Food story: Coin Laundry

I finally got around to Coin Laundry the other day, which is one of the more famous brunch spots on the South-East side of the outer city areas in Melbourne. I'd been hearing awesome stories about the concept of the space and about the actual food (Banana bread :D) So I was pretty ecstatic when my old roommate suggested we have our catch up session there. Here's what I thought about the place: 

Coin Laundry

Such a cool building - it use to be a real coin laundry!

They never took down the sign, so it became the cafe name :D

The communal table :)

The Coin Laundry breakfast

What's on the plate?

My friend had corn and cheese fritters

Banana bread with Expresso butter

Just couldn't get enough of this one :D

Pictures of cool people doing the laundry? :D

The space

Front of the cafe + counter :)

Cupcakes and pasteries!

I liked the random pot plants on the windowsill

Looking at the front :D

Cool wall

The Tea towel ceiling!

Cafe: Of all the cafes I've been to so far, Coin Laundry has had the smartest approach to their space. The cafe gets its name from the sign hanging just outside its building, which was left there during the building's transformation from a laundromat to a cafe. This has been a wonderful selling point for this place, a 'cool' factor, which is often brought up when people talk about Coin Laundry. In regards to the actual space, the cafe is bright and airy, with lively ambiance. It's not an incredibly big space, but there are enough tables inside and out for a big brunch gathering (There's also a communal table right in the middle). They've decorated the place in a lovely way, with its laundromat history used as a theme. Look out for the tea towel ceiling and interesting prints of people doing their laundry :) And don't forget to take a peek at the counter as you pay - there's heaps of pastries and cupcakes that you might want to try before you go.

Customer service: The staff were attentive and focused and everything came out right and on time. I guess if you're looking for super-friendliness, most of the guys there were a little vacant in that department. But I did encounter a waitress who was very friendly on one of my visits, and while I don't expect everyone to be like that, it did add a little bit to my experience :)

Food: I had the Coin Laundry breakfast, which was very filling, but not particularly unique for a big breakfast. The beetroot relish was different, but I quickly discovered that it wasn't really my thing. The eggs were a bit too sour for my liking (probably vinegar), but I did enjoy the lemony-avocado that was on my plate. My friend tried something interesting: Corn and cheese fritters. Her plate looked lovely. The taste verdict? She thought they might have overdone it a little on the acidity. But I actually liked her corn fritters quite a bit. They were thick little patties full of corn and cheese :) But I wasn't so sure of the food here until I tried the Banana bread with Espresso butter. It is THE BEST dish at Coin Laundry for me. I think it was more like Banana cake, but it came out nice and warm and smelling of Banana. It was also very soft and there weren't too many walnuts to destroy that texture. And the generous serving of Espresso butter was very creamy, melted very nicely and gave it a wonderful coffee scent. So overall food verdict: I'd probably go back for more Banana bread and maybe fruit toast, but not for the Coin laundry breakfast. I'd probably recommend one of the more exotic dishes too (like corn fritters) because there's quite a few on the menu :)

Price range: $6-$20

With thanks to: My awesome roomie, Lisa

Address: 61 Armadale St, Armadale 3143

Website: Nil, but check out its urbanspoon page here:

http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/71/1547260/restaurant/Victoria/Coin-Laundry-Cafe-Armadale