Manchester Press

Manchester Press’s lunch menu is all about the bagels (oh yeah), so after a delightfully perfect soy hot chocolate (seriously, I had to confirm that it was dairy-free, it tasted so good), I ordered the Reuben closed bagel ($14), with smoked pastrami, Swiss cheese, sauerkraut, thousand island dressing and pickles. Also – bonus – the bagels are served with salted pretzels and a pickle. Yum! The bagel itself was firm but not too dense, and you get a sensible, serrated knife to eat it with dignity. There was so much pastrami on this bagel I couldn’t quite believe it – I particularly liked the spicy kick of the seasoning (it reminded me of spicy togarashi), but be warned that it isn’t for the faint-hearted. The meat was tender and tasty, just as it should be, and I loved the way that the pickles served in the sandwich were diced up and mixed throughout the creamy dressing. Mmm. The sauerkraut flavour was a bit lost amongst the strong tastes of the pastrami and the dressing, but there was enough of a tang to know it was there. Basically I’d happily eat this any day with no complaints – #cometocanberra?

Manchester Press, 8 Rankins Lane, Melbourne VIC, no website

Space Kitchen

I’m calling it – puffed grains are the new trending meal topping for 2016. Catching up with the lovely Erin of Mouthless Mutters for breakfast, we both marvelled at the pretty plating done by the staff at Space Kitchen. I ordered the Smoked Salmon Breakfast ($18.90), curious to see what a coconut roesti was like (still made of potato with a coconut flavour or made of coconut?), and surprised by the lovely pile of delicious things that was put in front of me. The two eggs were perfetly poached, although I’d have prefered them on top of the roesti so that the yolks don’t go to waste (particularly when you don’t have a spoon). The smoked salmon was served warm and wasn’t as smokey as some, which worked for me at breakfast time. There was plenty of it too (yay!). I love it when you get a really good slather of avocado and this portion was also very generous, hiding the roesti (made of potato with coconut flavour), which was light and lovely. I also ordered the orange, pear, pineapple and passionfruit juice ($6.90), which came in a giant glass and tasted like summer. Great company, great meal. What more could you ask for?

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

Doughnut Time

Doughnuts have definitely become the trendy dessert of 2016, and I’m not complaining one bit. Mum and I stopped by the Doughnut Time pop up in Topshop Emporium to see what all the fuss was about. Their doughnuts have fun, creative names, and after much consideration, we tried the Vegan Fox ($6), topped with vegan chocolate, freeze-dried strawberry and pistachios. I was pleasantly surprised to see the doughnuts served in a paper box, rather than a bag, which preserved the topping and was easy to carry in a shopping bag. Both of us were impressed by the quality of the actual doughnut – it was surprisingly light, spongy and, most notably, not oily at all. We both really enjoyed the flavour and texture of the doughnut, before saying anything at all about the topping. The vegan chocolate is actually one of the best doughnut toppings I’ve ever had. It wasn’t sickly sweet, but definitely brought through a great chocolate flavour that was only enhanced by the pops of berry (could have used a bit more) and crunches of pistachio. But the doughnut itself was the real hero. Well done guys, definitely on point.

Doughnut Time, Emporium Shopping Centre, 287 Lonsdale Street, CBD, Melbourne, http://www.doughnuttime.com.au/#doughnut-time

Miss Cakeish

Ishara from Miss Cakeish is a genius. When I saw her drop-dead gorgeous creations on Instagram, I was completely sold – they’re just so beautiful! I ordered a small ‘Monet’ ($90), which serves up to 16 people, and asked for sunset colours for my belated birthday lunch. The result was stunning – topped with fresh roses, gold leaf and streaked in perfect buttercream smudges of orange, ochre, yellow and pink, it was exactly what I’d imagined. Luckily, the cake didn’t just look pretty – it tasted fabulous. With a range of cake and ganache or buttercream flavor options, I ordered the orange and almond cake, with a dark chocolate ganache. Ishara kindly allowed me to adapt the dark chocolate to add an orange flavour, which was balanced the rich bitterness perfectly. Cutting into this beauty, there were four layers of cake, each sandwiched with ganache. The cake itself reminded me of one of my favourites from childhood – madeira cake. Delicate, spongy and light, it was no hardship to eat a giant, tall slice. The cake, ganache and buttercream added up to a cake that wasn’t sickly sweet and wasn’t too heavy – in other words, utterly delightful. Highly recommended for celebrations of all sorts.

Miss Cakeish, https://www.facebook.com/miss.cakeish/

Ben & Jerry’s

Tuesday was a very special, magical day. Ben & Jerry’s, those purveyors of fun-named icecreams, held a Free Cone Day. That’s right. Not only was the icecream free, it was also free in unlimited quantities to all – as in, you could queue up as many times as you liked to try their flavours. I’m told a father and his young son held the record for 11 rounds. I was only brave enough for two – first up was the newest flavour on the block, The Tonight Dough. This was an utterly indulgent serve, with chocolate and caramel icecream, chocolate cookie swirls, and chunks of chocolate chip and peanut butter cookie doughs. Seriously – huge chunks of dough. The chocolate icecream was particularly good – luscious and creamy, and very, very chocolatey. The cone was also quite tasty too. Round two was the Hazed and Confused – chocolate and hazelnut icecream with fudge chips and a hazelnut swirl (basically like Nutella). I really liked the hazelnut flavour, although I found the swirls a bit rich (perhaps inevitable after eating two icecreams in the space of 30 mins). The Tonight Dough is definitely my pick of the menu. Thanks for the freebies Ben & Jerry’s!

Ben & Jerry’s Scoop Shop, Hoyts Westfield Woden, Bradley Street, Phillip ACT  http://www.benandjerry.com.au/scoop-shops

The Latvian Lunchroom

I jumped at the chance to eat at The Latvian Lunchroom in the Adelaide Central Markets for something completely different. Dad and I shared two meals, starting with the Latvian Snack Plate ($12), which included three pirags (soft pastry filled with bacon, onion and pepper) and our choice of three Smalk maizītes, or open sandwiches. My favourite by far was the deviled egg with anchovy – topped with tiny bubbles of fish roe, the anchovy added a pop of salt to the creamy egg and the dense, flavoursome bread. The smoked salmon with horesradish cream was equally rich and luscious, but in comparison the sausage with mustard was a bit bland. I ordered the Beef Kotlete and Mushrooms ($14) which was incredible value – my plate was piled with sauerkraut, beetroot vinagrette, potato salad, a large beef kotlete (rissole) and some of the tastiest mushrooms I’ve had in a long time, not to mention gherkins. The kotlete was tender and wasn’t dry, and went perfectly with the tang of the sauerkraut. I honed in on the beetroot vinagrette, spiced up with dill and celery it was heavenly. There was so much food and all of it was amazing. I feel a trip to Riga coming on…

The Latvian Lunchroom, Adelaide Central Markets, Adelaide SA, thelatvianlunchroom.com.au/

Lolo and Lola

I am a hopeless sweet tooth, and having heard so much about the cakes at Lolo and Lola, I had to try one. I went for the mango sans rival (mango without rival, $7), which is something I’ve never tried before. The cake portion comes with two slices, and it becomes clear quickly that this is a particularly amazing cake. Layered with buttercream, meringue and chopped cashews, the combination of crunchy, soft and creamy textures is amazing, creating a real adventure in sensations. The flavour of the buttercream is almost savoury, so that the sweetness of the meringue, flavoured by the cashews, complements rather than clashes. I found that I enjoyed the layers of meringue that were slightly firmer, with an almost crunchy outside (swoon). In between these layers are soft drizzles of mango, which add a beautiful flavour that stops the whole thing from being sickly but add a luscious, fruity richness. I devoured this dessert, and think the double-serve makes it great value too. Given that the menu changes daily, I can’t wait to go back and try more of their cake range. I think it’s love.

Lolo and Lola, Westside Acton, 3 Barrine Drive, Acton ACT, no website