The wait was approximately 20mins, and the staff were polite and efficient at seating patrons, which is a big plus. The last thing you want when you're hungry and still waking up is, waving your hand around like a mad woman to get someone's attention. Or maybe it's just me?
Mr Curious and I were seated along the bench at the back looking out onto Westgarth St. I am a fan of people watching and natural light, so it was the perfect spot for us. The menu has a selection of mouth watering items to choose from, and the two dishes that stood out for us were the breakfast ramen and the duck egg.
The breakfast ramen - 62c hens egg, bacon, oyster mushrooms, spring onion and bacon dashi. Mr Curious chose this dish, as he adores ramen, and will almost have it at any chance he gets. The star of this dish for me was the bacon dashi which Mr Curious agreed with me was flavoursome and light. It wasn't too overpowering in any particular flavour and well balanced, giving that subtle hint of smoky-umami flavour.
If you haven't heard of 62 degree eggs, or it's many variations by a few +/- degrees. The essentials are the egg is cooked at 62 degrees for a period of time, and once cracked open, the egg yolk and egg white are the same consistency and texture. Delectably smooth and creamy, the white is still a soft jelly that barely holds the runny yolk once you break it open.
I chose the duck egg, oyster mushroom, truffle butter, snow pea tendrils and fontina briont soldiers, after seeing all the beautiful pictures of this dish on instagram. The waiter informed us that if we were choosing items from instagram, that they might not still have it on the menu. I'm glad I choose the duck egg dish, the fontina briont soldiers were delectably fluffy and light, which bubbly melted fontina on top. The oyster mushrooms rounded out the flavours of the dish and the snow pea shoots were a nice textural element. I found the duck egg a tad over cooked, and it was a little bit of a let down for me.
Hammer and Tong is a wonderful eatery with creative dishes that are very beautiful and delicious. The staff were friendly and efficient making it a wonderful dining experience.
Hammer & Tong
412 Brunswick St
Fitzroy, VIC 3065
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