Nyala II

February 27, 2026

 

   

We're back for another Cheap Eats 2006 two decades on post, with a visit to Nyala African Restaurant in Fitzroy. We first visited Nyala in about 2004, before we even lived in Melbourne and we loved it so much that we revisited very early in our where's the beef era - October 2006. According to their website, Nyala was the first Ethiopian place in Melbourne and has been trading since 1987 - pretty impressive!

Since our 2006 visit Nyala has moved down the street, to a lovely, airy space above Masti on Brunswick Street, but otherwise things are pretty similar: Ethiopian food, friendly service and some delicious African beers. 

    

   

We started out with a dip combo plate: small serves of lentil dip, tahini dip and eggplant/turmeric dip served with mountain bread ($15). This is a great way to try all Nyala's dipping options - I think the red lentil one was my favourite, but you really can't go wrong with any of these, especially alongside a St George's Ethiopian beer.

   

We followed up with the classic Ethiopian veg combo plate with injera - beyaynetu ($28). This comes with serves of each of their four vego mains: futari (Tanzanian cabbage with veggies in coconut cream), keek woet (Ethiopian style rich brown lentils), defen meser (yellow split peas, seasoned and cooked Ethiopian style) and gomen (steamed silverbeet and spinach with garlic and ginger). They happily kept our injera supplies topped up as we messily dug our way through these excellent dishes - there's something about the sour bread and the rich earthy flavours of these stews that just works. 

 

   

 

Prices at Nyala have just about kept up with inflation - mains in 2006 cost $14, up to $28 this year, while entrees have approximately doubled as well ($7 to $15). The menu has changed a little, but the only notable shift is the absence of the banana and brown sugar dessert Cindy enjoyed in 2006.  I'm so glad Nyala has survived, although things were pretty quiet the night we visited. We had such a lovely dinner - the staff were super friendly, the space gorgeous and the food excellent - a great reminder not to wait 20 years to visit again.

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You can read about our 2006 Nyala visit (and admire our 2006 photos) here. 

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Nyala African Restaurant

Level 1, 356 Brunswick Street, Fitzroy

9419 9128

food, drinks  

https://nyalarestaurant.com.au/

Accessibility: Nyala is up a flight of stairs, we didn't notice a lift but there might be one tucked away somewhere. Tables are nicely spaced out and we paid at a high counter. We didn't visit the toilets.

Beautiful Jim Key II

February 15, 2026

 

We stopped in at Beautiful Kim Key a second time for lunch, before a Barkly Square trip, and perched up at the bright yellow communal table.  

 

 

Michael tried their vegetarian toastie, which was stuffed with finely chopped broccoli and pecorino ($18), served with a cheek of lemon and chilli flakes on the side. A pretty good hash brown ($6) rounded it up to a proper meal for him.

 

I was less concerned about proper meals, see-sawing right until the last moment between the heirloom tomato and focaccia special and the pain perdu. Well, I got the pain perdu ($19), and it was flawless: a single golden piece of French toast served with a blood plum in syrup, and a flourish of creme fraiche.

 

Our meal wasn't heavy but it was full of flavour, just the thing to put a spring in our step for the errands ahead. 

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You can read about our first visit to Beautiful Jim Key here. 

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Beautiful Jim Key

7 Wilson Ave, Brunswick

0400 124 414 

food, drinks

https://www.beautifuljimkey.com.au/ 

 

Accessibiltity: BJK has a flat entry and medium-spaced furniture, a mixture of bench seating along the wall, low tables with backed seats, then a high communal table with backless stools. We ordered at our table and paid at a low counter. We didn't use the toilets, but I think I spotted a reasonably spacious unisex cubicle. 

Chocolate Buddha

January 31, 2026

   

Weirdly, we're gonna commence our Cheap Eats 2006 two decades on reviews with a restaurant that we've never before blogged: Chocolate Buddha. Chocolate Buddha has never truly drawn me in on its own merits but it's very convenient for fitting dinner in around a CBD-based cultural event. It's embedded in Federation Square and turns around decent Japanese food, fast. It always seems bustling, and you can lock down a booking before your ticketed show. At the same time, their kitchen is open to a reasonable time and if you walk in as a small group there's a good chance they'll have room for you. Most recently, Michael and I tried walking up at 8:30pm after an ACMI Tony Leung Chiu-wai movie and squeezed into the bench by the window.

   

Vegetarian and vegan dishes are marked and scattered across the menu, and there's a dedicated column for gluten-free friendly items (with a contamination caveat). We grazed on some of the more shareable options: crispy-fried green gyoza with wasabi mayo ($15), a simple tofu katsu ($11; in lieu of their sold-out nasu dengaku), seasonal green veges in a garlic, ginger and sesame dressing ($12), and steamed rice ($5).

   

Agedashi tofu ($16) is a staple; this one came with lots of broth and a helpful ladle for sharing.

Prices have increased since 2006, of course: side dishes were once $4-13 and now sit around $5-20; mains were $14-20 and are now $23-30. The Cheap Eats reviewer warned that staff could be "harried and humourless" but we experienced the complete opposite in 2026: the four staff we interacted with kept pace with confidence and a smile. Chocolate Buddha might never make the where's the best? page, but it's undeniably handy to fall back on when you feel like a tourist in your own city.

   

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Back in 2006, Morsels & Musings loved the food, but like Cheap Eats they bemoaned the service at Chocolate Buddha. Since then it has received positive reviews on This and That, The Food Joy, Weekend Notes, and Mamma Knows Melbourne.

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Chocolate Buddha

Federation Square, Swanston and Flinders Sts, Melbourne CBD

9654 5688

food, drinks

https://chocolatebuddha.com.au/

Accessibility: There are both steps and a flatter entry point to Chocolate Buddha, but I'm not sure there's a way of avoiding the undulating, cobbled Federation Square. Furniture is densely packed with reasonably clear but busy walkways - mostly low tables with backless stools, some backed metal chairs outside and some backed chairs and booth seating toward the back inside. We ordered at our table and paid at a low counter. We didn't visit the toilets. 

Gochujang & tofu ragu with gnocchi & pickled cucumber

January 4, 2026

   

Cindy keeps a reasonably close eye on Meera Sodha's vego food column for The Guardian, and flagged this one as Relevant To My Interests as soon as it popped up. It really does tick all my boxes: chilli forward, carbs and protein and something you can throw together on a school night. I liked the idea of the fresh cucumber pickle as an accompaniment too, so I went all in on Meera's vision, and added some bonus broccoli. 

It's a fun dish - a kind of gnocchi ragu, with the blitzed tofu standing in for mince, but the flavours are not very Italian, driven by chilli bean sauce, gochujang and sesame oil. It works for me, and just writing this up has reminded me that I should cook it again soon.

Gochujang & tofu ragu with gnocchi & pickled cucumber

(based on this recipe from Meera Sodha)

pickled cucumber

1 decent sized cucumber

2 tablespoons rice vinegar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon sesame seeds

gnocchi

500g gnocchi

2 tablespoons olive oil

200g spring onions, sliced finely

1 head of broccoli, chopped into bite-sized pieces

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 tablespoon minced ginger

300g firm tofu, blitzed to a mince-like consistency

2 tablespoons chilli bean sauce

1 tablespoon gochujang paste

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1 tablespoon tamari

2 teaspoons sesame oil

2 teaspoons maple syrup

While your gnocchi cooking water is heating up, start making your pickle: combine the salt and cucumber slices in a bowl and then pop them in a sieve over a bowl to drain out the moisture.

Cook the gnocchi as per the packet instructions and drain.

Put your oil in a large fying pan over medium heat and add in most of the spring onions, the garlic and the ginger. Cook, stirring, for a few minutes, until the sting is out of the garlic. 

Add the broccoli and tofu and turn the heat up, stir-frying your mix for 8 or 10 minutes, until the tofu mince browns up a bit. Stir in all your sauces and seasonings and then add in the cooked gnocchi plus about a cup of water. Bring the mix to the boil and then kill the heat and stir through your leftover spring onions.

Take your drained cucumber and pop it in a bowl, along with the rice vinegar and sesame seeds.

Serve it all up and enjoy.

Terror Twilight

January 3, 2026

   

We had a couple low-obligation days in the new year before returning to work. Michael did a little online research and suggested we try Collingwood's Terror Twilight for lunch. Located on a corner, sunlight streams in from two sides, and there's a bit of a diner feel to the whole set-up. The menu's a little fancy: banana bread comes with burnt miso caramel butter, the ham toastie is actually mortadella, and eggs benedict is served on brioche with a green mango salad. Half of the menu columns are taken up with "build your own bowl" and "build your own broth" step-throughs. Vegan, vegetarian and gluten-free options are well-marked through the all-day breakfast, but less so in the build-your-own sections, even though it's potentially the easiest way to meet one's dietary requirements.

   

I love to see a house-made soda on a menu, too - at this time they were specialising in rhubarb, strawberry and mint ($7.50).

   

The spicy green eggs ($26.50) naturally caught Michael's attention - it's a modest round of Turkish bread stacked with folded eggs, spring onion and green chilli relish, a herb salad, grated haloumi and crispy fried shallots, and a little pool of parsley-salted yoghurt to drag it all through.

   

I was intrigued by the eggs kurosawa ($27) and ultimately loved every bite. Under a furikake-dusted rice cracker, I took my sweet time over folded eggs, brown rice, bok choy, avocado and fried tofu finished with dabs of pickled ginger, miso mayo and teriyaki sauce. 

   

Terror Twilight's staff were chipper and welcoming. The more-is-more menu seems to be executed well and there is nothing hidden about this gem, with a steady stream of customers flowing through. I'd be interested to come back to build a bowl or sample some of the sweet stuff.

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There's a positive review of Terror Twilight on Melbourne Lifestyle.

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Terror Twilight

11-13 Johnston St, Collingwood

9417 0129

food, drinks  

https://www.terrortwilight.com.au/

Accessibility: There's a ramp up to the door, a flat floor and a wide pathway through the centre of the café. Furniture is mostly densely packed regular height tables with backed chairs and benches. There are a couple of booths and a high bench with fixed, backless stools. We ordered at our table and paid at the high counter. We didn't visit the toilets.