Agatha’s

I went to Agatha’s to catch up with a friend from high school, and to be honest my expectations weren’t high – it wasn’t really on my ‘foodie radar’, so to speak, but I was quite delighted to discover the excellent breakfasts on offer. I ordered the ‘Hey Pesto’ ($16), with smoked bacon, tomato, avocado, rocket and pesto hollandaise on ciabatta. Pesto hollandaise? Yep. That stuff is good. Rich, creamy and still stronger on the hollandaise than the pesto flavour, there was a huge amount on top of my bread, and I was totally ok with that – it’s delicious. Combined with the serving of avocado, there was a lot of creaminess going on, but the fresh tomato and rocket cut through, along with the saltiness of the bacon. I couldn’t really tell that the bacon was smoked, but it was very crispy and particularly tasty. As a bonus, there was some sort of pomegranate molasses drizzle on the plate too, which was beautifully sweet. I love ciabatta, and this one was lightly toasted, perfect to add some crisp but still be easy to cut into. The whole thing was very filling, delicious and great value – definitely worth a visit.

Agatha’s, 1 Gawler Street, Port Noarlunga SA, http://www.agathascafe.com.au/

Space Kitchen

My quest to try all of the Ricardo’s/Space cakes continued at a friend’s baby shower held at Space. Everyone else ordered lunch – I ordered cake. I’ve had my eye on the Cookie Monster ($9.90) for a while now, and this was clearly the moment. Now, I must advise you of two exciting facts about this cake (apart from the fact that it is both blue and named after the Sesame Street character, which you will have gathered already). One, it is large. Like, you may doubt your ability to eat it yourself, large. But wait… Two, it is light! Hooray, you can enjoy it all to yourself. The giant macaron top cracks open to reveal a half-mousse half-sponge filling, dotted with Oreos. Mmm. Oreos. The texture is quite unusual, but definitely in a good way – everything is surprisingly smooth and even though it looks blue, chocolate biscuit is the dominant flavour. I did largely eat this myself, and didn’t feel bloated or overly smashed by sugar afterwards, so there’s a good balance in terms of density and sweetness. Given the size I also rate this highly on value (especially when you don’t have to share!).

Space Kitchen, Skypark, corner of Furzer and Worgan Streets, Phillip ACT, http://space-kitchen.com.au/

Blacksmith

I’d been past Blacksmith on a previous visit to Surry Hills and put it on my to visit list – I managed to stop by recently for an early lunch. The space is definitely true to the theme, with assorted ironwork and more rivets than you can poke a stick at. The menu has some exciting options, but, being me, I decided to try the wagyu beef burger ($22), plus a side of sweet potato chips to share ($8). The burger came out on a large platter with a smattering of chips and a small dish of aioli. The burger was piled up so high, and when I squished it down, a whole lot of creamy mayonnaise oozed out – definitely not in the ‘elegant to eat’ burger category. But that mayonnaise was worth saving from the platter, as it was utterly delicious! The patty was a bit diappointing – there were small bits of gristle and the outside wasn’t charred or crisp at all, as I had expected for the price – but the mayo certainly brought the level up a notch. The sweet potato chips were probably the highlight and were generously portioned, to the point where we needed a takeaway bag. I’ll be back to try some of their fun-sounding brunch items.

Blacksmith, 116 Chalmers Street, Surry Hills, NSW, no website

Jamface

So, I was pretty excited to head back to Jamface after my last visit, again for cakes, but this time takeaway. We picked three to share – the peach crumble ($6.50), lemon curd & raspberry coulis tart ($5.50) and the apricot custard tart ($6.50). Each had its own distinctive highlights, but if hard-pressed, I would say the apricot tart was my favourite, just for sheer strength of flavour. The texture of this tart was spectacular, with a spongy soft custard layer that heightened the intense apricot flavour – these were high perfoming apricots, let me tell you. Next was probably the peach crumble. I’m a huge crumble fan, and I love it when the crumble mix is just right. Jamface gets it 100% right, with no dryness and plenty of luscious peach packed under the dusted crumble topping. The pastry shell is also quite lovely and adds to the whole dessert. It’s probably unfair putting the lemon and raspberry tart last, as I really enjoyed it – again, the textures were spot on, with a really rich, smooth creaminess from the curd and tonnes of flavour from the raspberry – it’s a tart tart, but definitely has enough sweetness for balance. All winners, for sure.

Jamface, Stall 28-29, Adelaide Central Markets, Adelaide SA, http://www.jamface.com.au

7 Apples Gelato

Ok, if you’ve seen it, you know that the 7 Apples Gelato store in Emporium isn’t just cute, it’s the most freaking adorable icecreamery ever. A little icecream cart with a bicycle attached, this tiny stall sucked me in with free samples and sorbet options. Who could resist? Offering a limited range (around 8 flavours – their main store is in St Kilda) on their cute menu board, I opted for a single scoop of the mango sorbet ($5.50), which was served in a reasonably sized up and had a creamy, pale colour. The mango flavour was nice – authentic, but not as strong as other mango sorbets I’ve tried in Melbourne – and there was a good amount of sweetness to it. The texture was again around the mid-range of quality – not the creamiest I’ve ever tried, but not overly icy either, so definitely in the solidly ‘good’ category. I probably wouldn’t go out of my way to order this flavour again (nice was it was), given the range of flavours they offer, but I would recommend stopping by, if only to marvel at the set up, uniform and, of course, to enjoy the free samples!

7 Apples Gelato, Emporium Melbourne (Level 3), 287 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne VIC, http://www.7applesgelato.com/

Ricardo’s Cafe

One of my 2016 goals is to work my way through the cake menu at Ricardo’s – I feel like I started this quest with a bang! I am a huge fan of Snickers bars, and the Ricardo’s interpretation on this classic chocolate bar is utterly divine. Firstly, the size of this cake is just right (I’d say it’s even slightly bigger than your average icecream) for an afternoon tea snack, but be prepared for rich decandence! The peanuts scattered over the outer shell are dusted in edible gold sparkly dust (yep, that’s the technical term), making it not only tasty (peanuts) but also very pretty (sparkly!). Inside is a magical mix of chocolate mousse and liquid salted caramel, which oozes out from the centre of the cake. I love chocolate mousse and this one, coated in a layer of chocolate, was divine. The entire flavour effect realy does taste like a Snickers, but much fresher. Texturally, the crunch of the peanuts and the soft mousse plus the thick caramel is delightful. Yep, this is a very sweet (but not heavy) interpretation of a classic chocolate bar. Yum.

Ricardo’s Cafe, Jamison Plaza, Bowman Street, Macquarie ACT, ricardoscafe.com/

Rice Paper Scissors

I must say, I did judge the book by its cover with this one – I was enchanted by the décor at RPS, so we stopped in for a very late lunch-snack, grabbing a seat at the bar before the kitchen closed. The menu is an exciting exploration of South East Asia, and I couldn’t go past the temptation of soft shell crab mini banh mi ($13 for 2), plus a house made lemon iced tea ($4.50). Served in a fashionable jar, the iced tea had both lemon and lemongrass, but both were well balanced and not overpowering. The staff here are friendly and chatty, creating a welcoming atmosphere that we enjoyed. The food came out fairly quickly, and it definitely confirmed our order choice. Served on soft brioche buns, the banh mi were utterly delightful – the generous portion of crab was just the right blend of crisp and soft, bringing great flavour and texture to the dish. The house made pate added a creaminess to each mouthful, and I particularly liked the addition of pickled vegetables, which, with the fresh coriander, lifted this to a whole other level. I will definitely be back!

Rice Paper Scissors, 19 Liverpool Street, Melbourne VIC, http://www.ricepaperscissors.com.au/