Hot poppy

OK, here is something like a review, let me start by saying I am in no way a food snob; I know what I like & what I like is entirely subjective. I don't want this to be a foodie blog; I think I just want other vegan & vege people to be able to identify non-veg cafes where they can get a decent meal. So... here goes....

Partner & I had breakfast at Hot Poppy in North Melbourne on the weekend. I wanted to go somewhere new & I have never eaten in North Melbourne (though I have had good coffee at Hot Poppy before). I did some research & found their menu online that listed vegan breakfast options, so good to go!

First impressions weren't great. After sitting down & being tossed a couple of menus by a harrassed-looking waiter, we waited 15mins to be asked for our coffee/food order. I was also slightly disappointed that the menu we were given was different to the menu on the website. I cheered up when I saw the new vegan option though - a polenta, avocado, baby spinach & capsicum chutney pide. There were other more standard vegan options, like muesli or toast with extras etc & there were definitely plenty of vegetarian options.

The service picked up slightly & the coffee was good, I'd say 3.5/5. Food was yummy, fresh & full of flavour. Partner had the big veg breakfast, which from memory had eggs, mushrooms, spinach, tomato & pesto. Both servings were also huge & left us full until dinner.

Overall I'd rate the breakfast at around 2.5/5. I will give them a second chance, because the food was good, I just hope the wait-staff were having a bad day, because I really don't understand why someone would choose to work in a service industry when they don't like people. Also, this isn't the cafe's fault, but I really hate smokers in cafes. We usually sit outside to enjoy the fresh air & being joined by a smoker completely ruins the appetite. I don't understand why the VIC government hasn't banned this yet, will have to contact whoever is responsible & ask why the lag behind NSW?

P.S. Sorry about lack of photos, I don't have my digital camera yet.

I'm back!

OK, so it's been nearly 12 months, but I just wasn't sure if I wanted this to be a vege blog or a library blog or something else entirely; so I have been putting off making a decision. I have decided to make this a 'what I'm thinking about' blog, which will no doubt include stuff like cafes I've been to (particularly trying to help other vegans in Melbourne who have the 'vege guide to melbourne', which is brilliant, but just want to know which non-veg cafes can still provide a nice veg meal); it will probably also include fun or interesting library stuff that I find along the way too.