I was recommended the bagels from the Coffee Exchange by another fellow nom seeker. Since I was hankering for a New York bagel experience, I chose the Reuben bagel with caraway seeds. The Coffee Exchange have a range of bagels with a variety of fillings: off-the-bone ham, smoked salmon and capers, etc.
The bagel wasn't a true boiled bagel and was more like a bread roll but nonetheless it was tasty with the sprinkling of caraway. I ended up toasting the bagel as it felt rather stale so I rationalised I will replace the stale texture with a toasted one. Once toasted, this was an amazing beast. The gruyere was melted just so and the silverside was very flavourful and salty. I would have liked a bit more sauerkraut in my Reuben. All in all, there was about a teaspoon sized dollop of sauerkraut. I wanted a bit more of the stuff to balance out the dryness of the bagel. It was missing the traditional thousand island dressing but it had a tasty home made mayo alternative. So not a true traditional Reuben but definitely a nice sandwich once toasted.
On a separate occasion, I tried the crispy chicken roti. This was better than I thought. The roti had flecks of coriander in it which was a bit different from your traditional roti. The crispy chicken strips had a slightly spicy cayenne coating and it was not dry.
I also tried the carrot cake. The Coffee Exchange boasts that all cakes are baked on premises and that the carrot cake was apparently a recipe from the hummingbird café in the UK. I love carrot cake and can sometimes be put off ordering one because of the scary thick layer of icing accompanying it. However this carrot cake only had a teensy wee bit of cream cheese and pistachio crumbs on top which suited me fine. The carrot cake was not as carroty as I had hoped but it had a nice gingerbread taste and texture.
The deets:
Location:
Coffee Exchange
1 Little Collins St, Melbourne, VIC
Ph: 03 9654 5343
Cost:
Approx $15 for bagel and cake. $11 for the roti.
Ambience:
Casual dining and takeaway. Nice al fresco area which is heated during the winter.
Nom again:
Maybe.
Until next time,
Nom Seeker, Glutt
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