Liar Liar - Ricotta Hotcakes

Ricotta hotcakes with berry coulis, maple & almond cream #liarliar #hawthorn #hotcakes

A photo posted by saccha (@sacchaeats) on Jul 25, 2015 at 11:07pm PDT

I've been craving for hotcakes/pancakes/waffles all week and decided to satisfy my cravings today at Liar Liar cafe in Hawthorn. 

It was so rainy and cold today and these hotcakes were really just what I needed! These hotcakes were steaming hot and fluffy, the maple & almond cream was really sweet & nutty and nicely matched against the tart berry coulis.

Big Fat Liar with scrambled eggs, bacon, pork chipolatas, roasted mushrooms, spinach, thyme roasted tomatoes and house made relish. #liarliar #hawthorn #bigbreakfast

A photo posted by saccha (@sacchaeats) on Jul 25, 2015 at 11:24pm PDT

The big breakfast was honestly average at best. The pork chipolatas were pretty tough, the eggs and spinach lacked seasoning. I do find that it's really hard to find good big breakfasts at most cafes, not sure if it is due to the number of elements of the plate? Or maybe in a busy kitchen, more time & effort is usually spent on the more complex dishes.

Latte on a Sunday goes a long way! #latte #liarliar #hawthorn

A photo posted by saccha (@sacchaeats) on Jul 25, 2015 at 11:39pm PDT

The coffee was great though, love the Proud Mary house blend, smooth and nice aftertaste! 

Overall, the cafe was really busy, limited seating apart from shared common tables. I will definitely be back to try the potato hash which look really great and the pea and haloumi fritters on special.

Address: 90 Kinkora Road, Hawthorn, VIC 3122

Hash Specialty Coffee & Roasters - Leek and Cheddar Croquettes

Leek and cheddar croquettes with ham hock, cauliflower puree, cavolo nero and turmeric poached egg! #croquettes #melbourne #hashcoffee

A photo posted by saccha (@sacchaeats) on Jul 17, 2015 at 8:27pm PDT

I finally got tired of having a bad hair day (month!!) so I decided to get my hair coloured and dyed over this weekend. My hair salon is just around the corner from Hardware Street in the city, a stone's throw away from the renowned Hardware Societe and popular Korean diner - CJ Lunch Bar.

I was tempted to visit Hardware Societe since I was alone and it would possibly be easier to get a seat. I turned the corner and saw the queue for Hardware Societe spilling over on the cobblestone pathway on Hardware Street and I was like nah forget it, I marched on to the other end for Hash Specialty Coffee & Roasters which I've been wanting to try.

Hash was packed with people but surprisingly there wasn't a queue. I was delighted to get a seat immediately. The menu was really aligned to my food preferences, very hearty brunch food - I was torn between the bacon with smashed avo and peas and the leek and cheddar croquettes and ham hock. Both sounded awesome but I decided on the latter and the croquettes were really tasty, crispy on the outside and moist on the inside. The cavolo nero added a nice earthiness and the ham hock worked well with the delightfully smooth and creamy cauliflower puree. I didn't know what to expect from the turmeric egg but it turned out to be surprisingly flavoursome. Overall, a well composed dish!

Hash hot chocolate #hotchocolate

A photo posted by saccha (@sacchaeats) on Jul 17, 2015 at 8:31pm PDT

I realised that as there are so many cafes in Melbourne that it is impossible to stand out without a so-called signature dish. It's like how everyone goes to Top Paddock for its Ricotta Hotcakes and Fifty Acres for its Scotch Eggs. Here at Hash - it would be the Hash Hot Chocolate served with fairy floss. Check out the Instagram videos - you just can't help watching how the fairy floss dissolves into the hot chocolate. Almost every table orders this novelty Hash hot chocolate, it's a must try at least once!

I'll definitely come back to Hash to try the other yummy menu items - anyone care to join me?! :P

Address: 113 Hardware St Melbourne VIC 3000

Fifty Acres - Scotch Eggs & Pumpkin Buttermilk Pancakes

Chorizo Scotch Eggs with machego, avocado, spinach and seeded mustard mayo #scotcheggs #fiftyacres #richmond

A photo posted by saccha (@sacchaeats) on Jul 11, 2015 at 11:33pm PDT

I am finally better from my terrible cold last week. It was so miserable, I watched the entire Twilight series - it was a movie marathon, but I felt much better after, LOL.

I've always been wanting to go to Fifty Acres for so long after hearing all the good things about it but I just never had the time or opportunity to plan for this. Finally had the chance today, it was freezing and wet but we braved the weather for brunch!

The cafe was packed as expected - 30 minutes wait, we left our number but the call came much sooner, maybe only about 15 minutes.

The chorizo scotch eggs were really tasty, the baby spinach and avocado added an refreshing element but it was the seeded mustard mayo that brought the whole dish together, one word - yum!

Pumpkin pancakes with orange segments, citrus mascarpon, candied walnuts & Canadian maple #buttermilkpancakes #fiftyacres #richmond

A photo posted by saccha (@sacchaeats) on Jul 11, 2015 at 11:42pm PDT

Of course we had to share a sweet dish for dessert and these pancakes were AMAZING! It's only fault was that it was kinda small and there wasn't enough! The pancakes were moist and fluffy, the candied walnuts worked well with offsetting the citrus from the orange segments and mascarpon was creamy and decadent!

The service here was impeccable and friendly and minimum wait time for food. I will definitely like to come back here to try out the other menu items but it would be so hard to not order the scotch eggs again!

My friend Penny ordered the quinoa salad below - I had a tiny bite and it was pretty good though I'm not a big fan of quinoa, I just wanted to post it because it looks so pretty!

Quinoa salad with avocado, pomegranate, sumac corn and citrus dressing #fiftyacres #richmond #quinoasalad

A photo posted by saccha (@sacchaeats) on Jul 12, 2015 at 5:34am PDT

Address: 65 Bridge Rd, Richmond VIC 3121

Legacy Camberwell - Sweet Potato Fritters & Southern Fried Chicken

Sweet potato, kale and amaranth fritters with creamy goats cheese, Kaiser bacon, cherry vine tomato chutney and a poached egg. #legacycamberwell #sweetpotatofritters #camberwell

A photo posted by saccha (@sacchaeats) on Jun 27, 2015 at 10:18pm PDT

I'm a big fan of corn fritters for brunch, my favourite is still the one by St Ali - My Mexican Cousin. I think the sight issue with most fritters is that they tend to pile loads of sauce on the top, resulting in a soggy fritter.

This sweet potato, kale and amaranth fritter kinda suffers the same fate, it's practically drowned in chutney and goats cheese that all the crispness is lost.

I thought the chutney was a little too tart for my liking - for me overall it was just an okay dish. The only highlight was the Kaiser bacon because of its savouriness.

My partner had the Southern Fried Chicken Burger below - it was kinda hard to eat, so he had it deconstructed.

Buttermilk fried chicken, brioche bun, coleslaw #legacycamberwell #buttermilkchicken #burger

A photo posted by saccha (@sacchaeats) on Jun 28, 2015 at 4:17am PDT

As this is a relatively new cafe, I attribute some of this lowlights to the teething issues within the kitchen. Not sure if I will be back again, but if I do I'll try to come back when it's not so busy to see if the food improves.


Address: 347 Camberwell Rd, Camberwell VIC 3124