Hi friends! I was inspired to write this review for George Jones Eatery as it's the first place I've actually seen a "magic" coffee on the menu and of course, I tried one. And let me tell you, it was an experience. I know the whole Melbourne thing is the magic isn't on the menu, but if it's not there, I don't think about it. I also want to do a review of the BEST brunch spots I've been to in Melbourne, but I felt like this particular cafe wasn't anything that exciting but I did decide I was gonna give it its own post. But that's mainly because this post is going to be about me trying a magic coffee for the first time ever and if that's contradictory then so be it. And I do want to say there wasn't anything inherently wrong with the cafe, the customer service was good, the food was good, the atmosphere was good but it just didn't have that wow factor. Like I'd absolutely go back for coffee but it wouldn't be my first choice for brunch food, ya feel me.
George Jones Eatery is located at 15C Pascoe Street, Pascoe Vale, Melbourne. It's open every day for brunch, lunch, and dinner but make sure to check the times because the kitchen does close relatively early (like split days sorta thing). Their sister cafes are "Cheeky Monkey" in Richmond and "The Rubber Duck" in Clifton Hill. I've been to Cheeky Monkey and it's way better than George Jones (sorry) but I can't speak for The Rubber Duck Cafe because I've never been there.
I do just want to say that everything was well-priced (like your average Melbourne cafe prices) so it didn't feel too steep but also thanks Luke for buying brunch this weekend. They do also do puppachinos for $2.50 but we didn't find that out till the end. Benji demolished his first one, he loved it!
I was eyeing up the crepes on the menu because I feel like I just haven't had crepes in Melbourne (I think I had them once in the city) BUT every other time, some supernatural force has gotten in the way and now I'm regretting not getting them. But see, my problem is when I go out for brunch, I love both savoury and sweet, and every time I get something sweet, I regret not getting something savoury. And when I get something savoury, I feel a bit of FOMO when I see something sweet come out but I do feel better for the day and tend to have more energy. Anyway, let's get on to what we ordered.
So after eyeing up the crepes, I decided on the Benedict with Salmon and a magic coffee (because I didn't know what to expect and never had one before, as previously stated lol). Luke was trying to decide between the big breakfast and the Benedict and ultimately, he decided on the Benedict with Bacon and an added side of spinach. His drink of choice was a long black (surprise surprise) ;) hehe.
Prices were as follows (in AUD):
Benedict $22
Benedict $22 + extra spinach $5 so $27
Small magic coffee $4.30
Small long black $4.30
Puppachino $2.50
Total cost: $60.10
So not a bad price overall for two people, considering some places we've gone for brunch have been over $70 so when something is like $50-60 for a brunch, I feel good about it. I don't know why.
The menu seemed really good, well-balanced, and had a good range of food for different dietary requirements like plenty of GF, DF, and V/Vegan options on hand but we were really disappointed when the Benedict didn't have any bread with it. Now, we should have read the menu properly and realised that it just came with hash browns (but I've seen that on the menu before and it's still had bread with it at other places). The hash browns were my favourite part, and the food was cooked well. However, I found that they went a bit overboard with the amount of salmon. There was heaps of hollandaise sauce, which I loved and it also had onions on it, BUT personally, I would have preferred some sort of bread like an English Muffin or a piece of sourdough toast and no onions. I know you can ask for no onions and extras but these just weren't things I thought about at the time. Luke also agreed about the bread thing and I probably could have had a second meal because it didn't fill me up that much. So I just wish it was bigger. Maybe one day we'll go back and try some other food or go for dinner because I really believe everyone (and now everywhere) deserves a second chance. Luke said that he thinks George Jones Eatery has the best coffee in the area (like Pascoe Vale/Oak Park/Glenroy) so that's some pretty big shoes to fill.
Sidenote Luke walked here one day and brought me back a chai coffee and I would say I'm a bit of a princess when it comes to chai's - I like them spiced, NOT vanilla. I want to taste ALL the spices and maybe I should just start making them myself but that's effort ya know. Anyway, the chai was okay but the magic coffee was delicious.
Here's some photos:
From left to right: a small magic coffee, Salmon Benedict, Bacon Benedict + Spinach & long black
AND let's get on to my bloody thoughts on the magic because we all know, that's the real reason we're here right! So I want you to imagine you're drinking a flat white BUT it's got a really smooth texture and it's fluffy at the same time - like if a marshmallow melted into your coffee, but it's not marshmallow flavoured, it's coffee flavoured, like a coffee flavoured marshmallow. Oh my god, I just described a magic like that. I just can't think of any other way to describe it, but it was good and I'd absolutely order it again (and bonus it didn't hurt my tummy). So let me go to Google for a second here and help explain what a magic is because I know a lot of you won't know because I still don't quite get it BUT it's delish. So Google says that "Magic coffee is made when steamed milk is added to a double ristretto. It's better if the ristretto was made with espresso. The drink is normally served in a normal cup size- 160ml or 5oz cup. This is because it adds to the quantity of the ristretto. We’d say it is close to the flat white drink, but it's stronger"
Yeah I still don't really get it either, but it's yum and you should go try one when you're in Melbourne. I wonder what it'd be like as an espresso martini - would that even work? I need to find some barista friends. Or just watch some more YouTube videos and learn. Another random sidenote here is that I really want to get back into creating my foodie stuff, but I just haven't been motivated. Idk why. I think it might be the new kitchen (even though I've cooked in it and I did get quite excited about it when we first moved in but someone had the audacity to tell me "a big oven isn't that good" so maybe that's in the back of my mind.
Anyway, let's get on to the puppachino! So we saw a Frenchie and his owners order a puppachino so we decided to get one too for Benji to try as we don't really know what cafes do them. The Frenchie decided to throw his up but apparently, he just eats too fast, I think he was called Rambo or Ramen (soz I can't quite remember but his owners were nice) and while we were waiting for the puppachino, guess who showed up at the cafe, that guy who dumped Bailey the doggo on me and just refused to knock on anyone else's doors, ugh. He's got such a bad attitude and you could tell because he wasn't that nice to the staff at the takeaway counter. He was with a friend because I saw that same friend when we were walking back down our street. I dunno what his problem is but I didn't wanna talk to him. Anyway, once we started walking back, we decided to put Benji in air jail because he was being a bit mischievous eating his leash but once we were away from all the chaos, we let him try the puppachino and HE LOVED IT. Oh my god, he was so happy. It was like frothy milk and cream and I think it might have been warm. I was a bit worried it was going to hurt his tummy because corgis are known for their weak stomachs, but he did good, no upset tummy and one very happy doggo.
Here's a video of Benji with his puppachino!
And here's a photo of him with his milk moustache and mlem/blep!
Anyway, that's my thoughts on George Jones Eatery and my tldr is just that: good coffee, average food, good customer service and happy doggo!
Thanks so much for reading and I'll be sure to keep updating the blog. I just want to say I appreciate all your support so much and I want to make this my career so anyone who wants to read this and bookmark my blog, thank you! Thank you for all your support and positive words.
I hope you enjoyed this blog!
Much love,
Ash
Some extra Benji tax
LOL. BENJI looks like having the best time in the world! 😍