Code Black Coffee

Posted by Unknown on Tuesday, February 03, 2015 with 1 comment
From the team that brought us Code Black in Brunswick comes the new kid on the Block, Code Black on Howard Street in North Melbourne. After four long years of development, the soft-hued space with its pastel tones, lofty stools and blonde wood is finally up and running.

Naturally, Maggie, Peach and I rummaged through our diaries to find a suitable date for us to check it out. Unsurprisingly, this newbie came with a waiting line of 45 minutes.


In time, we finally nabbed ourselves a table and put in our orders for some caffeine and food to settle our rumbling stomaches. The waiting game had resumed, this time round extending our hanger levels with another 30 minute wait. I blame Broadsheet.


Skinny Flat White

  
Black Beans with Jalapeño Cornbread

From the softly smoked black beans with a subtle kick, perfect sunny-side up egg with yolk still completely liquid to the grilled lime – it was simple food cooked well with flavours that packed a punch. I adored their addition of cornbread, bursting with corn kernels which were a much welcomed change from your standard sourdough. Though it was a shame that I couldn't see or taste any jalapeño in my cornbread.


Salt-baked Chicken Salad

Peach stuck with her #cleaneating and went for a light salad consisting of salt-baked chicken, chilli, lime, avocado, watercress, red onion, tomato, herbs and an added poached egg for extra protein.  

  
 Seared Tuna Salad

Following suit, Maggie too went for a salad, opting for the zesty herb-crusted tuna delicately seared rare, served with cucumber, snow pea tendrils, bok choy, chia, millet and a drizzle of Asian dressing. And brunch would not be brunch without eggs, so an added poached egg was a must for Maggie too.

For both dishes I only had a small nibble, but I found that both dishes paled in comparison to my beans, with both salads rather lacking and erred on the blander side of things. At the same time, it does seem unfair to measure up a salad to a full-bodied dish of beans. Luckily for me (not so much the others), this meant no food envy for me this time around.

The food here at Code Black Coffee leans towards lighter and cleaner flavours, appealing to the more health conscious. Service was here and there but hey, these guys are new to the area and still finding their feet. Nonetheless, I enjoyed my visit, though I’m not sure if I can say the same for my brunch buddies. 


Code Black Coffee
119 Howard Street 
North Melbourne, VIC 3051

Code Black Coffee on Urbanspoon