Girl Next Door
Tolarno Hotel, 42 Fitzroy Street, St Kilda
0403 171 613
Cafe
$$
Food
- Honey Mint Smoothie
- Banana Cinnamon Smoothie
- Watermleon Crush Smoothie
- Lime & Coconut Muffin
- White Choc & Macadamia Muffin
- Raspberry & White Choc Muffin
- Green Breakfast Bowl
- White Breakfast Bowl
- Pink Breakfast Bowl
- Cornetto
- Best Beans Around
- Homemade Roasted Nut Granola
- Pulled Beef Sandwich
The Good
The Best Beans Around certainly held true to their name. These slow-cooked fagioli beans were probably the highlight of the breakfast for me. Cooked in a rich and exceedingly palatable rich tomato-based sauce, the beans had flawless consistency, providing a beautiful texture without being mushy. Combined with the generous chunks of mozzarella cheese, this went extremely well with the lightly toasted sourdough. Fantastic!
Stacked high, one on top of another, these Pulled Beef Sandwiches were unsurprisingly a crowd favourite. Roasted for 8 hours to perfection, the beef within simply fell apart with each bite. Held together by a generous amount of cheddar cheese, this meaty, cheesey combination was made even more palatable by the exceedingly crunchy toast that sandwiched the ingredients together. This juicy and boldly flavoured sandwich was a great hearty way to get over your hangover.
All the Breakfast Bowls were rather remarkable and were perhaps some of the most beautifully presented breakfast. Destroying these works of art reveal a heap of fresh, quality fruits piled on top of a fluffy bed of ricotta cheese. The freshness of the ingredients were undeniably sharp and forward. Combined with the vanilla infused ricotta, which was a personal favourite, the abundance of freshly sliced, wholesome fruits was made further sweeter by the rich flavourful syrup. The granola here deserves a special mention, which was incredibly crunchy and light while exhibiting a fragrant and aromatic, juxtaposing the soft creamy ricotta and fruits.
The Italian Croissants were beautiful. Light and airy with a flakey and crunchy outer, these traditional buttery pastries were a welcome addition to this already flavourful breakfast
The Mediocre
While the Homemade Roasted Nut Granola was exceptionally presented and was very appealing, the execution fell a tad short. Served in a tall glass, it proved to be quite difficult to access the yoghurt hidden underneath all the fresh fruits and granola. The Roasted Nut Granola itself was nothing short of spectacular though. Crunchy, light and extremely fragrant, this was a healthy yet delicious addition to any yoghurt and I could easily chomp down on just the granola by itself.
The Bad
The muffins were unfortunately not to my taste. The flavour combinations, in my opinion, were not well complemented. They also tended to be rather dense and in some cases, dry, resulting in a less than ideal sweet treat.
The Verdict
While it's encouraging to see restaurants putting a healthier twist on traditional breakfast items, the food that really shone today were the unapologetically hearty and wholesome foods like baked beans and the pulled beef sandwich. Admittedly though, I thoroughly enjoyed the Breakfast Bowls too and they were undoubtedly a very presentable, and healthy breakfast.
However, one must first learn to walk before they can run. As the new kid on the block, there are definitely some kinks in staples like coffees and muffins that needs to be ironed out before The Girl Next Door can really shine as a breakfast joint.
Would Penguin Eat Again?
Absolutely. That Pulled Beef Sandwich was absolutely stunning and I'd grab loads more of that, balanced out with some healthier Breakfast Bowls of course!
I'd like to thank The Girl Next Door for inviting us to their launch, and I am extremely excited for the re-invigoration of Fitzroy Street and what it's yet to become.