Irene's Getting Fat!: Melbourne in Pictures, 2017

Cafes, croissant, hipsters.

Almond croissant from Lune Croissanterie.

I don't think I'll ever be sick of Melbourne. There's just so much fun. We were there for a wedding, but of course I had to tick off some of my to-go list.

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White Mojo

One of the cafes in the busy Hardware St, neighbouring Hash Specialty Coffee and Hardware Societe. I totally dig the clean, chic interior, and the owner is really friendly and spent his time explaining his recommendations to patrons.

My Double Cheese Chilli Scrambled Egg is easily one of their most popular menus, with soft, runny scrambled egg with nice heat kick, tasty bacon and sweet end notes from the corn. The Big Breakfast is not as big as we expected but it is quite filling and the eggs are cooked perfectly.

Coffee from White Mojo.

Double Cheese Chilli Scrambled Egg (parmesan & cheddar, smoked belly bacon, chilli mayo, toasted sweet corn and ink brioche) - $21

Big Breakfast (smoked belly bacon, grilled chorizo, house made has brown, lemon & ricotta green pea mash, tomato kasoundi, roasted mushroom & tomato, chorizo crumb, eggs, bread) - $21.5

WHITE MOJO

225 Hardware St, Melbourne
VIC 3000
(03) 9087 8119
www.whitemojo.com.au

Hash Specialty Coffee and Roasters

Of course I tried the hot chocolate; 85% Mork dark chocolate served with a pillow of fairy floss. It is the most intense, thick, delicious hot chocolate I've ever had. Not too sweet at all, in fact, it is slightly on the bitter side. A side of hot milk is what make the cup perfect for me.

The Baked Eggs are hearty and warming, although I prefer the more flavour-complex Pork Benedict with the runny eggs, pulled pork, and grana padano (parmesan).

Hot chocolate (85% Mork chocolate served with a cloud of fairy floss) - $7

Baked eggs (smoked jalapeno sugo, chorizo, pickled jalapeno, chevre, sourdough) - $20

Pork benedict (poached eggs, pulled pork, grana padano, chick pea fries, apple cider hollandaise, toasted sourdough) - $20.5

HASH SPECIALTY COFFEE AND ROASTERS

113 Hardware St, Melbourne
VIC 3000
(03) 8899 6680

Lune Croissanterie

There was no line that day, which means we got to go straight into the warehouse, with half of it occupied by a big open kitchen. Watching the pastry chefs rolling and making the croissant is mesmerizing, but choosing which croissant to have is more distracting. I was torn between the special chocolate and orange, but settled on the classic almond croissant.

Best. Croissant. Ever. Hands down.

100% flaky.
100% delicious.
100% generous with sweet paste filling and crunchy almond flakes.

Almond croissant - $6.5

Dem layers tho.

Croissant making on display.

LUNE CROISSANTERIE

119 Rose St, Fitroy
VIC 2065
(03) 9419 2320
www.lunecroissanterie.com

Queen Victoria Market

The marvelous market is just something I can't miss everytime I visit Melbourne. The vibrant fruits and veggies, bustling souvernirs and crafts shops, and the friendly deli and bread sections win me over each time.

Breakfast was a simple egg and bacon roll, and we bought some salami, baguettes, cheese, dips and crackers for lunch in the Tulips Festival. It was such a great day.

Big breakfast & bacon and egg roll from the market.

QUEEN VICTORIA MARKET

Queen St, Melbourne, Victoria
(03) 9320 1878

Shortstop Coffee & Donuts

I know we have it in Sydney, but having an AirBnB too close to the place is such a motivation. The New Orleans Iced Coffee Crueler is perfectly light and almost melts in my mouth. The icing is tasty but not sickly sweet.

New Orleans Iced Coffee crueler.

SHORTSTOP COFFEE & DONUTS

12 Sutherland St, Melbourne
VIC 3000

Naked for Satan

Been on my list for years, and I finally get to say that I've been there. It is suck a quirky space for drinks, but I was there for the pinxtos. $1 each for lunch Wednesday - Friday, they are bite-sized bar snacks, spiked with toothpick and mostly involved a slice of bread. They also have hot pinxtos and dessert pinxtos (e.g. cannoli).

They are addictive and such a great value when it is only $1 a pop.

Naked for Satan, Fitzroy.

$1 pinxtos. So good, surprisingly filling.

NAKED FOR SATAN

285 Brunswick St, Fitzroy
VIC 3065
(03) 9416 2238
www.nakedforsatan.com.au

Shunjiko Ramen

24-hr ramen joint? Hell yeah. When it's cold and drizzling and you just want a warm feed, Shunjiko is such a welcomed sight.

It is a very popular spot for ramen, with decorations reminding me of those small shops in Japan. The attention of details here is spot-on.

The tonkotsu soup base is slightly too light to my liking but still has a decent flavour depth. The noodles are firm and the grilled chashu slices are heavenly. My Karakuchi Ramen is spicy, making it more interesting than the classic Shunjiko Ramen.

Shunjiko, Melbourne CBD.

Shunjiko Ramen (their signature ramen with tonkotsu broth, grilled pork belly, spring onion, beansprouts, seasoned egg) - $12.8

Karakuchi ramen (same base, lot spicier) - $13.8

SHUNJIKO RAMEN

225 Russell St, Melbourne
VIC 3000
(03) 9654 0989

Spicy Korea

We were rushing to get to the bus that will take us to the airport, and this little Korean place sounds promising. While the fried chicken aren't as great as Sparrows Mill, they are crispy enough with sticky, sweet sauce. The kimchi fried rice is so satisfying with runny sunny side egg and generous bites of pork.