Omar and the Marvellous Coffee Bird - Gardenvale Road, Gardenvale. (House blend)

The cafe: For as long as I can remember, the people of Gardenvale have always claimed to live in Brighton... Fortunately, this is beginning to change. Gardenvale has its own identity these days and places like Omar have helped achieve this. If you like the exposed interior look you'll love this place. Bricks, clyinders, pipes, boxes, roaster, everything... In fact, it's more exposed than a hooker standing on Grey Street on a balmy summers night! The breakfast and lunch menu is a small yet modern take on some classics. There is some seating outside, a courtyard out the back and an interesting row of tables inside that would appeal to all train set enthusiasts... But the seats are a little small for my frame... The staff were super friendy and helpful during my visit and were keen to discuss the various for sale packs of coffee available. Crowd looks like it will be a mixture of family and 20-30yo's...but the friendly not pretentious type...

The coffee: When you walk into a cafe and see an on-site roaster you can pretty much assume your coffee experience will be good. And as can be seen by the pic, they make a structurally correct short mac. A smokey, milky and creamy nose. Quite subdued aromas but enough to give you an idea. The palate was nothing like the nose. Interesting 'green' flavours of strong red fruits. There was also a good whack of citrus flavours that led to a nice, cleansing acidity. Very pleasant after taste. Medium bodied with perfect liquid to milk ratio and temperature. Extremely well balanced too. I'll definitely be back to try the single origins. $3.50. Score 8-8.5/10.