Where to Find the Best Breakfast in Melbourne

From the team behind A Minor Place, Wide Open Road on Brunswick’s Barkly Street offers much more than the unassuming shop front suggests. With the subtle signage and brick finish, the place comes to life as soon as you enter the door.

On top of the cafe space, Wide Open Road has its own roastery, cupping room and green bean storage. From here comes some of Melbourne’s best coffee. But we’re talking about brekkie here. And at Wide Open Road, you’re spoilt for choice. We usually make a mad dash right for the Turkish eggs — some of the city’s best — but would never turn our nose up at the cafe’s ricotta pancakes with praline butter, for the French omelette loaded with gruyere cheese and soft herbs.

Melbourne is no stranger to a bakery come cafe that serves up daily brunch dishes, but Faraday’s Cage in Fitzroy has got to be one of the greatest. As it is a local bakery, you can delight in fresh sourdough bread and sweet and savoury pastries alongside an impressive selection of takeaway sangas.

But Faraday’s takes it one step further with a pleasantly gourmet all-day breakfast menu. The rotating specials are also a highlight. You may be lucky enough to find anything from a tom yum soup to chicken skewers with saffron rice pilaf, tiramisu, French toast, or a soft shell crab burger.

Tucked down a CBD lane in a stunning heritage-listed building on Wills Street (just off LaTrobe) in a pocket of the city that’s usually reserved for business only, everything about Operator25 is unassuming. And from the minute you step in, you can tell it’s all business here, from the crisp interior design and outstanding coffee, to the polished brunch and lunch menu that’s one of the best in the Hoddle Grid.

You can drop by for simple eggs your own way or a few slices of toast with condiments, but be sure to explore the bigger bites when you have time to treat yourself to a proper Melbourne breakfast. The coconut rice porridge with red beans, fruit and almond streusel is a winner for a light brekkie, and the yuzu smashed avo with Japanese citrus dressing, halloumi and beetroot chickpea puree is a fun take on a classic.

Yes, the team uses simple building blocks to create their offerings — from fresh produce grown on-site to shipping containers and recycled materials — but the end product is anything but basic and rudimentary. They have managed to make a unique Melbourne brunch spot that doubles as a community space where local Footscray folks from all backgrounds are welcome.

Food-wise, there’s everything from shokupan with Thai milk tea custard brulee, to garlic mushrooms with cashew cream, a Reuben Sandwich with the works, to nori buttered udon noodles. But the greasy breakfast burger will always hold a special place in our hungover hearts. Add some coffee from Small Batch and a tall Bloody Mary, and you’ll be in for a delightful arvo out in West Melbourne.

The Hector’s Deli empire now spans an amazing seven locations, which speaks to how well received the sandwich store has been by Melburnians over the years since its inception.

While it’s mostly known as a lunch spot, there are plenty of options that make for a stellar brekkie. The toasted sandwiches, which include a famous tuna melt with pickled green chilli, a beef pastrami number with mustard pickle spread, and a mushroom melt with onion, mozzarella and provolone, are available bright and early from 7am. There is also a dedicated egg and cheese breakfast sandwich with option to add on sausage and/or bacon.

One of the newer additions to the Melbourne bakery scene, Falco is the brainchild of the minds behind Bar Liberty and Capitano, who’ve joined forces with Christine Tran (Tivoli Road Bakery, San Francisco’s Tartine). In its main Collingwood space, it’s serving up a dreamy, innovative range of treats, both sweet and savoury.

Drop by for ham and comte croissants, seasonal fruit danishes, cardamom buns and a whole array of pies. Either take them to go or enjoy them out on Smith Street, doing a spot of people-watching in the morning.

This Lebanese bakery and grocer has been a Sydney Road favourite for about two decades — but too many people stop by for a quick takeaway treat, missing out on the stellar dine-in options. Yes, we are also obsessed with the golden spinach and feta pastries, the boat-shaped shanklish pies flecked with herbs and the holy layered baklava drenched in syrup. But grab a seat inside and enjoy an even better experience.

For an early visit, look no further than the A1 Brekkie. It consists of two eggs, sujuk (a spicy fermented sausage), homemade labneh, cucumber, tomato, olives, mint and pita bread. The platters are also the best choice for a heartier Melbourne breakfast.

On a sunny Chapel Street corner, Abacus has managed to nail that all-day eatery vibe that often proves so elusive. It’s a lofty, leafy space that’s bright and charming by the light of day, and the seasonal food menu is genuinely superb. A great amount of thought has been given to the sourcing of local produce, from fresh fruit and veg or meat and seafood. The kitchen even mills its own flour and keeps its own bees.

By day, that all translates to a menu of bright and innovative brunch fare that pushes the envelope way beyond the usual smashed avo and corn fritters. When at this Melbourne breakfast spot, you might try blue swimmer crab crumpets or dabble in the Ballarat breakfast with thick-cut bacon, Irish-style sausages, pig’s head and snout terrine, a native bush tomato relish and poached eggs. It’s our favourite big breakfast in Melbourne.

This cafe has been a Chapel Street stalwart since its opening back in 2008 under the name of Dukes Coffee Roasters — changing its name to Journeyman in 2014 to clearly define the difference between the roastery and the cafe. Its roots are deeply set in the coffee roasting game, but the team has since gone far beyond that focus.

Nowadays, you’ll struggle to grab a seat due to its popularity among Melbourne brunch lovers who keep returning for the ever-evolving menu. But no matter how often they update the food offerings, the regulars will never allow Journeyman to remove the famous avocado hummus toast served with honey candied bacon and a poached egg. And we can’t blame them — it is a winning combo and is one of the best Melbourne breakfast dishes.

Code Black has set up shop in North Melbourne, the CBD, Southbank and South Melbourne, but its flagship cafe in Brunswick is still our fave. Here, you’ll find its roastery HQ — where the team is perpetually roasting ethically sourced beans and teaching the next generation of baristas how to extract the perfect shot.

But Code Black is more than just its coffee. Head here any day of the week for an excellent selection of Melbourne brunch items. Get around the ricotta hotcakes or lemongrass pork roll with Vietnamese saté and chicken liver pâté, shredded herbs and pickled carrots — an absolute winner of a dish. Long boozy brunches are also an option, with a long list of wines that rivals many Melbourne restaurants and a cocktail list that goes the extra mile. Do try Code Black’s signature coffee sour and coffee old fashioned.

From the outside, this Japanese cafe in West Melbourne may seem like one of city’s many minimalist breakfast and brunch spots, but there is so much special goodness happening within. Owner of 279, Kantaro Okada, focuses on recreating home-style Japanese soul food that’s been passed down through the generations — putting traditional onigiri front and centre. These triangles of rice are served with a variety of toppings, from classic ume-plum to Osaka cheese.

Larger dishes like the slow-cooked pork belly with kimchi and spring onion, or the smashed tuna with avocado and Japanese mayonnaise are big hitters, too. Then there are the desserts, including a matcha tiramisu and its famous mochinuts  — a cross between mochi and doughnuts. And let’s not forget the expertly brewed coffee from Japanese roasters. Basically, there’s too much good stuff to try at this Melbourne breakfast haunt — you’d best book in multiple visits.

From the creators Convoy, Hi-Fi and Tinker comes this breakthrough Melbourne cafe that champions healthy breakfast and lunch dishes that are full of flavour and creativity. Standout breakfasts include the chai spiced Greek yoghurt with ruby grapefruit and walnut praline, as well as anchovy toast served with baba ghanoush, a lemon and herb sauce, crispy buckwheat and poached eggs.

Terror Twilight also goes down a different coffee road, compared to many Melbourne cafes — giving diners the option to upgrade their usual brew with nootropic supplements and natural health boosters such as chaga mushrooms and MCT oil. But you don’t have to be too good here. Life is all about balance, after all. Pair these nutritious offerings with something a little naughty. The Bloody Maria cocktail made with tequila, Martini Rosso, TT pickle juice, Worcestershire sauce, horseradish and TT hot sauce will definitely do the trick.