chato is a recently-opened spanish-inspired cafe and tapas barlocated in thornbury, a suburb in melbourne’s north-east. with head chef maria echevarria-lang (former caffe e cucina) at the helm, the food is decidedly spanish, however its recent foray into the melbourne brunch scene provides a menu that also offers some of your morning favourites. chato joins a small but impressive list of thornbury establishments including umberto espresso + little henri, and  i was recently invited to try their new breakfast menu.

i’ve bragged about my like of niccolo coffee before (muharam, pod etc.) so was pretty stoked to find that chato are serving up this well-known and eye-catching flavoursome brew. there is also a good variety of fresh juices available.

toasted muesli (vegan), made in-house with nuts, seeds, coconut & dried fruit, toasted in yellowbox honey + served with greek yogurt + poached fruits of the day

the poached fruit – fig, strawberry + apricot – were delicious + paired exceptionally with the nutty textural muesli. i was especially impressed with the generous serve of yoghurt – much needed to ensure that ideal muesli : yoghurt ratio. sweet and fruity, this was a great starter to our meal.

la bomba: goat’s cheese + roasted cauliflower pancake with avocado, heirloom tomatoes + a trio of mushrooms, a poached egg + romesco sauce

an unfamiliar flavour combination to me, i was really impressed with the taste + texture of the pancake… cauliflower certainly is making a resurgence on menus in melbourne at present! the mushrooms were flavourful + its always great to get a few varieties to really increase the complexity of a dish. i loved the juicy little heirloom tomatoes and the romesco sauce packed a punch which really complimented the yolky egg. i was fairly indifferent to the avocado – the dish would’ve been  just as nice without it, but i’m not going to complain about getting some good fats into me! this is a really good option for vegetarians too.

verdict: chato joins a small but impressive list of thornbury establishments serving up a unique spanish-inspired breakfast
find: http://www.chato.com.au/

p.s. thanks so much for looking after my parents so well too… your breakfast contributed to the great weekend they had in melbourne! 🙂

(note: inlovewithbrunch dined as a guest of zilla and brook and chato’s, however all remarks and reviews are honest and genuine)