There’s a backstreet bakery doing pies with “an Aussie look but a Vietnamese soul”, a shop putting modern Vietnamese coffee front and centre, and more.
Melbourne is brimming with old-school Vietnamese bakeries that have been serving banh mi for decades. But Van Son “Steve” Nguyen saw room for something new-school.
“We have so many modern Japanese, Korean, Thai bakeries and brunch spots, but we don’t see so much Vietnamese in the mix,” he says. So, along with his wife Diep Anh “Cassie” Tran, he’s opened their dream bakery, the innovative May Bakes, in Richmond.
In nearby Abbotsford, Quoc Bao Truong, owner of Groove coffee shop, had a similar motivation. “Basic Vietnamese [drip] coffee is everywhere in Melbourne,” he says. But what’s not? “The kind of specialty coffees you get at modern cafes in Vietnam today.”
Here are five recently opened Vietnamese coffee shops, bakeries and cafes around Melbourne to try.
May Bakes, Richmond
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Behold the deliciously messy “pho-wich”. A salted bun is swiped with pâté made to a family recipe, heaped with red-wine braised beef brisket known as bo sot vang and paired with a cup of pho for dipping and/or sipping. That brisket also fills house-baked banh goi, or what Nguyen describes as “hand pies”, which “have an Aussie look but a Vietnamese soul”. Rug up to sit in the alfresco area or head upstairs to the cosy dining room, getting a bird’s-eye view of the bakery on the way.
24/2-6 New Street, Richmond, instagram.com/maybakes.melb
Groove, Abbotsford
Just off the Vietnamese hub that is Victoria Street, this industrial-chic coffee shop has 40-plus specialty drinks. The signature? Ca phe trung, a famous Hanoi-style coffee that’s topped with a velvety, cloud-like foam of whisked egg yolk and condensed milk. And the most popular? An iced coffee defined by its head of sweet, salted Vietnamese-imported whipping cream. Also find various matchas and iced teas, plus burnt Basque cheesecake.
17 Lithgow Street, Abbotsford, instagram.com/groove.mel
Umee, CBD
This homey hideaway is in a bluestone building a stone’s throw from Southern Cross Station. Perch on a stool and escape the frenzy. The Via Porta-stocked pastry cabinet doesn’t scream Vietnamese, but the drinks do, with a list transporting you to Vietnam’s cities via their signature coffees, from Hanoi’s egg coffee to Hue’s salted cream coffee.
585 Little Collins Street, Melbourne, instagram.com/umeecafe.melb
Phined, North Melbourne
A phin is a quintessential coffee-brewing tool in Vietnam, so you can guess what this place is all about. In the old Lumen People site, blends by local coffee roaster Code Black are used in Vietnamese drinks. Illustrations of each hang on the wall, with explanations. Try the Rice Coco, a coconutty, caffeinated slush with roasted green rice flakes.
522A Victoria Street, North Melbourne, instagram.com/phined.coffee
Be Oi, Mount Waverley
Joyous yellows and blues are splashed across corner cafe Be Oi, which expresses its Vietnamese heritage through all kinds of dishes and drinks. Expect classic com tam, the dish of broken rice with a grilled pork chop, and less-classic croissants stuffed with lemongrass-marinated chicken. It also stocks bars of Vietnamese chocolate by Marou, including one flavoured with pho spices.
1 Barlyn Road, Mount Waverley, instagram.com/beoi.cafe
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