The hipster class scales great heights with dreamy towers of fluffy, syrup-drenched pancakes.

Our experience

In the last half-a-decade or so, Melbourne’s northside has been increasingly viewed as an up-and-coming place, a favourite of the hipster and bohemian, the student and young professional. Mirroring this trend, a few inspired dining venues have emerged from its generally nondescript road strips, not to mention a proliferation of cafes on an epidemic scale. Arguably, these cafes, rather than the restaurants, embody the laid-back, moderately gentrifying nature of Melbourne’s inner-north. Located on a street just off the uber-trendy Smith Street, Proud Mary is a typical Melbourne cafe in a typical converted warehouse space. Decor is typical Melbourne too — an unpolished industrial look of exposed brick work, raw woods and rough cement. Seating is at communal tables, small square tables or individual bench and window perches. Coffee is the main game at Proud Mary, attested to by the huge contraptions behind the counter and the shelves stocked with bags of beans that can be purchased for home coffee-making. It’s large and noisy and populated with a good number of Melbourne northside’s hipster class.

As mentioned, coffee is the main game at Proud Mary. MoMo & Coco especially love Proud Mary’s cold drip coffee, particularly refreshing in the heat of summer brunching. 🙂 Savoury brunch fare is arguably Proud Mary’s forte, we would recommend that for those less sweet-inclined, do not overlook the Baked Eggs and the Potato Hash. Both are usually present on the menu, give or take a few little additions or substractions depending on the season of your visit.

For the sweet tooth on the quest for a sweet breakast, bypass the too boring options of bircher muesli, rice pudding and dressed-up fruit salad and head straight for the “Ricotta Hotcakes” ($14.50). Whereas most brunch-oriented cafes tend to err towards a dense, heavy rendition of ricotta hotcakes (including Three Bags Full), MoMo & Coco prefer the fluffier interpretation offered by Proud Mary. In the past, we have had the pleasure of devouring hotcakes smothered in butterscotch sauce and peanut butter ice cream (please bring this back!!), and a simple but lovely maple syrup one. On this blog-documented visit, below is the 2012 version, a three-layered mountain floating in orange blossom syrup, scattered with a snow cap of icing sugar, juicy blueberries and poached apricots and shallow dish of sweet white chocolate ice cream that melted at a very fast pace.

OUR VERDICT

We love Proud Mary’s chocolate-y cold drip coffee, but you best read a coffee-oriented blog and/or review for assurance. Focusing on its sweet brunch offerings then, aside from the hotcakes, look for the incredibly and decadently sweet Autumn/Winter offering of Baked Figs too. But yes, rely on us to tell you that Proud Mary’s ricotta hotcakes make for a very reliable, very memorable sweet brunch….hmmmmm…irresistible…

Dessert adventure checklist

1. ☑ Dessert destination: Proud Mary Cafe, 172 Oxford Street, Collingwood, Vic 3066.
2. ☑ Budget: $
3. ☑ Sweet irresistibles: Breakfast dessert
4. ☑ Must-eat: The Ricotta Pancakes.
5. ☑ The short and sweet story: The hipster class scales great heights with dreamy towers of fluffy, syrup-drenched pancakes.