Melbourne Cafe Reviews

Atomica Cafe
268 Brunswick St
Fitzroy 3065
(03) 9417 4255

Catch the No. 112 tram. Ask to get off at Johnson St. You’ll be near-by here.

At last. Brunswick St Fitzroy. Here we are at one of Melbourne’s best known cafe precincts. You’ve got a lot of options here, but I’ve opted for a place recommended to me for their coffee. The first thing I notice is music being a tad too loud, booming around and off the tiles. But, you’ve got to consider where you are – I thought about this for a minute – Brunswick street is a bit like Sydney, hyper and happening. Music a bit on the pumping side is part of the atmosphere here. One of the blokes behind the counter would have a dance every now and then.

We lodged ourselves at the very back, with a view through the café. I ordered a lemon tart and a long black. Water was a bit annoying because it was help yourself and no bottles were there, so you could only get a glass at a time.

There’s a different feel here than at cafes in Brunswick. Service is brusque, but not unfriendly. The staff are a bit flighty.

The lemon tart had a thin white-choc coating on top and was fresh. The long black had a fair crema, was hot, and good – but not full-strength. I was actually expecting a stronger coffee.

We ended up staying here for about two hours. It wasn’t packed, which is a great plus for this area. I liked the useful factor to Atomica. It isn’t just a trendy place – they make coffee. They sell it too. Six grinders filled with beans stand on the wall behind the counter. Prices for buying coffee by the kilo are listed on the wall. I saw a small amount of ground coffee on the floor. It’s this side of a place that allows you to linger a while, it’s not a sterile environment, it’s got a buzz.

A Minor Place
103 Albion St
Brunswick
Ph 9384 3131

Public transport: Best would be an East Corburg (No 1) or Moreland (No 8) Tram. Ask to get off at Albion St. This is coming from the city (catch these on Swanston St. They go past Melbourne Uni.)

This place has a cool design. I wonder if there’s an architect specialising in cafes – it wouldn’t surprise me. A large shared table at the front, sturdy and with comfortable solid box seats. Along the left wall are small tables and a long, horizontal strip window. There’s another room to the right, through a cut-out made in the wall which has a ledge built into it. In here more seating; on the wall a section of neat green and white pattern wallpaper, wood panelling with the putty and work still showing. Outside there’s more seating, a veranda providing shade.

In its location, the cafe is fairly unique. Even though Lygon St is two stones throws away, this is a suburban street. Around it are houses. We might start to see more of this.

There’s a fair mob here, but it was easy, at 10.50 AM to grab a spot at the shared table. On the menu are various eggy options. Not the usual. Combo’s including avocado, bagels, relish, ham, spinach. I noticed the French toast had rhubarb included.

I ordered a long black and a bagel. I can’t remember the bagel’s name, but it had a poached egg, relish, ham and rocket. I don’t normally like relish, but theirs was very nice. The bagel wasn’t an annoying bagel – (they can be annoying – not very fulfilling). This bagel had substance, like a sour-dough. The long black came with a smooth dark gold crema. A slip revealed the coffee as hot and strong, but without a lingering taste. It was lacking in body. Other coffees I saw coming out looked good – the lattes had a creamy head with a lovely swirl.

Music was grooving and not loud. A girl next me was on the mobile and the guy with her a bit over it; he was answering for the person she was speaking to, and repeating her questions. A guy sat on one of the tables near the horizontal window with a laptop. I noticed he was online. Maybe the cafe has a wireless network.

Did the cafe have the vibe for hanging around, chilling out and reading papers? Getting there. The design is 100 per cent, there’s plenty going on around you, but it doesn’t quite have that yet.*

Service is friendly and efficient. The staff seem happy to be here.

Coffees marked as $2.80, but they charged $2.50. Bagel $7.60.

* Update: 3 June 06

Coming here today, I took a seat in the second room. Only about six in here — a group of three, a couple and a girl tapping away on a laptop. It’s four in the arvo, a nice light enters the room. Having already had some coffees today (too many!) I order an earl grey tea. The vibe is about right, and I happily read for an hour.

Update: 17 June 07

This place is well settled in now. It seems more accomplished, confident and the coffees are just superb. On the downside, Minor Place has been so busy I was totally ignored for 20 minutes one Sat morn! Also, the music tends to get too loud — something that deteriorates off MP’s otherwise cool vibe.