Round Bird Food & Wine Merchants — Restaurant in Melbourne

Lilydale is on the up-and-up food wise. After the town being in a lull for many years, things are starting to change and thankfully, Round Bird Can’t Fly is part of the rise in culinary delights in this town. A friend invited me and between us we drove 50kms to get there (it was halfway point) and so glad she recommended this place. We’d booked a table on a cold Sunday lunch and with the rain teaming down, it was lovely to walk into a full café with a friendly, warm atmosphere. The décor is recycled industrial with the warm of homemade produce on the shelves and local artwork on the walls. The menu isn’t huge, so the choices are easy to make. After a hot chocolate (with handmade marshmallow square) and latte each, we ordered two meals that were superb. The meals arrived and served on stunning pottery which seems to be a theme at Round Bird. The gnocchi with heirloom tomatoes, stracciatella and prosciutto and basil ($25) plus the bento bowl with miso rice, teriyaki tofu, avocado, broccoli, edamame, pickled carrot, vegan kimchi and my friend ordered mushrooms as well ($25) The gnocchi was handmade and the texture was light without being too cheesy, which often happens with cafes. The prosciutto was thinly sliced and not overloaded on the plate, giving the taste a combination of salty, creamy and delicate puffy gnocchi. My friend’s bento bowl was refreshing with an abundance of fresh vegetables and ideal for the vegetarian or vegan. Which brings me to another tick in their favour – they cater for dietary requirements of their guests. So just let the staff know if there is something on the menu that you’d like without the ‘this’ or the ‘that’. Takeaway coffee appears to be a roaring trade and with the exceptional cakes display, there is something for those that have a sweet tooth. Local food wares available for sale at the front of the cafe plus, the pottery that the meals are served on are also for sale at the front of the cafe. If you were coming for dinner, there is a small wine list with reasonable prices. Nicely, there is a private dining area that has the decor that’ll Appeal to everyone. There is outdoor seating as well and once the warmer weather comes around, it would be the perfect place to sit with family or friends and pass the time with drinks / meal. Parking is pretty good out the front but there are time limits, so beware. Access into the café is very good. Seating can be accommodated for a wheelchair or if someone needs more space / accessability.. Disabled toilet which also includes a change table plus one other toilet. Staff were friendly, helpful but also discreet, not interrupting our long overdue catch-up, filled with joyous memories and tears. Summary: 10 out of 10. A must visit in all seasons and explore the...

We went here for Mother's Day today, we had a booking for outside, and it took a little bit to get the order taken. The menu on the website is their old menu but they also had their old menu in the restaurant, but you couldn't order off of it, but it was given to a few tables by mistake and some tables were annoyed. Just remove the menus and take them out the back? Anyways, there are a few vegan items on the menu, the item I wanted was the 'vegan option' so I asked what the vegan option was and the waiter said 'I actually don't know, I'm quite new here'. When I worked in hospitality we were not allowed to tell tables we were new as that is a poor excuse for not knowing something, just say I will find out and come back. He went to ask and came back and said they just remove the poached eggs. Which the vegan community hates because why should we not get it replaced with something if we are paying the same price, the eggs are $7 but we are paying the same, uh no thank you, so I asked if I could have them replaced with the scrambled tofu and he said that should be fine. He was very nice just needed more training. The food tasted delicious and definitely made up for the service, although the scrambled tofu was small, like a 1/4 cup worth, so that was very disappointing. for $7 I'd expect a minimum of a cup worth as tofu is cheap. The restaurant was poorly organised today, staff seem to need more training, there was a very long wait to pay and there were 4 staff members just hanging out at the coffee machine. I like the area the cafe is in and the interior is modern and there are a lot of nice little things to buy for home. It is a 25-minute drive from my home so if the service was better, prices aren't bad, a little on the higher end, would adjust prices for vegan options or have a replacement for non vegan food. I'd definitely try again because the taste of food...

I always support local businesses & when looking to eat out, I stick to our local area. IMO, our local community is one of the best I've had the privilege to be a part of. So when I was given a recommendation to go here, I absolutely had to give it a go. Unfortunately, I was disappointed. The portion sizes were great & the hot drinks were on point, perfect. The eggs were cooked to perfection, just delicious, but that's where it stopped. Some of the food was oily & very salty. The hashbrown fell apart, it wasnt crispy & resembled more like mashed potatoes. The spinach was oozing oil & uneditable. The toast wasn't toasted enough, either. The crust was hard, but the rest was untoasted & again, the oil was soaked into the bread. Our server looked unhappy, almost sad. I wanted to ask if they were OK. Their service was prompt & professional. The establishment looks tired. The further you get into the building, the more you notice. Dusty wine bottles on racks, paint chips, a little rough. However, our table & cutlery were clean. The table was well laid out, too. A few improvements here & there would make a big difference & would feel more welcoming. Having said all that, I do want to go back & give the business...