Brunch in the East #2: Collective Espresso & Cafe Carpenter

Hello all!! :) I've decided to continue the "Brunch in the East" series post. This time we are travelling to Camberwell and Chadstone/Malvern East.

Remember I mentioned in my previous post about wanting to try out Collective Espresso? Well, I finally made it there with The Boyfriend one lovely Saturday morning!

Whilst perusing the menu, The Boyfriend pointed out that coffee here was very reasonably priced so I thought why not start my day with a cuppa mocha.

The Boyfriend, on the other hand, opted for prana chai tea. However, he was served with a prana chai coffee instead. The Boyfriend being The Boyfriend though, did not want to send it back.

Yeah, he is annoying kind like that, so even if he has been served with a dish/drink he did not order or even if the food isn't well-cooked, he doesn't like all the hustle about sending food back.

Anyway, moving on to our food....

We've always wanted to try emu, so we (particularly The Boyfriend) were quite excited to find emu burger on the menu.

The burger was pretty good - bun had a crispy exterior yet still fluffy on the inside, and the patty although a little dry, was not at all gamy as I was initially fearful might be the case.

Although I'd much prefer melted cheese, it went really well with the feta and onion jam.

I also wanted something sweet that morning so we ordered the brioche french toast from the specials menu.

Served with two dollops of mango mousse (which didn't take long to melt and could do with more), walnuts and puffed grains, the french toast was pretty alright albeit a tad burnt.

So yes, while the food was decent, service was awfully slow. Friendly but slow. We waited a gooooooooood while and my tummy was rumbling away.

As for the interior, there were only a couple of high tables, a main communal table and only high stools which I found was a tad uncomfortable, I kept shifting about my chair.

Oh, and the loud music. Boy, it was so loud that I could barely hear The Boyfriend. I felt like I was in a night bar or something! So well, for these reasons, I won't be rushing back.

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I am usually the one to decide where to eat, but one day, The Boyfriend said to me, "Let's go to Cafe Carpenter. Uncle Andy took me there whilst you were holidaying in Malaysia and the food is good. Korean & Jap, I think you'll like it."

My ears perked up like a puppy when I heard the word "Korean" hehehe. Yes, I am obsessed with K-food at the moment, I can't seem to get enough. So I was like yeah sure, why not!

I really liked the bright wooden interior and how cozy it felt. Wooden benches paired with rugs and bright, colourful pillows, you could almost just sit back and relax, like you would at home.

Even the menu was very interesting. I've never had Korean or Japanese done brekkie/brunch style - so I was intrigued.

Unfortunately though, they ran outta bread and wasn't serving brekkie/brunch that day. :( Well I guess that's a good excuse to return!

We proceeded with lunch instead, and decided to order a dish from the Japanese menu and another from the Korean menu.

The Boyfriend highly recommended the takoyaki balls. He even claimed this to be the best he has had. Well, it did not disappoint.

The takoyaki balls were soft and gooey on the inside, with a perfect exterior crisp - simply delicious!

We also ordered a Korean Beef BBQ, thinking it would be like beef bulgogi. Needless to say we were a little taken aback when the dish arrived as we totally did not expect to be served with a beef patty.

I was skeptical at first, but all it took was one bite to completely change my perception. The patty was not only tender and moist, it was so darn bloody tasty and full of flavour. I was impressed!

I have to however point out that food may take a while to arrive because the cafe is ran only by the hardworking owners (husband and wife). They do everything; from taking orders, to serving water/drinks, taking care of food preparation and even cooking.

But the delicious and well-presented food was well worth the wait. Big thumbs up from us! I will definitely be back again, on days when I am not too hungry so I wouldn't mind the wait hehe.

If you're after something different for brekkie/brunch, then you should definitely pop Cafe Carpenter on your to-eat-list.

The owners are very friendly and go out of their way to ensure that you're being well taken care of. Paired with unique homey food and the good comfortable vibe that the cafe offers... Tick, tick, tick. ;)