Dench II

February 18, 2012

Dench Bakery needs no real introduction - it's been one of Melbourne's best bread makers for years now, churning out delicious loaves that pop up on cafe menus all over town. Their own cafe is no slouch either, consistently serving up top-notch brekkies, decent coffee and wonderful baked goods. The one downside? Dench has never been particularly vegan-friendly - it's been an eggy, buttery kind of menu (although Carla did manage to cobble together a pretty decent meal). So it was with some enthusiasm that we spotted a new vegan and gluten-free option on offer - scrambled tofu with shitake, spring onion, beetroot relish, sesame and tamari ($16.50).

I was a bit surprised that it came out without toast - especially seeing as Dench now offer gluten-free (and vegan-friendly!) toast as an option. Still, that's a minor complaint - the chunky tofu complimented by three big blobs of sweet beetroot relish and a smoky, salty dressing combining sesame oil and tamari. It's great that Dench are offering up some dishes for restricted diets and even better that they're doing such a good job of it. Recommended! They're always busy but there were loads of friendly and efficient staff buzzing around - it's a consistently excellent breakfast experience.

____________

Read about our previous visit to Dench here.

Dench has received uniformly positive reviews (with a few minor service gripes) from: KatKat Tales, Almost Always Ravenous, The Guilty Stomach, Sarah Cooks, Boo in London, Boy Meets Girl Meets Food, Jentopia, Lady and the Fork, Eat Drink and Be Merry, my delicious blog, Melbourne Larder, slicing almonds and zesting lemons and easy as vegan pie.

____________

Dench Bakery
109 Scotchmer St, North Fitzroy
9486 3554
veg brekkies from $5.50 - $18.50
http://www.denchbakers.com.au/

Accessibility: One of the two doorways has a ramp entry, although the interior is fairly crowded. You can order and pay at the table but you'll need to negotiate a highish counter if you're ordering bread or other treats to takeaway.