Dawson

The Verdict

If you haven’t heard of this place yet, grab a pen. You’re gonna want to take notes. Melbourne, meet Dawson, the latest venue to join the city’s all-day food brigade.

Swing by here at 10am and you’ll find young Kew couples and mums sipping lattes, enjoying the sun and chowing down on some pretty outrageous brunch (we’ll get to that in a sec). After dark it’s a different story. The lights dim, the menu morphs, and out come the Mojitos.

It’s a joint project between two of the city’s most exciting young foodie chefs: Emily Wood (Saint Crispin, Light Years) and Majid Jreige (Ezard). When their powers combine...that’s when the fun begins.

One look at Dawson’s menu and you know you’re in for a good time. There’s a bacon and egg roll—sure—but this one comes with lashings of chilli jam and a bloody hash brown. The Benedict opts for beef cheek, and sits on top of a house made sweet potato & pecorino cheese waffle.

And did we mention the Pina Colada hotcakes? Hands down one of the best things we’ve eaten all year. Fluffy clouds topped with grilled pineapple, pineapple curd, coconut ice-cream, freakin’ white choc ganache and a killer coconut crumble. Tastes like someone’s hosting a Tikki beach party in your mouth.  

Emily and Majid have inherited something else pretty special from the former tenants—the Ferrari of pizza ovens, the famed Kuma Forni. There are only a couple of these rotating stone-based behemoths in Australia, and it pumps out some epic pizzas. The Funghi with wild mushrooms and truffle oil is our personal fave, but we know you’re gonna order a slice of the pulled lamb. Make sure to get a side of saganaki when you do—it comes out hissing and spluttering, topped with grilled peaches and orange blossom honey.

Kew, you just won the cafe lottery. Congrats. 

Image credit: Jenna Fahey-White