Melbourne’s hidden treasures are incredible nursery cafés, scattered throughout the city. These hidden gems combine two of the city’s favourite things – delicious food and vibrant greenery – creating the perfect environment for a relaxing meal or a leisurely coffee. Let’s explore the best Nursery Cafés in Melbourne.
Photo by Alisa Anton on Unsplash
Step into a world where plants fill the air, beautiful blooms surround you, and every corner is brimming with fresh flavours. From fragrant herbs to blooming flowers, the atmosphere is as refreshing as the menu itself. If you’re a fan of good food and stunning greenery, keep reading to discover Melbourne’s best nursery cafés!
Waterfall Gully Cafés & Nursery
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Location: 87-89 Old Cape Schanck Rd, Rosebud
Café operating hours: 6am-4pm (Monday to Thursday) / 6am-8pm (Friday and Saturday) / Closed on Sunday and Public Holidays
Contact: (03) 59868893 / [email protected]
Ambience
An inconspicuous gem sandwiched between a strip of shops in the Waterfall Gully Village, the Waterfall Gully Café and Nursery is a charming hideaway to enjoy a leisurely meal or an afternoon of unwinding with a cup of coffee.
A great option for early birds, the café has both an outdoor seating area surrounded by colourful plants and an indoor space with warm wood accents, artwork, and large windows that provide sweeping views of the outdoors. The spacious, light-filled interior makes it an ideal spot to relax, chat with friends, or simply savour your breakfast meal while taking in the serenity of the surroundings.
Menu Offerings
Some of the most popular dishes on the menu include Eggs Benedict, which can be served with either shaved leg ham or smoked salmon; Chilli Scramble made with scrambled eggs with fresh chilli, feta, cherry tomatoes, spring onions and sriracha on a toasted panini; and Eggs on Toast with sourdough toast.
If you visit while hungry, which is advisable, you can enjoy their large mouth-watering burgers, such as the Southern Chicken Burger or Zucchini Burger, or indulge in their extensive pizza menu. Popular pizzas include the Ninch Pizza with garlic prawns and the Aussie with shaved smoked ham and free-range egg. Or, if you can’t decide, you can go for the half and half, which allows you two different toppings on one pizza.
On the sweet side, the café specializes in freshly baked treats, and its chefs serve French crepes with grilled banana, berry compote, and French vanilla yoghurt as an irresistible treat not to be missed.
Recommendations
The one thing that customers consistently remark about the Waterfall Gully Café is the quality of its coffee. Described as “awesome”, “excellent”, and “top class”, it’s one of the standout items on the menu that keeps people coming back time and again. But if you aren’t in the mood for caffeine, the café also has delicious hot chocolate with marshmallows and chai lattes on offer.
Before you leave, check out the nursery, which has playful garden sculptures, wind spinners, and much more for sale. Sentence Length
Some of the sculptures are even wear out in your your favourite Aussie Rules kits that designers create to bring some fun and spark to your garden.
Van Loons Café & Nursery
Location: 405 Grubb Road, Wallington
Café operating hours: 9am-4:30pm (Monday to Friday) / 9am-5pm (Saturday & Sunday)
Contact: (03) 52501842 / [email protected]
Ambience
The moment you step inside the Van Loon’s Café, you’re greeted by a comfortable and inviting space with plenty of room to unwind. If you’re in the mood to be closer to nature you can choose between the maple garden area with its array of plants and flowers or the glass conservatory, which blurs the lines between indoor and outdoor and provides protection from the elements while still offering a sense of being surrounded by the nursery’s plants.
The café also has a thoughtfully designed indoor area that combines spacious tables with intimate corners, making it easy to find your perfect spot to relax, chat with friends, or simply enjoy a quiet moment alone.
Menu Offerings
Now, let’s talk about the food. Known for their substantial portions, the Van Loon’s Café has a diverse menu that caters to various dietary preferences, including vegan and gluten-free meals and even a separate plant-based menu. For breakfast, options like the “VLC Big Breakfast”, featuring eggs, bacon, and buttered mushrooms, and “Plant-Based Breakfast”, which includes seeded toast, baby spinach, and baked beans, are popular choices.
If you don’t have time for a sit-down meal or prefer home delivery, the café has an incredible variety of meal boxes, such as delicious sandwich boxes, indulgent brunch and graze boxes, sweet treat boxes, and a mouthwatering fruit platter. These meal boxes are huge and can feed at least four people, so do bear that in mind when ordering.
Recommendations
But, perhaps, what the Van Loon’s Café is most known for is its high tea. It requires advance booking, which can be made for any day of the week, and includes a delightful array of freshly made scones with jam and cream, delicate finger sandwiches, savoury pastries, and an assortment of decadent sweets. A selection of beverages, including tea and coffee, wines, and cocktails or mocktails, complements these delicacies. Reservations are highly recommended, as it’s a popular spot, especially for special occasions like Mother’s Day.
Forget Me Not Eatery
Location: 595 Mickleham Rd, Greenvale
Café operating hours: 8:30am-4:30pm Monday to Friday / 8:30am-4pm on Saturday & Sunday
Contact: (03) 93332575
Ambience
Nestled within the Direct Plants Nursery in Melbourne’s outer suburb of Greenvale, the Forget Me Not Eatery offers an interesting combination of rustic charm and a contemporary feel. The high ceilings and exposed beams give the room a sense of openness and height, while the natural wood finish adds a touch of cosiness and warmth. This combination makes the space feel both expansive and intimate at the same time.
The designers create the interior layout to accommodate prams with plenty of space between tables to allow for easy manoeuvring. For those craving a more outdoor feel, there’s also a covered courtyard area where guests can enjoy their meals while protected from the elements. With natural light streaming in through the roof, textured stone tiles, and surrounding potted plants, the space has a natural, earthy feel that adds to the outdoor-inspired ambience.
Menu Offerings
The café offers an all-day menu with a wide range of breakfast and lunch options, including vegetarian and gluten-free options for almost all items. For breakfast, try a fan favourite, the hearty Breakfast Burger, filled with crispy bacon, eggs, spinach, and aioli, or opt for the lighter Acai Granola Bowl for a refreshing start. If you are looking for sweet indulgence, the Brioche French Toast, adorned with seasonal berries and mascarpone, is a must-try.
For lunch, you can’t go wrong with the Angus Beef Burger, Beef Brisket Benedict, or Chilli Scrambled Eggs. There are also vegetarian options like the Super Salad, which is a wholesome mix of buckwheat, quinoa, and roasted sweet potato, and the Poke Bowl, made with sushi rice, edamame, and your choice of teriyaki chicken, smoked salmon, or tofu.
Recommendations
One of the standout aspects of the Forget Me Not Eatery is how well it caters to families. The café boasts a dedicated kids’ area filled with toys, books, tables, chairs, a blackboard for drawing, and a reading nook with comfy cushions. It’s a wonderful space where the little ones can play and be creative, while parents can relax and enjoy the ambience.
The Garden Feast
Location: 63 Railway Avenue, Werribee
Café operating hours: 9am-5pm (Monday to Friday) / 9am-4:30pm (Saturday & Sunday)
Contact: (03) 97413100
Ambience
One of the Garden Feast’s most captivating features is the hanging vines and ferns that drape down from the ceiling inside the café’s dining area. This distinct element adds a nature-inspired whimsy to the space that infuses it with life and character.
In case you feel the need to be closer to nature, the café also has a beautiful outdoor terrace surrounded by a natural wonderland of colourful flowers, plants, and trees.
Menu Offerings
The Garden Feast, winner of the 2024 OpenTable Diner’s Choice award, garners renown for its exceptional quality, creativity, and the best of local Australian produce. Their menu changes with the seasons, ensuring that only the freshest ingredients are used and that each dish reflects the best of what nature has to offer at any given time of year. And, conveniently, most of the produce used is also often available for purchase in the nursery so that inspired customers can try to replicate the delicious dishes at home or plant the ingredients in their garden.
One of the standout dishes is the Big Garden Breakfast, which currently features roasted field mushrooms, braised greens, eggs, and avocado, and the Zucchini Fritter made with zucchini and corn paired with a poached egg, sour cream, and a herb salad.
The café also offers freshly baked pastries, house-made scones with jam and cream, and sourdough toast with seasonal toppings – a comforting treat that pairs well with coffee or tea.
Recommendation
Apart from their must-try famous beetroot ketchup, The Garden Feast hosts seasonal events, such as workshops and seminars on caring for plants in your garden, as well as cooking lessons on how to use fresh and locally sourced seasonal products.
Closing
Numerous studies have shown that nature improves our mood, reduces stress and anxiety, and positively impacts our well-being in every way. So what better way to boost our health and wellness than visiting one of Melbourne’s exceptional nursery cafés that combine the experience of a delicious meal or coffee while being immersed in nature?
These cafés not only provide the perfect escape from the hustle of city life but also use the best local ingredients, which enhances the quality of their meals and supports the local economy. So, next time you’re in the mood for good food while surrounded by the calm and tranquillity that only nature can provide, visit a nursery café near you for a rejuvenating and nourishing experience.
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