The Kettle Black South Melbourne

The Kettle Black in South Melbourne is another product of The Darling Group that sits within a unique 1880’s heritage listed terrace house that has been catapulted into the 21st century with a sleek modern interior.

The building has an elegant, modern finish which almost promotes the want to converse or — strangely enough — productivity.

The space spans across multiple levels. I’ve never been to the upper floor myself, but it is eligible as part of the event spaces available for hire.

On our trip, Tomoyo and I sat in for a late morning breakfast. There is something nice and peaceful about heading to cafes after the morning rush. We both admired the cafés installations and we spoke a lot about the clientele at the time — business folk who looked to be either wining and dining clients or looking for an excuse to take their meetings to someone more desirable than their offices.

For our belated breakfast: Tomoyo got their Maple Bacon Eggs Benedict, while I went for a Pastrami Hash. Both are part of their all-day menu and both were surprisingly filling given their sizing (in contrast to other Australian cafés).

For our coffee fix, both of us opted in for almond lattes, although I think we are both considering branching out more (at least I am — I make enough of them at home and should do it for our blog’s namesake). As with our previous Darling Group trip to Higher Ground, they also did offer a tasting coffee tasting board for those who are serious about their beans.

If you’re planning to go on a weekend, it might be best to book ahead!

They also have an espresso bar with an assortment of foods out the front for those on the go.

For more inspiration, check their Instagram page.

The Kettle Black in South Melbourne blends the grand, classic design of an 1880s terrace house with cutting-edge modern architecture and design.

In Japanese, “terrace house” makes a lot of people think of that famous Netflix show, but in English it means a row of houses joined together side by side.

They may be joined, but in Australia many of them have glamorous facades full of history.

It’s one of the cafes from the Darling Group, who are behind famous cafes like Top Paddock and Higher Ground.

The facade alone gets you excited before you even walk in.

Inside, the space opens up to the left and right, it’s full of greenery, and natural light pours in.

This time I ordered an almond latte and the maple bacon benedict.

The maple bacon benedict was just what you’d expect: lightly sweet bacon, a tangy benedict sauce and runny eggs all go together beautifully. Hidden underneath is a hash brown.

The almond latte was nicely balanced too, in latte art, sweetness and coffee bitterness.

Their Instagram is here.