Raw Karma

On my visit to The Market Shed’s Twilight Market, my friend and I scoured the stalls looking for the beautiful mini doughnuts posted on Instagram. After getting through a couple of savoury courses, we found them – success! There were six flavours on offer ($6 per doughnut) and we picked one each – Turkish delight and peanut butter. Disclaimer – we didn’t get to eat these on the night so refrigerated them overnight to taste test the next day. Raw Karma’s doughnuts are vegan, paleo, and gluten-free, and wow are they filling! Whilst they may look small, the dough is less of a dough and more like a fudge – dense and packed full of flavour. The peanut butter doughnut is topped with dark chocolate and crumbled peanuts – it could have had a stronger peanut flavour, but the chocolate is decadently rich. The Turkish delight leaves you in no doubt that’s the flavour you’re enjoying – the rose flavour is beautifully fragrant and cuts through the richness of the chocolate. I’d recommend getting these to share or eat over sometime, as they’re really very dense, but they’re absolutely delicious!

Raw Karma, fortnightly stall at The Market Shed, Holland St, Adelaide SA http://rawkarma.com/

Barrio

Some places just scream ‘Instagram me!’, and Barrio in Braddon’s Ori building has to be one of them. From the hexagonal tiles to the branded high stools, Barrio is a New York-style tiny cafe that I would love to while away an afternoon  in. A friend and I went for breakfast, so I started out with a dairy-free hot cocoa, which came out in a large camping-type mug and was made with nut milk produced in-house. I expected sweet but being cocoa, not hot chocolate, it was definitely not sweet. The nut milk has a dense froth, but it was warming and went well with the food. I had the rye with avocado and togorashi seasoning – it came out on bread you couldn’t cut with the butter knife provided, but oh the flavour! There was plenty of avocado and the seasoning was very generous – lots of sesame and just a hint of spice at the back of the throat. I loved the strips of nori on top too, but what really blew me away was the olive oil. Yep, not your traditional highlight, but the quality and flavour of the oil on that bread was out of this world. Give it a try.

Barrio, 59/30 Londale Street, Braddon ACT                                  http://www.barriocc.com/

Kinfolk

Kinfolk has been on my list for a while, and on a whirlwind visit to Melbourne I ducked in with my colleague for breakfast. We got a perfect seat in the window where we could watch the world go by. I started with a fresh orange juice – it was served with ice in a large jar, and was a bit diluted for my taste, but was still good value for the size. I wasn’t super hungry, so ordered the granola. It came out on a beautiful serving board with each element in its own jar – the granola looked lovely and toasted, with milk, yoghurt and bloom plum compote presented neatly. The granola itself had a fabulous mix of crisp, golden macadamias, cashews, almonds, walnuts, oats and pepitas. The compote was what really sold me on this – a good granola needs something to stop it being dry, and avoiding dairy as I do, the compote was it. Whilst there wasn’t a huge amount, it went quite far, and had a beautiful tangy tartness that contrasted the overall sweetness perfectly. The whole meal was quite filling and I would happily order it again.

Kinfolk, 673 Bourke Street, Melbourne VIC                                                kinfolk.org.au

Smoothie Stand Aoya

I don’t generally tend to think of vegetables when I think of smoothies, but when I saw this cute little wooden stall on one of Kagurazaka’s quaint backstreets, I couldn’t help but give it a try. The menu is organised by colour, and is also available in English. I picked the ‘orange colour smoothie’, which included red paprika, carrot, tomato, apple, mango, orange, goji and water. This whole stack of fresh ingredients was packed into a blender and carefully coaxed into a smoothie, that was, to my surprise, poured into a plastic pouch rather than a cup. The colour was certainly orange and on first sip I was delighted by the warmth of the paprika (the flavour was just like capsicum) and then the tones of carrot and tomato. The texture reminded me a bit of the fresh, slightly bitey Pressed Juices, but with a lot less sweetness. The portion was generous and the lady was really friendly and chatted to me as she made my smoothie. A lovely introduction to vegetable smoothies!

Smoothie Stand Aoya, 3-1-4 Kagurazaka, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo, no website

Sweet Bones

I was quite excited to have breakfast at Sweet Bones and see what a plate without the staples of bacon and eggs was like. We went on a weekday morning and both ordered the big breakfast – this was my second visit after trying their cupcakes and I wasn’t sure what to expect from their savoury vegan fare. I needn’t have worried. My breakfast arrived with a deceptively simple mix of hummus, tomato, avocado, lightly toasted sourdough with a side of tofu scramble.  On first bite, it was clear that this was one of the best breakfast’s I’ve had in Canberra. The hummus was beautifully flavoured with a spice I couldn’t quite pick, but it elevated a standard dip into something incredible. The sourdough had great flavour and nothing beats fresh avocado. I completely loved the tofu scramble, full of mushrooms, onions, carrot, capsicum, and topped with crispy spiced pepita and sunflower seeds, which provided great textural contrast and had me wishing there was more. Not only was every mouthful delicious, it was also really filling and I couldn’t quite polish it all off, as much as I wanted to. Seriously good, healthy food.

Sweet Bones Bakery Cafe, 8/18 Lonsdale Street Braddon, ACT       http://sweetbonescompany.com/

The Cupping Room

I met a friend visiting from Sydney for breakfast at The Cupping Room for the first time in a long time – I love eating there at breakfast time when the sunlight is streaming in! Our waitress was very friendly and happily directed me to the fresh juices to start – I chose the strawberry, apple, basil, and lime – when it arrived it looked like summer in a glass, and tasted just as refreshing. There was probably a bit too much ice for my liking, but the flavours were well-balanced and worked really well together. I chose the Heirloom Tomatoes for a lighter breakfast, and my it looked incredible on arrival – shiny, fresh tomatoes on a bed of quinoa, corn, craisins (cranberries crossed with raisins), fetta, and pepitas. The serving was large but everything was quite light and I was full but not bloated by the end. There was a great mix of textures and the craisins added lovely sweet highlights, while the pepitas had the crunch factor. The tomatoes weren’t particularly tasty themselves, but in combination with the other ingredients, including the raw onion (beware those going straight to work afterwards), they contributed to a fresh, light, dish that I would happily order again.

P.S. congratulations to Sasa Sestic for his victory in the World Barista Championships!

The Cupping Room, 1/13 University Ave, Canberra ACT  http://www.thecuppingroom.com.au/

Anvil Coffee Co

Oh my – Anvil has such a stunning location that I had to take a minute to soak it in before finding a table overlooking the water. Tucked into the side of Kirribilli Wharf, this little gem serves breakfast and lunch as well as takeaway coffee. I took my time with the menu, but eventually decided on the Something Savoury – chorizo, smashed peas, broadbeans and leek with salad on sourdough. Sadly they’d run out of chorizo, but I was offered smoked salmon as an alternative (yes please). I was a bit disappointed that they don’t offer fresh juices, and I didn’t enjoy the bottled ‘green power’ juice I ordered. My meal came out on a beautiful plate with all of the components piled up neatly and topped with a slice of lemon. I would have preferred a wedge to drizzle, but I managed to get some of the flavour from it. The toast was extra crispy and tough to cut, but the smashed greens were very filling and the overall flavour was lovely. There was plenty of salmon and I couldn’t finish the salad. A couple of tweaks needed, but overall a nice breakfast with lovely views.

Anvil Coffee Co, Kirribilli Wharf, Hobrook Avenue, Kirribilli NSW                           http://www.anvilcc.com.au/