Maddox II

Edit 04/01/2023: Maddox is now permanently closed.

Edit 17/09/2023: This shopfront now houses Bar Magnolia.

November 10, 2013

Our first visit to Maddox was during Vegan Mofo and we were pretty happy with the vegan brekkies they served up for us. We were also quite taken by the range of eggier menu items, so we ventured back on the weekend ready to sample more widely.

The main reason we'd come back was the banana-stuffed brioche French toast with sweet labne, winter fruit salad and maple syrup ($16).

Cindy had no hesitation in ordering it - there was never really any question. The French toast itself was pretty great - not too eggy, nicely stuffed with sliced banana with some sweet but tangy labne. The fruit salad let the side down a bit though - some of the fruit was bruised, the rhubarb wasn't cooked very well and it was all a bit half-hearted. A bit of a shame given Cindy's enthusiasm for the main piece of the dish - maybe it's time to move onto a spring fruit salad.

I went for the buttered eggs on toasted Turkish bread with spiced yoghurt, pink onions, fresh chilli and mint ($13.50).

I wasn't really sure what to expect - for some reason I assumed buttered eggs would be scrambled, but they seem to just be eggs fried in butter, with a buttery onion mix on top. Hilariously, in googling to try to find a definition of buttered eggs, I turned up this recipe. Looks pretty familiar. The main thing to note is that they were delicious - a few blobs of tart and spicy yoghurt to cut through the butter, some sweetness from the onions and perfectly cooked eggs. I'd definitely order this again (or maybe just make it at home!).

I had a nice coffee, but Cindy's chai never arrived (for which the staff were very apologetic). Sitting at the front table with a brief burst of Melbourne sunshine streaming in, Maddox felt like the best place in Brunswick to be starting the day. There's lots to like about it - the staff are lovely, the cabinets are stuffed with wonderful-looking sweets, sandwiches and other goodies, and the food is pretty good. It's got lots of tough competition in the neighbourhood, but I think Maddox will find its way into our brekkie rotation quite regularly.

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Nobody else seems to have reviewed Maddox since our first visit.

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Maddox
295 Sydney Road, Brunswick
9041 5650
veg breakfasts $5-15
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Accessibility: Tables are closely packed but efforts have been made, including ramps replacing steps and a large unisex toilet with handrails. We ordered at our table and paid at a low-ish counter.