Friends On The Hill

This place is alive and bustling. Many of the locals here this morning. Service was friendly and delivery of food, prompt. The coffee was a bit bitter and the bottom slice of bread (egg and bacon sandwich) was soggy and saturated in fat. It was, however, value for money and very tasty. No skimping on bacon, which was nice.

Really nice little cafe up in the hills. This place has become my go to pit stop destination when I’m out riding my bike to grab a quick bite to eat and coffee.

Stopped in for lunch after picking berries in Silvan. House made mushroom gnocchi was rated sensational from the dear wife. Packed with flavour and plentiful. I had chicken and avocado focaccia with a beautiful side salad that had a zesty vinaigrette dressing. Salad was cut small which makes it so much more enjoyable. Bowl full of chips and a blue heaven milkshake for the little man and he was sold.
Pleasant service from the ladies and a welcome greeting from the owner. Whenever in the Mountains it will include a visit to this great little cafe.

Always a delight to dine here. Food is always consistantly amazing. Coffee outstanding. Pleasant, relaxing environment with the removed suburb feel. Waitresses are always friendly and both breakfast and main menu are tantalising on the tastebuds! We always come back for more

Outstanding Breakfast. Gluten Free Delight. Our table of 4 had 2 coeliacs - gluten free diners.
As parents of coeliacs it had always been heartbreaking to go out to a restaurant when the options for gluten free are limited, and to see the disappointment on the faces of our kids. For this reason over the last few years we've seldom had our kids dine out with us.
On a previous visit we saw 'Friends has a new menu with mostly gluten free options, we told our two so they came.
Well it was an outstanding success!
Our oldest is a frequent visitor to cafe's for breakfast in South Yarra, Camberwell, Surrey Hills. All 'up market' and somewhat trendy areas. He commented his breakfast was just as good if not better.
You have to appreciate Monbulk to realize this is a huge compliment - that in a town where signs ask 'please take off muddy boots' - that it should sport an eatery like this.
Also, our waitress Emily was extremely knowledgable on gluten free foods, but also, all the other allergies they cater for. It was a delight to not feel like a burden, rather, our coeliac kids felt like they were being cared for. She commented she has friends with special dietary requirements and also the chef's mother is a coeliac.
So, it's not lip service, its real and embraced. On further thought and reflection. I don' thing the gluten free thing is even a challenge - its 'just the way it is and we cater for it' - that was the attitude. Even to the extent, and it is a simple thing, that they quarantine some of the desserts so there will not be any contamination from air-borne flour.

Oh. Sorry. I didn't mention the food! Outstanding yet again.

I had mediterranean eggs. I was deeply disappointed when I finished as I was enjoying it so much! The poached eggs were 'spot on', not too runny, not too firm, so they covered the grainy toast (I got extra toast.... hint.... worthwhile). The home made baked beans and the beetroot relish had a delightful tangy complex flavor as a foil to the simple tastes of eggs and toast.

My wife and daughter had 'the works' which is aptly named. If you have a serious hunger then this is the breakfast for you. My wife and daughter chose this because it has some of everything which they wanted to sample. My daughter being a coeliac was delighted with the chicken sausage, which she told me a number of times, was delicious and she would love to have again. Both were unable to finish their meal but they enjoyed it mightly.

My picky coeliac son had the breakfast he usually gets at South Yarra by asking for a few options on a basic eggs on toast, hence, his comment that it was just like the best he had elsewhere. He tweeted a picture I noticed - so he probably liked it more than he wanted to admit to his parents. He is not a lad of many compliments!

To finish it off my daughters green tea, two servings, and my soy cappuccinos were spot on. Irina working flat out making cappuccinos made them nice and strong which suited me. Ideal.

All this on a Sunday morning in sleepy Monbulk. Excellent!


-----15 Mar, 2015-----

Yes. Always good to great.. We have been going to this little cafe in Monbulk since about 2003. W've seen it change ownership 3 times and I'm trying to think of a time when it has disappointed me. I don't think it ever has.
Today we had a poor experience elsewhere. We said 'lets get a cuppa at Friends'. Well it was outstanding! The table was clean and non-greasy or sticky (compared to where we had been and a point of concern), the service was rapid and attentive, and the strawberry cheesecake was OUTSTANDING. I'm not a huge fan of cheesecake but this one was light and tasty and the crust was delicious and not overcooked or clying. Simply ourstanding. In hindsight the only mistake was deciding to share with my wife. If I had known how good it was, we would have had a slice each!
Oh. On a previous visit we overdosed on their vanilla slices - take care if you get one - damn hard to stop eating when you really should have; feels great but the guilts do kick in.
I've taken buisness contacts from America there and not been disappointed one little bit. Their expectations from Monbulk were low (hey, sorry, its just a little country town with signs in the windows 'please take of muddy boots before entering') but 'Friends made them blink with the look on their faces of 'hey this is pretty durned good'.
The ambience is of a somewhat better small town cafe and they deliver on that. They position themselves well, then deliver a good range of really good food and the service is excellent from people who are caring and attentive and real.
It's maybe hard to define what I mean by 'real', but maybe it's that you can have a chat to them and have a happy experience. Maybe thats it. A happy experience. Friends!
My first and only criticism is that it can get a little expensive. Not overly so else I wouldn't go there, just a little. Other places are far more expensive (eg Olinda and like 'wow'). But then again, you only get (some of) what you pay for and 'Friends delivers good to great food, a fine atmosphere and excellent service. Hard to beat.
Go, enjoy, a nice place for a cuppa or a meal.