Porgies Cafe Hawthorn — Restaurant in Melbourne

Although Porgie & Mr Jones has been around for a while, in more recent years it’s been taken over my Luke and Tom who’ve taken it to a whole new level. Previously a quaint, small café - today it has so much more to offer with spacious areas for a diverse range of groups plus the “on trend” eclectic style of inner city decor. This makes it a must visit when in Hawthorn. Today, we sat at the large timber table at the front where light streamed in from the street and we could watch the comings and goings of Auburn Road outside. A steady stream of regulars coming for their coffee/cake fix peppered our dining experience. The menu has an interesting range of choices that are both fresh and seasonal but also in keeping with current trends in cafes that are in abundance in Hawthorn. With such an inviting place to sit and eat, a place where we can talk without yelling over the café playlist or bad acoustics, we knew we were in for a memorable brunch together. My adult daughter ordered the smashed avocado with feta on the side, and a salad mix of mint, pickled beetroot, cashew dukkah and pomegranates. I had the eggs benedict with slow cooked pulled pork served on red cabbage accompanied with cheesy hash brown, poached egg and hollandaise. I added an extra of side of halloumi and bacon. Add a strawberry milkshake and a chai and we were set for a lovely meal together. The food was good but I have to say that the customer service was outstanding. Every interaction was with a smile and nothing was too much trouble. For the coffee aficionados – you won’t be disappointed at the ‘boys’ have created their own blend that appears to be popular. The chai was good as was the pot of tea that thankfully was hot! (not everyone makes their tea hot). There are a number of ‘spaces’ to P&MJ – the front has the original brick building, stripped back to the gorgeous earthy walls. In these two sections are timber tables and chairs, warm earthy tones and artwork that is large but minimalist giving a striking effect. As you walk towards the rear, it breaks into an outside and inside area. The outside is long and narrow opening out to a large rear courtyard with plenty of tables, chairs and space for the kids to play. The inside area stays under the original roofline and is a more intimate place for singles, couples, families and small groups. It’s often the little things that get places ‘over the line’ for me and today it was the way the outdoor area had been refurbished with clean lines and light colours making it inviting and spacious. A large courtyard area at the rear attracts people who have dogs and apparently, they’ll enter via the laneway to the left of P&MJ to secure their table at the rear and dine under the tappled light of the trees. You can see from the photos that the flower arrangement on the table is also a nice touch of nature and colour to set off the vintage original brick wall. I know this final point may be trivial to some but for me and my kids, it’s important. They use ‘who gives a crap’ toilet paper and ‘thank you’ hand wash. A simple but lovely gesture that tells me they consider the impact they have on the environment. I would highly recommend Porgie & Mr Jones and look forward to returning again in the future. Notes: wheelchair accessible, disabled friendly, kid friendly (nice space for them to move around), high chairs available, good parking on Auburn Road and the side streets, dietaries...

The place is quite spacious, you can sit outdoor near the street, inside the building or the indoor-outdoor space covered by roof but you can still enjoy the sun ☀️

When we came in, we were greeted friendly staffs and they continued to be so attentive during our meals as well (thanks guys!!)

We ordered some drinks & food below: 🧃 Mango Smoothie & Iced Coffee ☕️ The mango smoothie was tasty & fresh, the iced coffee was delicious & a must to have for brunch 😋 they’re both perfect for hot days!

🍔 HFC (Hawthorn Fried Chicken) Burger 🍔 The fried chicken on the burger was crispy and juicy, nicely balanced with the softness of the buns and the crunch of the lettuce.

🥗 Salmon & Soba salad 🥗 The salmon & soba is definitely my favorite! The salmon was perfectly cooked and warm, then mixed with the cold & fresh touch of the soba, mixed leaves and edamame. All worked well together with the dressing.

We definitely can see ourselves coming back here as there were other dishes we were interested to try. Also, with the amount of space they have, this is a perfect place to throw some parties, gatherings or just to hangout with a bunch of your friends!

UPDATE 13 September 2022:

We’re back again to one of our favorite brunch/lunch places to show you their new menu ‼️ This time we got:

☕️ Iced Coffee & Iced Chocolate Can’t go wrong with their coffee and the iced chocolate 😋 I tried drinking them at the same time to made a ‘mocha’ drink haha that was fun & delish!

🍳 Baked Eggs Always a perfect choice for breakkie especially for cold mornings. The baked eggs were so soft and the crunchiness of kale on top added a nice contrast. The herby tomato base with the melted cheese is a classic pair that always works!

🍏 Apple Pie French Toast It’s genius to combine both classics dishes together and it works so well! Great balance between acidity and sweetness, the toast is perfectly soft and absorbed all the yummy components of the dish.

🌮 Crispy Prawn Tacos The tacos themselves was definitely something we’re looking for in terms of flavor and thickness, great size to hold all the ingredients for a perfect bite! Prawns were nicely crunchy, the vegs gave tangy flavor to cut the oil from the fried prawns, the tamarind mayo was a great touch for sure

They always do a great job with their menu, friendly staff, perfect portion, good price and always left us feeling satisfied. Can’t wait to be back...

Occasion totally ruined due to distinct lack of SERVICE today. We were definitely shown to the wrong table. Boss said table 19 and was shown to table 13. Turned out to be rather ironic. Ordered 3 Lemon Lime & Bitters. After 15 minutes we received 3 glasses with ice & then 3 Cascade LLB bottles a few minutes later. Drinks were not even mixed so why a 15 minute wait. No water on the table. Food order eventually taken. We waited, and waited and waited. We were far too patient. Around the 50 minute mark we asked a different apparently more senior waitress where was our food. "I will will go check" she said. "you are next" she says and "were you told there was half an hour wait". "Absolutely not" we said. Every so often waitresses would walk past and see our empty table and the obvious body language of very annoyed customers. Belatedly offered table water. Even the BOSS looked around the corner to see and DID NOTHING TO ASSIST. We noticed customers who arrived well after us being served their meal after we had been waiting 75 minutes at least with nothing to show on the table. One had only been there only 20 minutes and seemed very friendly with staff. Obviously a local who obviously get priority. Time to complain BIG TIME. Must admit others could hear my complaint. Boss finally made an appearance and said he would go check where our meals were. TOO LATE I said we are leaving. Must admit I let them know our extreme displeasure at their total lack of PROFESSIONALISM. If they had any kind of process in place surely orders should be served in SEQUENCE. More than likely this shambolic performance was that they just forgot to process our order. And the BOSS had the temerity to use "that they were BUSY" as their excuse. One should not find excuses one should apologize and do better but from reading other reviews this business uses the BUSY excuse all the time. Shows that the business is not well organised at all and the blame obviously lays with its management. I am big enough to acknowledge that i vented my spleen in some frustrating language and I apologize for that but after being told you will wear the cost of the drinks with no actual apology as to why the total process fell apart was really beyond the pale. Customer Relations non existent at...