The Art of Brunch in Melbourne

Top Paddock’s sister café has to be the prettiest café in town with its white terraced façade and balcony dotted with chequered umbrellas. The menu is just as incredible with the likes of miso cured salmon with pea and barley salad and chilli scrambled eggs with mooloolaba crab and crayfish oil, but seriously there is nothing prettier than the coconut chia pudding with blood orange & raspberry sorbet.

Mister Hoffman is hands down one of the best designed restaurants in the city, brought to life by the award-winning interior designer Joanne Motee. The feature wall with pastel-coloured brush strokes immediately grabs your attention and is contrasted with green vintage tiles. The superb food is served on hand-painted ceramics and the spiced chai latte comes in a hammered copper pot.

As soon as Fourth Chapter opens its doors, caffeine-deprived locals come in droves to get their daily dose. But it’s not just coffee they excel at, it’s pretty much anything they put their hand to. Their brunch menu is as innovative as they come with beetroot and cheddar waffles served with grilled salmon and avocado and raspberry granola served with coconut panna cotta. The all-white interior is decorated with hanging plant pots overflowing with Rapunzel-like ivy. During the summer months, Fourth Chapter offers picnic baskets and blankets, so customers can choose to eat in neighbouring Victoria Gardens.

Industry Beans is a Fitzroy institution, famous for roasting its own beans and providing superior coffee to loyal locals. Their brunch scene is also up to scratch with fancy dishes like the porcini egg with crispy Jerusalem artichokes, roasted mushrooms, truffle oil and pea foam. If you’re looking for individual brunch dishes that you won’t find on any other menu in Melbourne, look no further than Industry Beans.

With its sunny courtyard and delicious brunch fare, Touchwood is a people pleaser. Even better, hungry brunchers need never wait too long for a table as there’s plenty of space to seat the weekend crowds. Favourite dishes include the chilli scrambled eggs with manchego cheese and house baked beans with feta and spinach.

The Nutella panna cotta with peanut butter brittle, banana and toasted marshmallows is legendry at Penta. It’s a good day for sugar addicts when it becomes socially acceptable to eat Nutella panna cotta for brunch. Health lovers needn’t fret as there’s also rainbow salad bowls and beetroot chia pudding on the menu.

Top Paddock’s blueberry and ricotta hotcake sprinkled with fresh berries and lilac sugar has become a celebrity among Melbourne’s brunch scene. Their ever-changing menu would be more fitting in a fine dining restaurant, this season there’s yellowfin miso tuna and seasonal mushrooms pimped out with potato puree, truffle oil and poached eggs.

Perpetually thriving, Plain Sailing has to be the busiest place to brunch in Elwood. One mouthful of the food and you’ll understand why. The décor is as pretty as a picture, as are the dishes which are bound to give all of your Instagram followers food envy. The dish to order is the wild hempnola with vanilla and orange blossom panna cotta decorated with berries, figs and pistachio crumbs.

At Serotonin, every hot drink comes with a chocolate-dusted smiley face on top because this café has all the happy vibes. The idea behind the menu is that each of the dishes contains ingredients that release serotonin and make you feel good about yourself. Their galaxy acai bowl features a peanut butter ice cream and their medicinal waffles have a Mexican twist. And if all that fails, there are hanging swings that are sure to put a smile on your face.

If you’re all about pretty interiors and pretty plates to match, look no further than Kitty Burns. Located along the Yarra River in Abbotsford, this sunny café has a pastel colour palette and plenty of natural light. Opened by two sisters with an eye for aesthetics, the interior features honey-hued woodwork, teal tiling and copper lighting.

Matcha Mylk Bar is every vegan’s favourite place to brunch. The plant-based menu features vegan eggs which are somewhat sweeter than their real counterpart but a must-try nonetheless. The drinks menu offers every type of caffeine-free alternative with blue algae, charcoal and even mushroom lattes. The food menu is just as colourful with pink dragon fruit smoothie bowls, purple superfood porridge and green spirulina burgers.

Queues are always a good sign of what’s inside, so you can expect superb brunch fare at this perpetually crowded joint. The brunch menu changes with the seasons and always favours creative and innovative plates. Order the Ora King Salmon which melts in your mouth and comes with perfectly poached eggs and sesame yuzu dressing.