i love having brunch with a group of friends! (not that i don’t love going out just with my husband – i do!) … but having a group of friends sitting around a table not only feeds my desire for social interaction and conversation and makes my extroverted talkative self extremely happy, it also means i get double the amount of photo ops!

thankfully i have some very understanding friends (onehalfpenny) who put up with my incessant food discussion, and this morning we also had some friends visiting from queensland who have recently bought a great little cafe on the sunshine coast (can’t wait to check it out soon!).

onehalfpenny and i have both separately been to hardware société and loved it, so i was looking forward to going back again with husbands in tow, and thought that it might provide some good inspiration for my qld friends who are starting to consider their new menu.

the food (i couldn’t quite fit all the goodness in one photo – 2 dishes missing):

scrambled eggs un with hot smoked salmon, pickled green tomato + avocado puree.
these scrambled eggs are amazing – so creamy and smooth. a great flavour combination when coupled with the tomato and salmon.

fried brioche with lavender panna cotta, roasted peaches + sable crumble.
i am a sucker for french toast and this was my choice this morning after having some serious instagram food-envy recently. it was delicious! the cinnamon-sugar brioche was crunchy on the edges, soft on the inside. the poached fruit and crumble added fantastic flavour and texture. and that lavender panna cotta…. oh my goodness … i could’ve eaten it on its own! not too sweet or overpowering, just right!

baked eggs deux with chorizo sausage, potato, piquillo peppers, queso de cabra, toasted almonds + aioli.
i had the vegetarian option of this dish on my last visit and couldn’t recommend it more highly! my friend went for the meat-version today and thoroughly enjoyed the spanish-mexican flavours and spice. the eggs were still perfectly runny on the inside. these baked eggs are a close second to my all-time favourite at GAS.

fried eggs with crispy baked polenta, maple roasted onion + bacon.
the boys thought this was “good”. and thus ensued a 15 minute conversation about how hard it is for boys (who aren’t such foodies) to critically assess their breakfast for my benefit! to them good is good and isn’t bad, case closed. to me, this dish looked delicious – good colours, flavours and an exciting combination of ingredients.

the continental house made granola, five:am organic vanilla yoghurt, mango, pear and passionfruit + warm croissant.
a perfect solution to a light brunch. freshly baked croissant was flaky and buttery and slightly warmed, served with a jar of jam on the side. i love five:am yoghurt, it has such a beautiful vanilla-bean flavour. the granola had a good mix of nuts and seeds, and paired well with the side of poached and fresh fruit.

the coffee was fabulous. great taste – strong, robust and flavoursome. the hot chocolate was simply amazing. a cup served with a spoonful of ganache in the bottom, with a side jug of warm milk with more ganache in the bottom. simply pour the hot milk in, allow the ganache to melt, stir, and enjoy the chocolate-y goodness!

we had about a 30 minute wait for a table this morning, not unexpected for a group our size and we were happy enough catching up while waiting on the pavement. the staff were friendly, the coffee and food were quickly ordered and delivered, and i had a good laugh trying to sneak a photo of the baristas this morning (they were onto me!). overall, i am loving this place just as much after the 2nd visit and will no doubt be back again!

verdict: just as good the 2nd time around
find: http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/71/1474868/restaurant/CBD/The-Hardware-Societe-Melbourne