Barry – Fantastic Variety of Breakkie Dishes

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Menu:

Barry Menu

Barry Lunch Menu

There is a wealth of experience behind the creators and owners of Barry in Northcote. Matt, Kael Sahely and Loren McBride are the geniuses behind Pillar of Salt and the Richmond café Touchwood. I must say that Barry has become one of my favourite café’s for brunch!

On this Saturday – as expected – Barry was bustling with activity and every table was full. We didn’t have to wait too long for a table for three though which was great. The venue is casual, light and airy – and you just feel like you want to be part of the action the moment you step inside. The interior fitout is done by Techne Architects – there are wall to wall custom shelving and crates that function as drawers located under the main coffee counter – which is great for storage! The wooden shelving along the wall have colourful potted plants amongst them for bits of colour amongst the wood and white washed brick walls.

There is a mix of high communal tables, low wooden tables for sets of 2, 3 and 4s as well as outside seating. I really loved the style of the communal table and kind of want one in my own place! =p I also loved the abstract lighting above the communal table – a bow and arrow shape if you will with filament lights on the end of each point.

The menu is designed by Stephen Svensen and serves Breakfast all day (WIN!). Breakfast dishes consist of your basics as well as the basics with a difference such as the scrambled red chilli eggs with bacon, spring onions, parmesan and toast (this comes from the sister café Pillar of Salt), as well as the Benedict poached eggs with potato rosti, slow braised ham hock, apple cider hollandaise and granny’s apples. See different! There is also a very interesting dish – inspired by Matt and Kael’s dad – which is Crunchy peanut butter, heirloom tomatoes, salt and pepper peanuts on toast – the menu says to trust them so it must really work. I am not a huge fan of peanuts so I didn’t venture into this dish – but would love to know people’s thoughts on it. The lunch menu which can be had from 11:30am onwards consists of a daily tart, a superfood salad and even a Korean sub and a beef wagyu burger just to name a few.

While trying to decide from the extensive menu of what we wanted to eat – we ordered some coffees. Coffee here at Barry is from 5 Senses and made on a schmick Synesso machine. There are akso Single Origin, Aeropress and Pour Overs available as well. My latte was great – it had a creamy, nutty almost smoky hit all in one with an end note of caramel.

I decided I needed something sweet instead of savoury so ordered the Brioche, Pistachio, Mascarpone, Rose Scented Raspberries, Halva dish. The dish came with two massive pieces of brioche – sitting on top of a rose scented raspberry coulis and topped with the halva and pistachios. The combination was quite good – although I wasn’t a huge fan of the halva – so I avoided eating that. I can see how the flavours of all the components could work well together though. The sweetness of the mascarpone and raspberry together with the softness of the brioche and the crunch of the pistachios was tasty. It is rather a filling dish – and I struggled to finish my dish.

N ordered the Cripsy Korean Chicken Sub, House made Wombok and Coriander Kimchi, Nori Mayo. The way this dish was plated up was impressive – it came out on a board with the Chicken Sub taking up half of the board and the house made wombok and coriander kimchi in a separate round side bowl, as well as the nori mayo in another separate bowl. N loved this dish! He is a massive fan of subs and this one did not disappoint – the chicken was crispy on the outside whilst being juicy and flavoursome on the inside. The kim chi had some of his favourite ingredients – coriander and wombok and had a great heat to it as well. Overall a huge and great tasting dish.

T ordered the Californian Superfood Salad – Tri Coloured Quinoa, Shredded Kale, Wild Organic Rice, Charred Corn, Salted Ricotta, Black Turtle Beans, Heirloom Tomatoes, Jalapeno, Gojis, Spicy Lime Vinaigrette. Just look at the number of elements in this dish! It sure is a superfood dish – and it was quite a generous serving as well! I did get to try some of this dish and if you had to describe this dish in just a few words it would be – packs a punch! All the elements worked really well together and you really didn’t feel as if you were eating a really healthy dish – it was fresh and tasty! And that charred corned was perfect!

You can tell by the crowds that seem constant that Barry is a sure winner, and after just one visit you can definitely tell why. The menu will suit just about everyone – there are gluten free options available and they do try and cater to any other requirements. The atmosphere is casual, loud (from all the chatter of the happy customers) and welcoming. I love the lightness to the place. Even if it not near you – make the effort to get down here!

Rating : 4.5 Pandas
Price: $$
Menu – Refer to http://barrycoffeeandfood.com/ or refer to menu above
Fullness: 100%
Atmosphere / Ambience: Fun, Light filled, Casual and a Great place to relax at
Standout Dish: Californian Superfood Salad
Service: Friendly and Warm
Online Booking: No
Restaurant Details and Location:
http://barrycoffeeandfood.com/
85 High Street, Northcote
Tel No: 9481 7623

Opening Hours:
Monday to Friday: 7.30am – 3.30pm
Saturday & Sunday: 8am – 4pm

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Touchwood – Great Place for Good Food and Relaxation

Touchwood

Sitting Area at Touchwood

Coffee Counter at Touchwood

Inside Touchwood

Coffee Menu at Touchwood

Latte at Touchwood

Sweets at Touchwood

Avocado on Toast, Beetroot Relish, Burnt Lime, Pickled Red Onion, Corriander, Mixed Seeds, Sumac Salts

Touchwood is collaborative effort from the partners – Matt Vero and Steve Rowley  – behind Coin Laundry (Armadale), Station Street Trading Co (Port Melbourne), Tall Timber (Prahran), Pillar of Salt (Richmond) and Barry (Northcote).  They have enlisted Tristan White (ex-Ladro and Red Door) to look after the food side of things. Touchwood serves coffee from 5 Senses and is served from the custom made Synesso Hydra coffee machine.

Touchwood is located at Bridge road in Richmond (quite close to its sister café Pillar of Salt). It is located in an old recycled timber furniture store and takes on a MASSIVE SPACE – it can seat 120 people. There are large glass windows at the front which let lots of light and air into the venue, this entrance opens out into the main dining area. As you keep walking through the brick archway there is a back room with more seating and then finally outside at the back, there is a bright, sunny and open courtyard which seats 40.

The whole look and feel of the place – which kind of pays tribute to its former life – is wooden yet clean, casual and warm. There are concrete floors with white washed brick walls, planter boxes and hanging plants and finished with wooden tables and chairs. There are short tables as well as higher tables – take your pick of where you want to sit. The feature is of course a crate styled counter-top which houses the coffee machine as well as the sweet bites and takeaway savoury bites.

The menu consists of the breakfast favourites with the addition of components to creatively change the dish. There is a morning grain salad, as well as a tequila and citrus cured salmon dish, as well as the breakkie board which is featured from Tall Timber. If you are really hungry there is always the Touchwood Massive – which features just about everything including a lamb chop! A highlight on the menu is the much talked about peanut butter and jelly wholemeal waffles complete with peanut butter ricotta and brittle.
The lunch menu is just as enticing with things like Brioche Wagyu burgers, pulled pork tacos and toasted Po’ boys as well as a Mexican inspired salad. There are also two fresh juice combos to choose from – one with kale, celery, cucumber, apple, lime and parsley and the other with watermelon and mint.

I order a latte while I wait for L to arrive. The latte was smooth and creamy and a great start to this rainy day. There are many coffee options available such as cold drip and pour over. I wasn’t quite sure what to order to eat – I was tossing up between the Avocado toast, the omelette with shaved asparagus and goats cheese or the morning grain salad. I ended up getting the Avocado toast – with Beetroot Relish, Burnt Lime, Pickled Red Onion, Coriander, Mixed Seeds, Sumac Salt and I added a poached egg.

The dish came out and was quite colourful thanks to the black background of the plate, together with the bright pink/purples of the onion and beetroot, the green colouring from the avocado and coriander and the yellow from the burnt lime. I really enjoyed the addition of the beetroot relish together with the coriander as additional components to a normal avocado dish – I thought that they worked really well together. Even though I am not a fan of pickled onions, I did try some with all the other elements and it went quite well with the dish, you almost don’t realise that it was once an onion. The dish overall was a really well thought out dish and was quite filling as well.

The atmosphere at Touchwood is quite relaxed and chilled, and you can see yourself losing track of time. There is warm and inviting feel to the place thanks to the openness and the lighting. Add to this great coffee and some really delicious food combinations and you really do have a winner. Have to come back and try the peanut butter waffles!

Rating : 3.5 Pandas
Price: $$
Menu – View the menu at http://touchwoodcafe.com/Touchwood_Menu_06.pdf – Breakfast, Lunch and Drinks
Fullness: 100%
Atmosphere / Ambience: Casual, Elegant and Chic. Has a relaxed feel thanks to vast openess, lighting and feel of the venue. The courtyard out the back is perfect on a sunny day!
Standout Dish: Avacado Toast with Beetroot Relish, Burnt Lime, Pickled Onions, Mixed Seeds, Sumac Salt with a Poached Egg (extra)
Service: Friendly and Welcoming
Online Booking: No
Restaurant Details and Location:
http://touchwoodcafe.com/
480 Bridge Road, Richmond
Tel No: 9429 9347

Opening Hours:
Monday to Friday: 7:00 am – 4:00 pm
Saurdayt to Sunday: 7:30 am – 4:30 pm

Tall Timber – Great Courtyard to Enjoy the Sunshine

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Menu:

The guys behind Armadale’s Coin Laundry and Port Melbourne’s Station Street Trading Co. have recently opened Tall Timbers, serving a versatile breakfast and lunch menu sourced with local produce.

As I walked into Tall Timber on this Saturday arvo I was greeted by the sweet smell of coffee together with the sounds of many conversations and laughter – it really seemed like the place to be! The main room is filled with sunlight thanks to the massive windows on two of the walls and the main feature is the back wall which houses timber planter like boxes and shelves which stores things like glasses, jars and teapots– a real rustic feel. The front counter has an array of sweets to choose from as well housing one of the most important pieces of equipment in a café – the coffee machine. The tables are wooden and there is one communal table to the right. The front room was quite full so I was told to venture to the outside sheltered courtyard. The courtyard was a real winner for me – it was a HUGE communal table with umbrellas over the top for protection – from rain or sun. What was the real difference of this table was that in the centre there was a herb garden accentuated with little spades – almost inviting you to pick your own herbs to add to your dishes – not that you need to as the food is delicious all on its own – but more on that later.  This courtyard area is great on a summer’s day – you get to enjoy the sunshine in the surrounds away from the main road – and would suit anyone from mothers with bubs to catch-up’s with friends or even a brunch date.

Breakfast is served all day and there is a lunch menu from 12pm. There are also options available for people who need gluten free or vegetarian options. What caught my eye on the menu was the Breaky Board – which comes with a poached egg on pumpkin loaf with beeroot relish & goat’s chese, muesli with natural yoghurt and fresh berries as well as a small OJ – all for just $14.50. Bargain! Little sets like these I think are a great idea and allow you to experience a bit of variety of what the café has to offer. The Breakfast menu consists of the usual favourites such as selection of toast with jams, bircher muesli, eggs and toast and smashed avocado. There are also other diverse combinations such as smashed peas served with pumpkin loaf as well as sautéed kale, asparagus, beans on a quinoa loaf.

As good as the Breaky Board sounded I couldn’t resist trying the pumpkin fritters (followers will know I do love my corn fritters – so trying a different type of fritters was highly appealing). I also love anything to do with or has pomegranate – it is one of my favourites fruits so when I saw that the fritters came with pomegranate labneh I was sold. Whilst deciding on my food order I ordered a freshly squeezed OJ – which comes with a stripey straw.

The pumpkin fritters formed the base of the dish, avocado on the next layer and lastly the poached egg finished with a dusting of fetta and herbs. The poached egg was cooked perfectly (refer to pick) and had oozing running yellow yolk. The fritters were cooked perfectly showing off the orangey colour of the pumpkin and was crispy on the outside and soft on the inside – and flavoured just right. The combination of the four elements – the fritters, egg, avocado and fetta was great – with the fetta adding a texture and sour element to the dish which complemented the sweetness of the pumpkin fritters. Another winner was the pomegranate labneh which was found under the fritters – a hidden treasure almost – which acted like a dressing to the fritters. It was an overall really great dish.

The staff are friendly and helpful and always not without a smile, wearing navy blue and canvas aprons. Despite being really busy they do remember all their customers from the front room to the courtyard. When we were initially seated we were told to take a seat in the courtyard and someone would be us and I was a bit sceptical as they were really busy but low and behold within 5 mins someone was out there.

The coffee is from NIccolo and will be roasted on site. I was tempted by the sweet selection at the counter as I went to pay but resisted – they really do look good and the staff are quite knowledgeable in what everything is.

I love the use of wooden timber furniture and the brightness of Tall Timber – the outside courtyard is fantastic for the summer to bask in the sun and enjoy some really great wholesome and tasty food. Try it out for yourself!

Rating : 4 Pandas
Price: $$
Menu – There is an all day breakfast menu as well as a lunch menu from 12pm. Refer to picture above for breakfast menu.
Fullness: 100%
Atmosphere / Ambience: Casual, Relaxed and Fun! The courtyard out the back is an awesome place to hang out and chat the afternoon away!
Standout Dish: Roast Pumpkin Fritters with Avocado, Pinenut and Cranberry Salsa, Pomegranate Labneh & Poached Egg
Service: Friendly, Funny and Welcoming –  but sometime it is hard to get the attention of staff.
Online Booking: No
Restaurant Details and Location:
60 Commercial Road, Prahran
Tel No: 9676 9333

Opening Hours:
Monday to Friday: 7:00 am – 4:30 pm
Saturday to Sunday: 7:30 am – 4:30 pm