costed us about 60 for 3 people with coffee as well, starndard price for most brunch places in Melbourne. Even though it is located in the outer suburb, Baba Sus is worth the drive for its Hong Kong style egg waffles and its friendly staff. I do recommend going after peak hours to avoid the queue.

xx

girleatsmelbourne

Hong Kong egg waffle with matcha ice cream and berry compote.

Twice cooked pork belly with vemicille and watermelon salad

Wagyu beef burger with homemade chips

Baba Sus

Tuesday – Sunday 7.30am-4pm

Monday CLOSED

15-17 Bardolph Street , Glen Iris 3146