Aucuba is a plant, so I learnt when googling! But Aucuba Coffee Roasters is a fantastic new cafe in South Melbourne with a bright, slick fit out and a menu that will knock your socks off, yes you can have eggs on toast or you can have some unexpectedly intricate dishes from the guys here.
There are plenty of seats with the outside seating and it’s a gorgeous sunny day so we are happy to rock up and get some coffee and a bit of brunch for a hungry hubby. Coffee was beautiful, even a decaf skinny flat white with no coffee or milk tastes good!!
So the menu is extensive and there has obviously been a huge amount of thought on what ingredients are in season, what makes for a formidable dish and what makes sense to charge and they have got this mix nailed! Think dishes like Matcha green tea and yoghurt pannacotta with lemongrass and saffron scented pineapple with passionfruit and nut granola or edamame, pea and labna with a poached egg on light rye and yuzu kosho ichilies, yuzu peel and salt or sweet potato waffles with dehydrated coconut shavings, spring onions, maple miso and served with parmesan ice cream and caramel popcorn – Seriously!! This is making breakfast very interesting again!
We were only after a small snack on our way to a fun day out but the truffled umami mac and cheese toastie with raddichio salad and a crisp balsamic dressing was a perfect dish to fill hubby up and I could steal a little bite or two!
