Three Girls and Three Bags Full
Ok. This post is serious. I am seriously in love.
I know, I know, I proclaim my love often on this blog. For food. And Ben too, but typically I am shouting from the rooftops how much I adore this recipe or that. So I urge you to please not think I hand out my love freely. I'm not like that, I am a lady.
Ok, so now we're all on the same page.
I don’t quite know how to articulate how much I adore the dish I ate for breakfast at Three Bags Full last Sunday. My girlfriends are also suffering from this dilemma. When we explain where we went, what we ate and how delicious it was, people don’t seem to understand. We show them photographic evidence on our iphones, but they still don’t get it. If they did, we’d all be over there together eating. Like, now.
This is how it all began...
I saw Allan’s blog post about his breakfast at Three Bags Full in Abbotsford.
I saw a dish that made my heart skip a beat.
“Right”, I said to myself, “when is the soonest possible time I can visit this place?” My girlfriends and I were having brunch on Sunday, so naturally this seemed like the perfect opportunity. There was one problem though…this dish was listed as a “special”, and this was about a month ago. How long can a special last?
Well, evidently this dish was more than special, as it was still on their specials list when I visited. Phew. Although having said that, I was overwhelmed with the ridiculous amount of to-die-for sounding menu items, like the Baghdad Eggs and the Pea, Feta and Corn Fritters. Next time I’ll try to go savoury, and order one of their beautiful egg dishes. Actually who am I kidding?...I will almost certainly be repeating my order of...
Black Sticky Gingerbread
Hang on... what did I just say? Oh, that's right,
Black Sticky Gingerbread
Yes, I know, I know.
And it tasted as good as it sounds.
Incredibly sweet, but pure perfection. The thick, moist, sticky chunks of melt-in-your-mouth gingerbread were just incredible. While only modestly spiced, the flavour was just spot on. The mascarpone was a very friendly addition, the more subtle sweetness complimenting the gingerbread perfectly. The drizzle of marmalade-like compote and pistachios on top were the ideal finishing touch, for a bit of tartness and crunch.
Oh, dear gingerbread, please stay special so I can order you again. Ever yours, Heidi.
Vicki chose the roasted mushrooms with goats cheese and almond dukkah, which were fantastic. The mushrooms were cooked absolutely perfectly, so meaty, and almond dukkah was heavenly.
Peta ordered the other special, the French Toast with crème patissier, almonds and quince. The toast was incredibly light and fluffy. It tasted like brioche but it certainly wasn't overly rich or heavy. And the quince were just perfection.
The coffee was outstanding - a top quality cup, which we come to expect at a top Melbourne cafe like this.
We all ate our meals in pure and utter rapture. We instantly forgot our 45 minute wait in the cold to get a table (true story), and resolved to go back asap. In fact I tried to wrangle my parents (who live in Red Hill) into meeting me for breakfast there today. No dice. I tried my brother, no luck there either. He apparently had plans - doesn't he understand the gravity of the situation? *sigh* Maybe I should have gone solo. Vicki went back today. I'm having strong feelings of jealousy and bitterness towards you, Vicki. I hope this doesn't affect our friendship...order the gingerbread, for me, and I'll forgive you.