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| Lattes at Top Paddock |
Top Paddock
658 Church Street
Richmond VIC 3121
Ph: (03) 9429-4332
When Top Paddock opened earlier this year, I immediately knew I had to take my parents - Top Paddock is owned by the same crew who used to own Three Bags Full, which my parents love! (My dad, especially, loves the chicken schnitzel sandwich at Three Bags Full - it tastes great and "the bread isn't too hard"). I've visited Top Paddock twice now: once with my parents for a weekday lunch, back when I used to get RDOs, and another time to celebrate my birthday with some friends. These pictures are from both visits.
Hot tip: when we sat outside, we found it very difficult to get any attention from the staff and, worse, had to keep fending off bees! I'd definitely suggest sitting inside.
 |
| The bar |
They do specialty coffees (think: filter and clover, in addition to espresso coffees), and rotate the types of beans on offer. Over my visits, I've tried the filter, a cappuccino and a latte - all consistently good.
 |
| Orange juice, ruby grapefruit juice - $6 each |
 |
| 2008 Cuvée, Yarra Bank, Yarra Valley - $12 (It was my birthday, after all!) |
The menu is a little bit more cheffy and creative than your typical brunch menu - it feels quite current, without trying too hard to be "on trend". Let's have a look:
 |
| Pan-fried local snapper with a chilli fried egg, avocado, salsa and lime and corn tortilla - $17.50 |
My dad ordered this one, and it was really good - a light and healthy interpretation of modern Mexican flavours.
 |
| Three-mushroom omelette with bean sprouts |
My mum got the three mushroom omelette, and whilst it looked great, and the eggs themselves were cooked skilfully, she did comment that it was weird that the bean sprouts were raw (and that there were
heaps of them!) Looking at their
current menu online, it appears that this isn't on the menu any more - perhaps it wasn't that popular.
 |
| Free-range pulled pork on rye with prunes, leaves & Boatshed goats curd - $16.00 |
I got the pulled pork on rye, and it was a seriously filling dish. I really liked the combo of rich, tender pork, sweet prunes and sharp goats curd, but had to admit defeat about halfway through. A good one to share.
 |
| Cheesecake brownie! |
The cheesecake brownie appears to be an item that they brought over from Three Bags Full, and I'm glad they did! I love the thick cream cheese layer. (And incidentally, it was this brownie that inspired the super-thick cheesecake layer on my own
chocolate cheesecake brownies).
 |
| Local pine mushrooms with chilli scrambled eggs & Boatshed feta on toast - $15.50 |
Look at all those pine mushrooms! What a treat! The eggs were cooked perfectly too - just set and still a little bit runny. Delicious.
 |
| Pork belly and fried egg roll with relish - $13.00 |
Pork belly and fried egg on a brioche bun. Do I need to say more?
Funny story: the day we visited and tried the pork belly roll, we literally saw three different friends who had eaten the exact same thing that day and posted pictures to Facebook. Freaky! Well, when you roll with foodie hipsters like I do...
 |
| White anchovies and jamon serrano with fried eggs, padron peppers & manchego on toast - $18.00 |
I greatly enjoyed this one, which I mainly ordered for the white anchovies - again, what a treat. I was worried the overall dish might be too salty, what with the jamon, the manchego and the anchovies, but it was a well balanced dish - eggs do need a bit of salt, and white anchovies are less pervasively salty than their hairy, briny jarred counterparts.
 |
| Mmm... yolk |
When we ordered "ricotta hotcakes", I was expecting a pile of little pikelets, but what came out was one giant fluffy hotcake! I loved the use of sunflower seeds and pepitas, the fluffy light dough, and the generous pieces of ricotta inside.
 |
| Ricotta hotcakes with blueberries, organic maple, seeds & organic mascarpone - $14.00 |
 |
| Mmm... fluffy hotcake insides |
Top Paddock is great - they have a strong focus on food and coffee without being pretentious, and have an airy, bright, relaxed atmosphere. I like it!
|
| Lattes at Top Paddock |
Top Paddock
658 Church Street
Richmond VIC 3121
Ph: (03) 9429-4332
When Top Paddock opened earlier this year, I immediately knew I had to take my parents - Top Paddock is owned by the same crew who used to own Three Bags Full, which my parents love! (My dad, especially, loves the chicken schnitzel sandwich at Three Bags Full - it tastes great and "the bread isn't too hard"). I've visited Top Paddock twice now: once with my parents for a weekday lunch, back when I used to get RDOs, and another time to celebrate my birthday with some friends. These pictures are from both visits.
Hot tip: when we sat outside, we found it very difficult to get any attention from the staff and, worse, had to keep fending off bees! I'd definitely suggest sitting inside.
|
| The bar |
They do specialty coffees (think: filter and clover, in addition to espresso coffees), and rotate the types of beans on offer. Over my visits, I've tried the filter, a cappuccino and a latte - all consistently good.
|
| Orange juice, ruby grapefruit juice - $6 each |
|
| 2008 Cuvée, Yarra Bank, Yarra Valley - $12 (It was my birthday, after all!) |
The menu is a little bit more cheffy and creative than your typical brunch menu - it feels quite current, without trying too hard to be "on trend". Let's have a look:
|
| Pan-fried local snapper with a chilli fried egg, avocado, salsa and lime and corn tortilla - $17.50 |
My dad ordered this one, and it was really good - a light and healthy interpretation of modern Mexican flavours.
|
| Three-mushroom omelette with bean sprouts |
My mum got the three mushroom omelette, and whilst it looked great, and the eggs themselves were cooked skilfully, she did comment that it was weird that the bean sprouts were raw (and that there were
heaps of them!) Looking at their
current menu online, it appears that this isn't on the menu any more - perhaps it wasn't that popular.
|
| Free-range pulled pork on rye with prunes, leaves & Boatshed goats curd - $16.00 |
I got the pulled pork on rye, and it was a seriously filling dish. I really liked the combo of rich, tender pork, sweet prunes and sharp goats curd, but had to admit defeat about halfway through. A good one to share.
|
| Cheesecake brownie! |
The cheesecake brownie appears to be an item that they brought over from Three Bags Full, and I'm glad they did! I love the thick cream cheese layer. (And incidentally, it was this brownie that inspired the super-thick cheesecake layer on my own
chocolate cheesecake brownies).
|
| Local pine mushrooms with chilli scrambled eggs & Boatshed feta on toast - $15.50 |
Look at all those pine mushrooms! What a treat! The eggs were cooked perfectly too - just set and still a little bit runny. Delicious.
|
| Pork belly and fried egg roll with relish - $13.00 |
Pork belly and fried egg on a brioche bun. Do I need to say more?
Funny story: the day we visited and tried the pork belly roll, we literally saw three different friends who had eaten the exact same thing that day and posted pictures to Facebook. Freaky! Well, when you roll with foodie hipsters like I do...
|
| White anchovies and jamon serrano with fried eggs, padron peppers & manchego on toast - $18.00 |
I greatly enjoyed this one, which I mainly ordered for the white anchovies - again, what a treat. I was worried the overall dish might be too salty, what with the jamon, the manchego and the anchovies, but it was a well balanced dish - eggs do need a bit of salt, and white anchovies are less pervasively salty than their hairy, briny jarred counterparts.
|
| Mmm... yolk |
When we ordered "ricotta hotcakes", I was expecting a pile of little pikelets, but what came out was one giant fluffy hotcake! I loved the use of sunflower seeds and pepitas, the fluffy light dough, and the generous pieces of ricotta inside.
|
| Ricotta hotcakes with blueberries, organic maple, seeds & organic mascarpone - $14.00 |
|
| Mmm... fluffy hotcake insides |
Top Paddock is great - they have a strong focus on food and coffee without being pretentious, and have an airy, bright, relaxed atmosphere. I like it!
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