Las Chicas – Dani Valent

restaurant review Las Chicas by Dani Valent

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203 Carlisle Street, Balaclava, 9531 3699

My score: 4/5

It’s a lazy time of year. If the remote control is out of reach then I stay on the same channel. If the bread isn’t sliced I just tear off a hunk and shove it down. If no one gets me a glass of water then I guess I’ll be thirsty. I do have a survival plan, though: have someone piggyback me to Las Chicas for a happy holiday brunch.

Las Chicas has been feeding Balaclava for 11 years but a recent renovation has sparked a new golden age. There are more seats (up from 80 to 120) including a solo-friendly window counter facing Balaclava station. There’s a bigger and better kitchen running an extensive eat-in menu and keeping a take-home deli counter stocked with salads and pastries. The rear courtyard now has a retractable roof and a fireplace (unthinkable now but it will be gorgeous in winter). They’ve even installed the steel structure necessary to support a rooftop bar, though you’ll be waiting until next summer for that one. The energy is upbeat, the food is smashing, the appeal is massive: go there.

I’m a sucker for the Las Chicas classic Bikini Blowout Benedict, a bagel with poached eggs, crushed avocado, bacon and lashings of just-right hollandaise. My own bikini is always draped by a kaftan so the blowout is no problem. The big breakfast is sublime: everything is cooked carefully and portions are generous. Other dishes push the healthy button. The Breaky Greens is a jolly brunch salad with dukkah-crumbed poached eggs, kale and broccoli, plenty of nuts and the chirpy pop of pomegranate seeds. There’s a goji berry porridge that probably has its own clean-eating cheer squad. Juices are laced with ‘it’ ingredients, like the flurry of turmeric and chia seeds in the Youthful Glow pineapple smoothie.

Service is generally very good though it’s a rare hospitality business that doesn’t struggle with summer newbies and casuals. On a recent visit, I had a face full of house-cured pastrami on rye when a waiter enquired if I was all done. Luckily, the excellent Rubenesque toastie was too tasty – and I’m way too lazy – to splutter in outrage.

Las Chicas is a great all-rounder and its broad offering makes it easy to play indulgent or lean in to wellbeing. Add a shot of protein powder to your juice or greet the day with a bloody Mary. Drink single origin coffee or a decaf soy latte. Eat burritos, bagels, burgers or cacao bites. Come on your way to work for a muffin or on the way home for sunset spritzes or take-away meals from the fridge. Or, do as I do, and park yourself around midday for a slothfully sumptuous brunch.

See their website.

More holiday brunch:

Little Alice Cafe, 194 Main Street, Bairnsdale, 5152 5814.
Every summer I look for decent eats in Bairnsdale, my regular pit-stop on the way to east Gippsland. This time, I’ll be trying Little Alice for its St Ali coffee and fresh, interesting food.

Barry, 85 High Street, Northcote, 9481 7623.
On-trend brunching might mean coconut and banana chia pudding or baked eggs with chard and chilli-spiked green sauce. I love their ‘trust us’ combo of tomatoes and peanut butter.

First published in The Age, December 29th, 2015.

2018-05-04T10:33:21+10:00

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