When I lived in Thornbury in the late nineties, Thornbury didn’t have cafes. Well, not cafes like Northern Soul (843 High St, Northcote), and certainly not this far north up High Street, way up past Darebin Road.
It looks fairly non-descript from the outside, with only a small picture of an owl hinting anything interesting. Inside though it’s a nice place to be, with a tasteful fit-out and furniture, relaxing music, and some delicious smells wafting from the kitchen.
The breakfast menu is short, but there’s something for everybody, including vegetarians. Amazingly, there’s only 1 egg dish – fried, poached or scrambled on toast. I went for scrambled, with a side of bacon. The toast was a little thinly sliced for my liking, but the eggs were cooked pretty well, and rich butter. My bacon, originally forgotten, arrived shortly after my eggs, and wide quite salty (even for bacon), though not unpleasantly so.
My girlfriend ordered fruit tabouleh, which was bulgur wheat with nuts, fruit and honey. I didn’t try any, but it was apparently nice and tasted healthy.
The coffee was well made, which is increasingly uncommon in Melbourne cafes these days, despite the “third wave of coffee” apparently being in full swing here. The crema was thick, suggesting fresh beans, and importantly, it wasn’t burned.
I also ordered a blueberry muffin to take home, and it was moist inside, with some nice crisp bits on outside, and a generous berry to muffin ratio.
Servings were generous, everything was put prepared well, and the service was friendly. I’d certainly be happy to spend another Sunday morning here.