A few weeks ago two girlfriends from Tassie were in town and we caught up for breakfast. The place of choice was Manchester Press. I have to admit, I don't often go into the city for breakfast and hadn't heard of Manchester Press before. How ignorant of me, but boy am I glad that I now know this place.
Today L and I went back as I know he loves bagels.
Manchester Press specialise in great coffee and even better bagels. Hidden away in one of Melbourne's funky little laneways, you walk past design shops and things that appear to be some kind of 'hipster-art-installation' (a baby doll in a cage?!).
We waited about 25 minutes during the breakfast rush hour between 10-11:30 and were eventually seated at one of the communal tables.
One of those tables has a big cold drip set up and you can see how the coffee slowly makes its way into the flask at the bottom.
We both ordered cold drip coffee, a bagel with avocado & goats feta and another bagel with bacon, banana, mascarpone and maple syrup. I've only discovered cold drip coffee this summer but love the soft and subtle flavour. So different to hot brewed coffee and perfect for a 36°C day!
My Avo & Feta Smash came with Meredith Dairy Goat's Feta which is my absolute favourite feta. The garlicky oil the big chunks of feta sit in give it an amazing flavour and the feta is super creamy and soft. The avo was mixed with a bit of lemon and a healthy dose of chilli. I'm not a fan of big amounts of chilli so I just picked it out and still had a prefect punch of hotness in there. I loved it.
L had chosen Mel's Maple Mayhem, the bagel version of French Toast. In my eyes you can't really go wrong with maple syrup and mascarpone and L loves bacon so the perfect combination. Salty, sweet and the soft texture of the mascarpone combined with the crunchy blueberry bagel and bacon was delicious.
Last time I went to Manchester Press, I had the Mixed Berry, a blueberry bagel topped with whipped raspberry mascarpone, fresh strawberries & crushed pistachios. I was so tempted to order that one again today but I wanted to try something different. L gave his bagel a 10/10 which I think was well deserved. I'd give both the bagels I have tried the same score.
Great food, great coffee, great atmosphere, we will definitely be back soon. (I've already promised my bestie I will take her there next time she comes to Melbourne!).
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