285-287 Coventry Street
South Melbourne 3205
03 9690 2688
chezdre.wordpress.com
This weekend, I had a Sydney-sider staying. As she is a bit of a foodie, we decided to visit South Melbourne to eat brunch and for me to stock up on tea. Brunch was unfortunately disappointing so we found ourselves wondering by the cute shops in the sun and seeing the Chez Dre sign down its cobbled laneway. For an out-of-towner, laneway discoveries are exciting, and my friend was amazed to find a cafe/patisserie packed with people eating delicious food.
When she asked, “should we get some cake,” I saw it as a suggestion rather than a question. My response was not yes or no, but “which ones?” (note the use of plural).
I admit that I am ever so excited about the French cake craze trending Melbourne eateries... no doubt I have mentioned this before, but I am still excited by it (finding myself needing to mention it again like a kid with a new toy).
In the end we settled on the blood orange mousse, the salted caramel éclair and the chocolate tart – each piece a work of art with perfectly spread ganache, splatterings of sparkle, gold leaf and decorated chocolate.
The salted caramel éclair was amazing. The crème in the centre was a beautiful consistency like perfectly melted ice-cream. The salted caramel crème piped on top was a flavour explosion with the chou pastry, crème and walnuts. The textures were expertly balanced with the delectable crèmes, light pastry and crunchy, fresh walnuts.
The orange mousse had been my choice. The mousse was firm but moist. The surprise on the inside was a thin layer of fluffy sponge and an orange jelly.
The chocolate tart was to die for. The rich ganache melted in my mouth with the perfected shortcrust pastry crumbling like a butter biscuit. The mousse was rich and delicious. The surprise in this one was the layer of praline hidden between the two chocolate halves.
How amazing does this look? |
There are many other things to try at Chez Dre too, like macarons, pastries, baguettes (which looked delicious with a vegan tofu one featuring like a Vietnamese street delight) and even breakfast.