Mixed Business
Editorial
The bleak intersection of Hoddle Street and Queens Parade is the last place you'd expect to find this homey, light-filled haven. Polished concrete floors, white metal chairs, old school, chipped in all the right places take away food signs, chalkboards and an old wooden work bench - which serves as the coffee counter - that would have any urban renovator screaming, 'where can we get one of those?' all go hand in hand in making Mixed Business very easy on the eye.
From the service to the atmosphere, it's very cordial here; even patrons under the age of five are all well behaved. The pleasant surprises don't stop there. The menu also has its share of delightful quirks. Their version of a banana split goes a little something like this: caramelised banana on brioche, nutmeg, honey, yogurt, strawberries and pecans - nice. Poached eggs accompanied with franks, beans, pork belly, white beans and sausage will tempt those dealing with the night before. Perhaps inspired by their old milk bar signage, lunch includes a selection of hot rolls. Most find it to hard to go past the rissoles in sauce with cornichons, rocket and Swiss in this category. The coffee is Seven Seeds, which is quietly taking over Melbourne's coffee scene and it is fair trade no less.
Mixed Business attracts a mixed crew. Sleep deprived mothers come for comfort food in comforting surrounds. Older people, who have lived in the area for decades, appreciate there's space to breath here, and young locals come to take some time out in what is ultimately and unexpectedly a pretty relaxing setting.
Meri Harli, November 2010
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