Delicate on a Sunday morn? Coin Laundry will handle you with extreme care.

COIN LAUNDRY café /  The discovery.

THIS HUMBLE EATERY IS A WELCOMED BREATH OF FRESH AIR TO ARMADALE’S STAR-STUDDED GASTRONOMY SCENE, OFF THE BEATEN TRACK OF HIGH STREET’S HEAVYWEIGHT CAFES. CL’S YOUR GO-TO FOR SEPARATING WHITE BREWS FROM BITTER BLACKS AND CHURNING OUT A SPIN CYCLE OF BRUNCHING FAVOURITES EVERY.DAMN.DAY.

Next time you touch off at Armadale Station and commence the incline up from the tracks, keep an eye out for a white façade, emblazoned with some blue typography reading COIN LAUNDRY. But please, leave the dirty washing at home. 

While the name denotes a place of mundane chores and pungent boxers, you’ll be delighted to uncover a petite eatery heralding the more blissful banalities in life. That is: retrieving your daily latte, forking a morning feed, leashing up your pup for a winter’s walk, et al. I seriously lost count of how many wagging tails adorned CL’s exterior at one point. I ordered another coffee just to buy more time to dachshund watch. It all sort of feels like you’re smack-bang in suburbia, but really there’s only a few streets separating you from dropping billions on ball gowns along High Street’s sartorial alumni.

The menu spans Melbourne’s classic brunching heroes. You’ve got a fool-proof smashed avo, jewelled with cherry tomatoes and riding a hearty, toasted zataar bread. And then there’s a delicious spread of corn, sweet potato and...inside voices everyone...HALLOUMI  fritters married with a moreish pumpkin puree. But the real showstopper of this home visit has to be their french toast stack. While shooting the plate, my eyes were already tucking into the candied fruit and strawberry compote spilling from a glazed tower of mascarpone, bacon and brioche. It looked sexy enough for me to break my fidelity to a post-euro-health-kick-thing. But who am I kidding, that was only ever going to last all of two mins and 20 seconds anyway.

 You’ll be unpeeling layers of rugged-upness if you decide to sit inside at CL, with the cranking heater making this pared-back corner café a hive of warmth and conversation. Blonde timber is abundant, with the décor mainly trading aesthetic steroids for a more neutral nod to Melbourne’s brunching conglomerate.  There’s also some outdoor seating to anchor your doge on, and navy brollies that will take leave until Summer arrives. 

If you’re in the neighbourhood with some spare change, Coin Laundry is your call-to-arms for a quick regroup, cuppa and craving-fix. Because who can be f*cked doing the real laundry right now anyway. 

Brush up on the full menu here.