I'll be honest: I was actually hoping to have my birthday lunch at Beit Siti. But they were taking a well-deserved break and it was no disappointment to head a little down the street to True North instead. Their menu is full of fun foods, with endless adaptations explicitly laid out. Do you want yours with Nuttelex or butter? An added egg? Bacon or facon? Some feta, or even salt and pepper tofu? They can do that. Also, they have a list of seven house-made non-alcoholic drinks! I had a blackberry and ginger fizz ($7).

   

I went back and forth on the Fermental As Anything ($24): uninspired by the name yet into the idea of smashed avo with pickley bits; not thrilled by the toast stacking or the possible domination of colourless tomato and raw onion over avocado... ultimately actually very, very pleased and finishing the lot! This was pebre, not salsa - lighter on the tomato with more chopped pickles than onions, a dash of rocket, and a train of fermented chilli tahini. This meal was bright, summery and satisfying.

   

Michael gets a bit excited every time he sees congee on a menu, so it was immediately the vegan-friendly Oatis Redding ($24) for him. As the name suggests, it's oat and not rice based, built up with mushrooms, kimchi, spring onion, chilli oil, fried shallots and, for a fee, salt and pepper tofu (+$6). He loved the lot, and I was impressed by the tofu chunk he let me taste - they're available direct from the sides list and I wanna get my own serve with whatever I order next at True North.

   

True North need never just be a Plan B - they've brought their A game every time we've visited.

____________

You can read about one, two, three, four, five of our previous visits to True North.

____________

food, drinks

Accessibility: There's a small step on entry and a pretty crowded interior (especially on the weekends when the stools at the bar are in use). We ordered at the table and paid at a high counter. The toilet is a narrow non-gendered cubicle.

   

Cafe Beautiful Jim Key popped up in a new apartment block on Wilson Ave last winter, and seemed immediately to be very popular. Michael suggested we give it a shot on a Thursday morning, when there was less of a contest for a table. The all-day menu largely covers the brunch items we expect - granola, bircher, avocado toast, French toast, a big breakfast, eggs on toast with a list of add-ons. It is scattered with vs, vgos, vgos and dfos, though it's missing a legend. I've no idea how they're veganising their smoked sausage and cheese roll but they'll allegedly do it.

   

Maybe it's not the best way to judge a cafe on the first visit, but I'm often drawn to a savoury muffin when it's on offer. The zucchini and parmesan one on offer here was rich and fluffy, great stuff. I cut through the cheese with a tropical fruit juice ($7). I also noticed a nice little list of other non-alcoholic drinks that I'd enjoy later in the day - butterfly pea and jasmine iced tea, housemade blood orange soda, and Non 1 Salted Raspberry and Chamomile.

   

Michael picked one of the more original items from the menu - curried soft boiled eggs teamed with mango chutney-spread toast ($22). It was silky, warmly but not hotly spiced, something he'd gladly come back for.

Our first encounter with Beautiful Jim Key was a very good one! It'll certainly be high on our list for a revisit.

____________

7 Wilson Ave, Brunswick

0400 124 414

food, drinks

Accessibility: BJK has a flat entry and medium-spaced furniture, a mixture of bench seating along the wall, low tables with backed seats, then a high communal table with backless stools. We ordered at our table and paid at a low counter. We didn't use the toilets, but I think I spotted a reasonably spacious unisex cubicle.

   

We had an overnight stay in Kilcunda this summer, motivated by a live music show at Archies Creek Hotel. The weather was pretty miserable (excepting a 20 minute period in which I took the above photo), but the eating was an unexpectedly bright spot.

____________

   

I looked past the name and booked us dinner at Udder & Hoe. It has a compact circular floor plan with an arc of floor-to-ceiling windows facing the (on our visit, very dreary) beach, and millennial-instagram vibes. We picked most of the vegetarian options across the menu - it doesn't explicitly mark dietary suitability but it's the kind of place that lists all the featured ingredients rather than naming dishes.

   

What we ate, we liked a lot. Sourdough came with sweet, fluffy Tenby Point honey butter ($8), and a flat little chickpea crumpet ($7) was topped with Prom Country feta and a tangle of pickled zucchini and fresh herbs. The same salad mix was teamed with radish and almonds, atop a burrata ($18) with a side of croutons. A third time, a pickled onion version garnished a deceptively small, very hearty mushroom and kale lasagne ($30). Lasagne isn't a summery food, but then this wasn't a particularly summery evening. It's probably for the best that we didn't order the side of organic salad leaf with pickled onion ($14). We skipped dessert but picked up a block of chocolate from their display of fancy groceries and trinkets.

__________

   

kgs' eclectic outdoor furniture looked abandoned on our evening walk, but the morning confirmed that it's a bright and very-much-in-business cafe. We started early and had our pick of the more carefully curated indoor furniture and booth seating. The menu covers off on the breakfast classics, and leans towards burgers and wraps for lunch. Again, we relied on ingredient lists and not markers for dietary interpretation. I chose a cosy plate of sourdough crumpets ($19) teamed with tangy strawberry-rhubarb compote and yoghurt plus a toasted oat crumb. Michael tried the on-trend hot honey toast ($17.50), which actually featured smashed avocado, Danish feta and a bit of chilli. 

   

____________

While we didn't get to enjoy Kilcunda's beach as we might have hoped, the catering far exceeded my expectations... all the more reason to come back when the forecast improves.

   

We've visited Brunswick bar Miss Moses a few times over the years for live music, trivia and food, but this is its first appearance on the blog. It's had decent vegetarian options as long as I've been visiting, and it currently offers a full page vegan menu separate from its mainstream menu. Dairy-free and gluten-free options are also well-marked (although the kitchen is not guaranteed coeliac-compliant). There's a lot to choose from: little snacks like pickles and olives; classic fried sides like chips, onion rings and potato cakes; tortilla chips, the now-ubiquitous cauliflower 'wings'; a couple of tacos, seven burgers, and three counter meals. That they were out of mock-fish on this day was disappointing but hardly limiting.

   

Michael chose the Spicy Chook burger ($23); the chicken tenders were doused in a tasty gochujang hot sauce, though Michael could've taken it hotter. It's teamed with pretty classic pickles, aioli and lettuce, then a serve of very decent chips.

   

I was still eating more mindfully than usual, and figured the chicken burrito bowl ($25) was my safest option. I picked my way carefully, focusing on the bed of rice, slaw, corn, beans and salsa; nibbling at the juicy seitan and tortilla chips, spreading the guacamole around judiciously. This was a great plate, and in other circumstances I would have forked it up with great enthusiasm.

I'm not currently in my pub era, but should I ever get back there, Miss Moses will be highly ranked.

____________

Folks on The Chicken Scene were underwhelmed by the fried chicken burger.

____________

581 Sydney Rd, Brunswick

8374 7825

standard menu, vegan menu 

Accessibility: Entry is flat and there's a clear corridor through the centre. Furniture is medium spaced; a mixture of low tables with backed seats and high tables with backless stools. We ordered and paid at a high bar. We didn't visit the toilets, but we noticed that they're located up a full flight of stairs.

   

So my little errand was to pick up a $10 ice shaver that was advertised on facebook marketplace. This idea had been churning in the back of my mind since before I encountered several excellent specimens in Taipei. You see, we'd arranged for a noodle-themed potluck with our vegan pals, and I was plotting cendol for dessert. I had the non-perishable ingredients purchased from KFL and stocked in our pantry at least a month in advance: the box of cendol, some sweet canned jackfruit, sweet red beans, toddy palm seeds, grass jelly, coconut milk, and palm sugar.

   

The ice shaver took a couple of goes to get the hang of, was particular about the ice shapes I put in, and was loud. But it worked! I layered up my cendol ingredients and crowned them with feather-light ice shards shot through with palm sugar syrup. I had enough ingredients to last several weeks, and I experimented with different serving vessels - the plastic bowl in the second photo became a favourite. This was quick enough to arrange that I could whip one up for afternoon tea on a work-from-home day.

   

Once I'd exhausted my cendol supplies, I experimented with other fruits (while continuing to make palm sugar syrup - it's really good!). I made pandan-infused coconut jelly set with agar in my silicon cupcake trays, and teamed it with watermelon or mango. I've experimented a little with flavoured cordials, and have a can of lychees in the cupboard waiting for their moment - I just think they'd be great with lemon, lime and bitters! It's shaped up to be my shaved ice summer.