Overview
Everyone has their favourite local cafe. Whether you're in for a morning coffee or a genius sandwich, there's always a handful of go-to, never-fail, delightfully reliable places that you know and love within a stone's throw of your door. So in the spirit of sharing, we thought we'd let you in on a few of our writers' favourite picks, in partnership with Milklab and its brand-new oat milk.
These are the great Melbourne cafes that helped our team get through lockdown — and are now helping us stay fuelled in the reopened city.
TICKLED PINK, ELWOOD
A recently opened sister site to the Thornbury cafe of the same name, Tickled Pink on Elwood's leafy Tennyson Street is all about good coffee, good food and good vibes. The menu features updated takes on classic breakfast and lunch dishes — pumpkin spiced bircher muesli, chilli eggs, feta and house-made chilli on a croissant and truffle benedict on Alaysa bread. There's also a great selection of cold-pressed juices, milkshakes and smoothies to wash it all down. When it comes to the coffee, Tickled Pink's Milklab oat cap is impressively creamy with just the right amount of froth.
Tofu Studio
KELSO'S SANDWICH SHOPPE, ABBOTSFORD
Since 2016, Kelso's has been a northside go-to for sandwiches, burgers or a New York-style chop cheese. Take a seat at the old-school, loosely American-style diner and order a cup of Coffee Supreme house blend filter, then roll up your sleeves to get involved with sambos like the Tuck Shop Salad which is a nostalgic must-try, or the excellent tuna melt. Pair your sandwich with crispy fries or hash browns, which are very hard to say no to. You'll also find regular weekend specials that are worth looking out for.
COMMA TUCKSHOP, MOORABBIN
Tucked away in the backstreets of Moorabbin, Comma Tuckshop knows a thing or two about good quality coffee, bagels and salads. The cafe on Tuck Street, an offshoot of nearby wine bar Comma Food & Wine, specialises in loaded gourmet bagels. We're talking the likes of Ora King salmon cured overnight in peppercorns, coriander seeds and chilli, paired with caper cream cheese, house pickles, red onion and dill; or Cape Grim hanger steak, which comes with potato chips and dill-pickle mayo and smoked scamorza. If you feel like something lighter, you can grab the superfood-packed chermoula cauliflower salad with freekeh.
CABIN, HAMPTON
Cabin is a light-filled café in the heart of Hampton with a suitably relaxed and cosy vibe. The north-facing spot is perfect on sunny days for both brunch with mates or for a solo coffee and a read in the rays. Seasonal produce is championed throughout the tidy all-day menu, which also includes a number of baked goods if you're after something snack-sized. Cabin also offers the answer to any smoothie or milkshake cravings you might have, with a very decent selection of both on offer.
Bold & Italic Media
BICYCLE THIEVES, NORTHCOTE
With a name that pays tribute to Northcote's Italian heritage, High Street's Bicycle Thieves is named after the classic 1948 Italian film of the same name. Yet despite nodding to overseas roots, everything here is made from scratch in-house including butter which is churned daily. There's plenty of space both inside and out and the cafe caters to all dietary requirements and cravings, with a creative, all-day menu that spans crumpets to ramen. Coffee by Duke is complemented by an impressive drinks list, from cold brew to kombucha to a selection of brunch-ready cocktails.
MACKIE, MULGRAVE
Mackie is a beautiful sun-filled cafe just off Mulgrave's Mackie Road that offers an extensive breakfast and lunch menu. For breakfast, it's hard to go past the curry- and coriander-accented chilli scramble, or 'banoffles' (that's Belgian waffles with banana, ice cream, salted caramel, strawberries and walnuts). The lunch menu includes classic cafe fare prepared well. A chilli-spiked burrito bowl, Moroccan lamb shoulder and a Southern-style fried chicken burger all feature. Don't skip the coffee here, either — the award-winning house blend features notes of cocoa and berry, boasts a smooth body and long, sweet finish, flavours which are further enhanced with the addition of Milklab oat.
We challenged one of our writers to switch to oat milk for a week. Find out what they discovered here.
Ask your barista for Milklab Oat or head to the website for more information.
Top image: Bicycle Thieves by Bold & Italic Media