Dining Review – Hammer and Tong 412

I had been particularly looking forward to dining at Hammer and Tong 412 after reading and hearing about the multitude of glowing reviews it has received from many happy diners. Some even claimed it was the best brunch they had ever had! The result of a partnership between two prominent chefs who created a partnership after working at Vue de Monde together, Hammer and Tong is located just off Brunswick Street, at the rear of 412 Brunswick Street to be precise, which is across the road from Brother Burger and the Marvellous Brew and just behind Karton, the cardboard furniture store. The main entrance and seating areas overlook Westgarth Street, so unless you know specifically where Hammer and Tong is, you would most likely miss it as if you were just strolling down Brunswick street.

Hammer and Tong 412 is open from 7am til late Tuesday to Saturday and 8am til 5pm Sunday, serving breakfast, lunch and dinner. When I arrived the café was already bustling for an early morning. You may recognise the bright, white interior which previously housed the restaurant ‘The Brix’ in a bright, very long and narrow setting where each square centimetre was used to fit in as many tables and chairs as possible (probably more of an issue for staff having to walk through the tight walkways all day than for patrons). We were seated quickly on a share table, luckily we didn’t have to move but I did feel sorry for the other party next to us that were made to do a couple of reshuffles each time the staff tried to fit a few more diners onto our share table. If I were to eat here again, I would recommend sitting by the windows if you don’t mind sitting adjacent to your fellow diners, as the bar seating that ran across on one side of the café was directly under open windows, which was lovely on a sunny day.

Our waiter provided us with menus and proceeded by immediately asking us if we would like to order coffees. Now, is it just me or do other people also get annoyed when they are asked for their coffee order as your backside barely hits the chair, let alone having been able to possibly even sneak a quick glance at the menu? I like to take a look at the beverage menu first and see what coffee blends they have on offer in addition to other drinks. Yes, I may be a caffenatic, but I can still function for two whole minutes to read the menu before I crash without a morning coffee. I was happy to find out that Hammer and Tong use Duke’s Coffee, but found it odd that they charge a small but never the less, additional charge of 50 cents to choose the single origin blend as usually there is no additional charge for this option.

Hammer and Tong feature two menus, a daytime menu and dinner menu. We were offered the daytime menu which featured some really interesting items including the ‘yabbie tail omelette’, ‘duck egg’, ‘pork belly’, ‘lamb ribs’ and their take on the ‘french toast’ all sounded like interesting choices but we couldn’t go past the Soft shell crab burger and corn & zucchini fritters, both which had a been majorly talked up by diners before me. I don’t think I have ever eaten a burger pre-noon before, but having heard the praise for this soft shell crab burger, I had to give it a go.

The food was served extremely fast, especially considering how busy the café was. I will admit that plated up, the soft shell crab burger appeared a little underwhelming, small and sloppy. I know it’s a burger, but in comparison to the delightfully presented fritters, maybe the presentation of the burger could’ve been helped with a small side or at least a skewer to help hold it upright and look a little more appealing. Luckily however, all hope was not lost as the taste test considerably saved the appeal of the coveted Soft Shell Crab burger. The crab meat was delicious and substantial and the brioche buns were extremely soft and buttery. In all, the burger featured a fantastic combination of flavours that tasted succulent and juicy. I’ve had beef and pork burgers but this is definitely the best seafood burger I have ever had (and actually a worthy competitor to my favourite beef and pork burgers also).

Soft Shell Crab Burger at Hammer and Tong 412

Soft Shell Crab Burger at Hammer and Tong 412

On the other hand, the fritters ended up having the opposite effect to the burger. While they was presented very well, the fritters themselves were a little bland and dry. They possibly could have done with a more corn, less zucchini ratio, as I felt the zucchini didn’t translate too well in the fritter. It just ended up tasting like a dense, bland and dry stuffing. The fried coating was also a little too thick, oily and hard for my liking. However, that being said, the dish did taste good, but I believe this all came down to the winning accompaniments of the manchego cheese, avocado and chilli tomato relish that really created that delicious pop of flavours.

Zucchini and Corn Fritters at Hammer and Tong 412

Zucchini and Corn Fritters  (without egg) at Hammer and Tong 412

Prices were average for what you’d expect for the increasingly popular breed of oxymoron dining variety, what I like to refer to as the ‘fancy casual ‘ eateries, or hipster eateries if you will. Service was quick and to the point (although maybe some better planning would have prevented the case of musical chairs I spoke about earlier). The coffee was good, although not as good as Story in Docklands who also use the same, Dukes coffee. The Soft Shell Crab burger was definitely the highlight for me, but I also enjoyed the interesting ingredients that starred on the menu, the bright sun room and the buzzing atmosphere.

Coffee at Hammer and Tong 412

Coffee at Hammer and Tong 412

Hammer and Tong 412

03 9041 6033

Tuesday – Saturday 7am – late

Sunday 8am – 5pm

Rear 412 Brunswick St.
Fitzroy, Vic 3065

View menu online

Hammer and Tong on Urbanspoon

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Frolic Yoghurt Fitzroy – Dining Review

When the trip to Yo-Chi was too far and the line at N2 was too long, I headed to Frolic Yoghurt Fitzroy for a fro-yo fix on a hot night. Self serve frozen yoghurt bars have recently been popping up across Melbourne like the rising popularity of those brightly coloured clay bead necklaces everyone is suddenly wearing.

Gossip Girl Fro-yo on the Met steps. Image Via.

Gossip Girl Fro-yo on the Met steps. Image Via.

I first came across self serve fro-yo spots in New York and if anyone watched Gossip Girl you’d certainly be familiar with Queen B ordering her mignions to fetch her favourite fro-yo treat. The stores generally follow the same set up, yoghurt is self serve, followed by the opportunity to add your choice of toppings. The price is determined by the weight of your yoghurt creation, where possibilities are only limited by your creativity and your budget. That being said, don’t forget about that last factor before you go crazy with flavours and toppings only to have the cashier hit you with a double digit price, because its not fro-yo etiquette to ask if you can take some yoghurt out! My advice is that if you’re not sure what the price is coming too, you can always start off with less rather than more yoghurt and ask an employee to weigh your cup before returning to add more if you wish.

Frolic Yoghurt Fitzroy is the second Frolic location in Melbourne (the first store is located in Camberwell) and it follows the same traditional setup. The aspect I most liked about Frolic was that while the toppings table included your usual chocolate and nut varietys including chocolate chips, lollies, M&M’s, Reece’s Pieces, almonds, and hot chocolate sauce, (where adding the element of heat makes all the difference) they also added a good dose of fresh fruit amongst their selection.On my visit they had caramelised bananas, rhubarb sauce, strawberries and lychees added in the mix and they didn’t overdose on Popping Boba / Tapioca Pearls / Caviar on steroids / artificial flavour balls I’ve seen at many other fro-yo locations that try to mimic the flavours of a burst of fresh fruit. Frolic had a good flavour selection of yoghurt to choose from, including coconut, strawberry, vanilla, chocolate and vanilla chai, which tasted exactly like a hot cross bun to me, so if you love a punch of cinnamon then you’d enjoy this flavour. I do want to go back and try their salted caramel with figs flavour which sounds delicious! Although at $2.20 per 100 grams, I thought the price was a little steep, considering this selection came to over $10.

My Frolic Creation - Strawberry, Chai and Coconut yoghurt with caramelised bananas , strawberries and hot chocolate sauce

My Frolic Creation – Strawberry, Chai and Coconut yoghurt with caramelised bananas , strawberries and hot chocolate sauce

The interior was bright and youthful and the late night opening hours will be handy for summer, so if you like your frozen yoghurt bars and don’t want to head out too far (or wait too long) than Frolic isn’t a bad choice.

Frolic Interior

Frolic Interior

Toppings Bar at Frolic

Toppings Bar at Frolic

Yoghurt Self Serve at Frolic

Yoghurt Self Serve at Frolic

Frolic Yoghurt Fitzroy on Urbanspoon

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N2 Extreme Gelato

At first, this fun little spot may seem like just a front of smoke and mirrors, which when liquid nitrogen comes in to play when used to churn the ice-cream, is quite literally, but one taste of their incredibly smooth gelato will tell you that is not the case here. I love a good theme, and N2 Extreme Gelato has hit the mark on kooky science lab perfectly. To put the look and feel of this place into perspective for you Melbournians, N2 Extreme Gelato looks like the love child of the Croft Institute and Trampoline. They are genuinely serious about their gelato and it is damn delicious. Don’t be disheartened by their small menu, which changes weekly, although if you’re after your regular order of lemon sorbet and chocolate or Neapolitan, you’ve come to the wrong place. Entering into this gelato laboratory may mean stepping out of your flavour comfort zone, but I believe in doing so you will not be disappointed. The selection of flavours vary from the fresh and fruity offerings such as pomegranate and mango  to the richer more decadent, and sometimes unexpected flavours such as Earl Grey Caramel, Strawberries and Cream, and my personal favourite – Crème brûlée! You’ll find that whatever flavour you choose, the end result is smooth and sumptuously soft without being too heavy or icy, due to the way they create their ice cream by churning their fresh ingredients with liquid nitrogen until frozen.

The fit out can be a little awkward for patrons in larger groups looking for seats as their seated areas simply consist of communal wooden pallets and a bed covered in AstroTurf. Not exactly the most comfortable or inviting seating areas, but I can imagine in the coming months this will be one awesome hangout on summer nights, situated right in the hipster heart of Brunswick street, Fitzroy. That said, it will be interesting to see how this compares to fellow Sydney based gelataria Messina which will also be opening its doors in Fitzroy this Spring. The venue features blackboard walls surfaced with all the information you need, written in their cheeky commentary:

1 scoop – $6

2 scoops – you don’t need it

Happiness – included (just like GST)

Sadness – go elsewhere

Opening Hours – 1pm – 11pm every effing day

The wait for your ice cream is most likely going to be a little longer than your usual ice creamery, but keep in mind this is all a part of the experience of visiting N2, as you get the opportunity to watch the gelato wizards in action, mixing and churning your gelato right in front of you, as each gelato is made to order and the result is fantastically fresh. Their experimental and creative flavour offering will keep you on your toes, so my only word of warning is not to get too emotionally attached to one flavour, as chances are it may not be on offer the next time you visit! However that being said, I say bring on the crazy new flavour experiments!

N2 Extreme Gelato – Creme Brulee

N2 Extreme Gelato on Urbanspoon

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