Proud Mary

This place is like a revolution.  There are people everywhere.  Congregating out the front and standing inside up to an hour for a seat for breakfast.  It’s crazy!  It’s even crazier that no one seems to mind.  The calm crowd is one of all sorts - an eclectic range of cultures and fashion sense.

Proud Mary’s, located in Collingwood Melbourne, has a warehouse feel with a combination of exposed brick and wallpapered walls with polished concrete floors. There is this groovy little area holding the record decks surrounded with vinyl’s and Elvis’ ‘Heartbreak Hotel’ is playing.

With the staff dress sense depicting that as if they are on stage for a musical theatre production, they are genuinely friendly, incredibly attentive and gracefully swift.

As I enjoy a soy flat white, I observe the hive of activity: one of the girls is casually arranging massive bunches of different flora, fresh from the market, into various large jugs and jars posing as vases then putting them in place.  The boys, all with Grizzly Adams beards, are rocking it around eight or nine coffee grinders all with various blends of beans that have been roasted in house, pumping out lattes and cappuccinos as if their life depends on it.  In a way I guess it does.

Fifteen minutes pass by and so many patrons continue to stand inside and outside reading newspapers, talking and watching the staff execute their performances all the time happily waiting.  People share small tables in a communal style and no one cares that they are sitting so close to total strangers.  I guess after waiting for an hour on a cold winter’s morning why would you? The vibe – it’s warm, friendly, diverse and accepting.  It’s totally controlled mayhem.  I love that everyone on staff knows what their job is with very few spoken words.

I decide to order from the breakfast menu and choose the ‘Avocado’ with heirloom tomato, goat’s cheese, rocket pesto, toasted farmhouse loaf ($14) without the pesto but with two poached eggs ($3 each).  It seems to arrive so quickly I feel like they read my mind as I walked in the door.  It was exactly as I had asked for and the flavors were fresh and fantastic.  Maybe a little too generous with the tomatoes but the eggs were cooked perfectly oozing rich golden yolk over the plate.  I felt it was cooked and presented with love just for me.

Avocado

The breakfast menu has a great range from toast and fruit to ricotta hotcakes and a variety of egg dishes and ingeniously omits the classic eggs benedict.  They also offer fresh juices, have a lunch menu that speaks stylish, fresh and tasty and they display a very tempting cabinet of daily baked goods.  The prices are right on.

To conclude my breakfast experience I have a peppermint tea.  For a place that is clearly so serious about perfecting coffee I’m in for a pleasantly spectacular tea service.  Presented to me is a magnificent clear glass teapot with tea leaves swimming inside. It reminds me of a lamp that a genie pops out of.  This is accompanied with a vintage glass to sip from just slightly bigger than a shot glass which is placed on a sky blue saucer.  It almost looks like I have been given all the equipment for a peace pipe.

Peppermint Tea

As I’m leaving thinking to myself I must come here for lunch next time, the matre de girl in the gold jacket says ‘thanks babe’ and I just smile back at her, so pleased that I have been there to watch the magnificent theatre that is Proud Mary.

Food – 9/10

Service – 9/10
Ambiance – 9/10

172 Oxford Street, Collingwood.

Phone – (03) 94175930

www.proudmarycoffee.com.au

Monday – Friday 7am to 4pm

Weekends – 8am to 4pm
Public Holidays – 7am to 4pm