270 Queens Parade
Fitzroy North, VIC 3068
03 9482 5444
I confess my newer-style blog posts has gone quite photo-centric, some can almost look like photo advertisements of a venue. Not sure how this will go down with some of you. All I can say is I try to find what’s beautiful about a place and capture it with my lens. If my pictures can speak more about a place, then I don’t have to write as many words.
Fakegf and I had a hard time getting here on Australia Day, there were roadblocks everywhere on the northern segments of Hoddle St. At one point it almost looked like the gods were against us from brunching at two:bob, we reached the café hungry and irritable.
But you know what? Any ill-feelings we harboured inside instantly melted away the moment we stepped in. The café is simply gorgeous. Spacious, high-ceilinged, sun-filled, airy, with happy bursts of aqua-blue aprons worn by smiling staff.
Because of its Scandinavian theme, fakegf immediately associated the fitout with a ‘posh IKEA”. And how nice is it not having that same-old industrial/warehouse café schtick for once?
Service was friendly, attentive, with a slightly dignified, North European air. Sitting down, we couldn’t help but feel all light-hearted and breezy again. It felt like the perfect Sunday brunch spot, except it was a Thursday!
Coffees by Coffee Supreme
While we were hoping for some latte art, fakegf did comment that she didn’t mind her skinny magic (in the background), it had the robust punch she was looking for. I did not enjoy my piccolo mainly because I am not a fan of Coffee Supreme coffees.
So there I was, ooh-ing and aah-ing over everything, fussing with my camera… trying to capture the feel of the place. While fakegf just had an almost beatific, carefree smile on her face. She really loved it there. We even had a friendly chat with the old ladies sharing our table.
Smashed avocado, feta and lemon on multigrain toast with tomato salsa and labneh $9.5
And the goodness didn’t end there, two:bob’s brunch fare was both beautiful to look at and wonderful to eat! We struggled over the menu because every item looked very appealing. But fakegf’s simple smashed avocado was a surprising winner. Zingy and light, she found her colourful dish popping-ly fresh and revelled in its piquancy!
And here’s my dish…
Crumbed poached eggs w grilled asparagus, smoked salmon, toasted pinenuts and toasted sourdough $16.5
You could say that brunch items with the [smoked salmon + asparagus + egg] ‘trinity’ of ingredients is truly my archilles’ heel. Can’t go past it. Had it at Pope Joan and loved it, and two:bob’s variation of this dish was every bit as wonderful to eat.
Loved how all bold components came together so nicely. I thought the zingy yet salty (anchovy butter?) sauce at the bottom was a delightful uplifting punch that gave it another dimension. The eggs’ crumbed outsides also tasted great and the yolks remained satisfyingly spilly. The only quibble I had was how the whites were on the firm side because of the crumbing process.
And why not have an encore collage of our satisfying and beautiful brunch dishes? :D
This brunch was definitely worth the drive. I only have three words for this place: “we’ll be back!”.
