grigons + orr iii, north melbourne

Fi and I had planned to visit the new Mister Nice Guy restaurant for brunch, on the grounds that it would probably be totally amazing! Unfortunately they've had to temporarily change their opening hours, so they are currently not doing breakfast.

Saddened but undeterred, we arranged to meet at Grigon's & Orr instead, handily located a comfortable walk away from Fi's work.

Scramble tofu is a love that both Fi and I share, and it was with great glee, following her recent disappointment at Cafe Flaunt, that we discovered the scrambled tofu was still to be found on the Grigon's & Orr menu. So we both ordered it.


iphone, why such a terrible photo?

The tofu scramble looks small, but those looks can be deceiving. I rolled out of there afterwards uncomfortably full; almost (ALMOST) too full for a walk and Mister Nice Guy cupcakes at Dymocks. The scramble has a sweeter flavour to it, and is served on delicious crunch bread with spinach. It is totally worth it and I love it a lot.

Post the start of the 9-5 work day, the service was friendly and prompt, and it was a lovely morning adventuring through North Melbourne.


previous visits: one, one point five, two.



Grigons & Orr
Corner of Queensberry St and Chetwynd St
North Melbourne
Open every day

gluten free available

street parking available, accessible via a 5-7 minute walk from the nearest tram stop (route 57). heaps of space to move outside, but maneuverability inside is difficult.

grigons + orr ii, north melbourne

Last post about the long weekend! And what a tasty one it is, too. On Tuesday morning we ventured across to Grigons and Orr in North Melbourne. I've eaten at Grigon's and Orr a couple of times, and was delighted to find that the menu has extended to include a few more vegan options than previously.



I went for the tofu scramble. This scramble contained roasted red capsicum, with spinach and I think some pesto, on gluten free toast. It was light, but just filling enough, and was quite tasty. I liked it! Would nom again.



Danni went for the cous cous porridge. It was a bit drier than last time we ate it, and the serving size appears to have been reduced to a manageable size (this is not a bad thing - it was so huge I couldn't finish it previously!). Still, the goji berries added something lovely, and I would eat this one again also.



Christine ordered the vegie stack and a side of toast. This was a massive effort on her part! The vegie stack was topped with the marinated tofu that features elsewhere on the menu, and was piled high with some delicious vegetables. Reports are that this was good! Please note that this is not menu-vegan, you need to specify this to be vegan.

Good times!

visit one.

Grigons & Orr
Corner of Queensberry St and Chetwynd St
North Melbourne
Open every day

gluten free available

out and about; or, CNY noms with my family

The first thing we did with my family, of course, was go in hunt of some noodles to share. We wanted to go to Idea Fine Foods for their excellent combination of CNY and noodles but, alas, they have closed! Warm and hungry and slightly grumpy, we turned around and went to the Thai restaurant across the road, Sawasdee.

Up the stairs we found the mezzanine busy, but were quickly seated even without a reservation. Our waiter claimed that there was no fish sauce or shrimp paste in the vegetarian curry, so we took him at his word and ordered a green tofu curry and a dish of noodles. The curry was spicy but quite flavoursome, and it was a good meal. And there was a guy playing a piano! Which made me laugh.



On Sunday we jumped on the train and ventured out to Box Hill for yum cha. We were excited! I love going to Vegie Hut for a nice combination of yum cha menu and lunch menu, but upon our arrival we were disappointed to find out that, due to CNY, there was no lunch menu available! Only limited yum cha, and a special Chinese New Year menu. We can eat a CNY menu anywhere, we were there for yum cha! No radish cakes, no taro cakes, which was a bit disappointing, and if you can't order noodles than what is the point? Still, the grilled dumplings were good, as was the sticky rice, and we finally tried the four seasons buns. A word to vegans - the green bun is definitely kaya, which always contains egg (it is next on my list of Malaysian treats to veganise).

We ended up at Penang Affair on Brunswick Street for dinner. The uncle there was delighted to meet my mother, with whom he immediately started chatting (in Hokkien) to work out if they knew any of the same people (they did not, although they did remember the same restaurants of the streets of Georgetown some forty years ago).

My parents started with some popiah (vegatarian but contains egg so not vegan), which mum declared 'okay, not quite soft enough.'



Of course (of course!) we ordered a CKT, because I love the CKTs available at Penang Affair. We also ordered a couple of serves of roti, a sayor campor, and a really great gulai campor. The gulai campor was seriously delicious, and went perfectly with the roti. I also ordered a spectacular cocktail, containing a whole lot of fresh chillies, that was a little too much for me to finish.

Monday morning saw us at Grigons and Orr, to which I have been eager to return since our first visit in December. I ordered the pan-fried tofu in soy sauce, with a side of baked beans. It was delicious, but I'll be honest - it was nowhere near as delicious as the cous cous porridge of my previous visit. Orange juice was pretty tasty, and Julie really liked her mushrooms and toast (and her hashbrowns, which are not suitable for vegans).



We adventured out to St Kilda, where we had lunch at Lentil As Anything. My mum had watched a documentary (or something?) on Lentil as Anything, and was saddened to hear he was running out of money so was particularly interested in going. There were a lot of things not on the menu on Monday, and we suspect it's because their vegetable delivery had yet to arrive (it turned up as we were leaving). So my parents shared the mixed curry plate, and Julie and I both ordered the okonomiyaki. It was massive! Delicious, but massive, I had to grab a container from the Spud Bar next door and take the remainder home!



For Monday dinner we hit up Shakahari, dressing up and ordering cocktails. Danni and I shared the potato gnocci which was served in a tamari sauce with snow peas - it was odd but tasty. My parents shared the soup of the day, it had almonds and broccolini which didn't appeal to me but was apparently very good.

For mains I tackled the 'memory of medina,' cous cous with an eggplant curry. My mother, Malaysian to the core, picked the Malaysian curry. Danni and my sister both opted for the pie, filled with mushrooms and accompanied by giant garden salads. All verdicts were good, and my father decided that this was the best vegetarian restaurant I had brought him to all weekend, which is a compliment I suppose.

Then on to dessert, for which I was glad I had kept room, for Danni and I shared the mango rice pudding and it was delicious, oh so lovely. My parents had the fruit crumble which was light and tasty, and my sister the mango sorbet. Mangos all around! As it should be.



On Tuesday I took them to the airport, and that was the end of our CNY adventures with my parents (not, of course, the end of CNY adventures as there is yet time!)! It was super awesome that they were able to come across to share noodles and traditions with us, and bring us CNY goodies and an adorable tiger, as is custom.

There could have been more noodles, though.



Sawasdee
Level 1 139 Little Bourke Street
Melbourne

Vegie Hut
984 Whitehorse Rd
Box Hill

Penang Affair
325 Brunswick St
Fitzroy

Grigons & Orr
Corner of Queensberry St and Chetwynd St
North Melbourne

Lentil As Anything
41 Blessington St
St Kilda

Shakahari
201-203 Faraday St
Carlton

Grigons + Orr, North Melbourne

Yesterday was D's birthday, so we celebrated by going out for breakfast at Grigons & Orr Corner Store, in North Melbourne. This was delightful little cafe was recommended to us by Meveg in my request for recommendations, and seconded by Lidia.

It was amazing! I will absolutely be going back there again, it was so good.



Grigons & Orr is this tiny little corner store. There are only three very small tables inside, but several more outside, and there were blankets out for use. We managed to snag a table inside, next to the fridges stocked with the usual soft drinks as well as things like Cherry Coke. Behind the bar, the shelves were stocked to the ceiling (literally - they required a ladder to get things down) with corner store items, like matches, soap, and coconut milk.



We were promptly seated and served a jar of strawberry water. After much deliberation, we were able to order, and our waiter was very helpful.



Greg's pot of tea came with a matching tea cup, which I liked! I love these types of pots. Kind of old-school ugly, but also kind of cool. D had a soy flat white (they have bonsoy), and I went for a hot chocolate.



After a very short wait, our food arrived. D ordered the crispy pan-fried tofu with spinach, mushrooms, and spice infused soy sauce dressing (the menu online says honey, but this is no longer in the sauce, so it is all good for vegans!). The tofu is also coated in sesame seeds. This dish was so delicious, I am definitely going to order this next. D found its quantity very slightly lacking, which was fine, because I found my dish way too much, so there was plenty left over.



I ordered the cous cous porridge with coconut cream, goji berries, toasted almonds and shaved coconut. This was enormous and amazing. So good! It comes with honey, but you can get agave honey, which I chose not to get but I think the addition would have made this dish stupendous. I am not a big fan of cous cous but it wasn't really cous cous-y at all, it was just delicious. The coconut flavour wasn't overwhelming, it was just rich and slightly sweet, and the addition of the almonds and shaved coconut added a crunch to the porridge and it was brilliant. I must eat this again.

For those who are not vegan, G ordered the apple fritters with marscapone, which he really enjoyed, and the wider menu includes other fun-looking options and sides (including a snickers milk shake). Gluten Free options are available.

Brilliant! Highly recommended.

Grigons & Orr
Corner of Queensberry St and Chetwynd St
North Melbourne
Open every day