The Quarter — Restaurant in Melbourne

The Quarter on Degraves does not do things by halves. It leans fully into the chaotic charm of Melbourne’s breakfast culture, offering a big breakfast that’s definitely worth walking over the Yarra for. Possibly even swimming, depending on your level of hunger or curiosity.

Let’s start with the roasted tomato. Somehow both mysterious and dramatic, it arrives glistening with oil and just enough spice to make you wonder if it is trying to impress or intimidate you. Either way, it is probably the best actor on the plate.

The spicy sausage is, in fact, spicy. Not in a complex, nuanced way. More like it skipped character development and went straight for volume. If your taste buds needed a jumpstart, mission accomplished.

Then come the poached eggs with hollandaise sauce. They arrive gently slumped on toast, like they have been through something emotionally taxing. The yolk oozes slowly, as if reluctant to participate. It is the breakfast equivalent of a sigh.

The setting is classic Degraves. Tightly packed tables, exposed brick, and just enough background chatter to make you feel like you are in someone else’s brunch scene. The décor whispers laid back, but the energy says you are lucky to have found a seat.

Coffee, naturally, is the main character. It is strong, efficient, and just bitter enough to match the mood of the barista. As is tradition in Melbourne, it arrives looking far better than you do at that hour.

The service is unmistakably French. Polite, cool, and slightly aloof. You might not get a smile, but you will get your food, eventually, and that is all part of the experience.

In the end, The Quarter delivers exactly what it promises. A big breakfast, bold flavours, a bit of mystery, and just enough attitude to remind you that this is Melbourne. You are not just eating. You are...

My wife and I attended on a week night and sat outside. Atmosphere was nice and the waiter was quick and pleasant, he took our order of drinks and the chicken & chorizo pizza and the lamb pizza. The pizzas were about $30 each and the size of a dinner plate. The drinks arrived shortly. Both pizzas were drowned in cheese, you could not tell what was underneath. The lamb pizza had one piece of lamb per slice and only some slices had a single piece of mushroom hidden under the cheese. The pesto base so think that the whole of the topping just slid off when you picked up a piece. All you could taste was the pesto. I only ate it because I had paid for it. The chicken & chorizo pizza had no chorizo, was downed in cheese and had a tomato base that overly thick and cold. The whole top of the pizza just slid around when she tried to pick up a piece. It was as though they had just poured melted cheese over the top of it rather than cook it properly, the base was wet and floppy. My wife ate two bites and put it down. When the waiter asked how dinner was she replied the beer was nice. He was concerned that she had not eaten the food but she did not want to cause an issue and just asked for it to be boxed which he did. As soon as she was around the corner it was dropped in a bin, she wasn’t going to inflict it on anyone else. My kids make better pizza, I would suggest the owner invest in a qualified chef or an experienced cook and not rely on the work experience kid to prepare the food. I would joke that the restaurant name comes from only getting a quarter of what you pay for. We both walked away from this place feeling like someone stole from us. The place has good reviews but I just don’t see how based on our experience. If you want a drink it would be fine, but go somewhere...

The single star was for how wonderful the staff were and I truly wish I could give them more to reflect the experience but the food was an almighty let down. It seems like the floor staff are all very lovely, kind people who are good at service and making you feel welcome even when really busy, however the woman next to me ordered dairy free and all of her food came with cheese on it. My partner ordered pork pasta and said it was ok but nothing special. I was looking for a vegan option which was limited but they did have penne with tomato sauce and a vegan burger, with both meals coming in at about 28 dollars. The penne felt like it could be made for about 3 dollars as it’s just penne with tomato sauce, one or two bits of zucchini, maybe 3 peas if you’re lucky and some garnish. You can also order chips and ask for them to be vegan and you’ll be given sauce instead of aioli, but ours came out with aioli and was stone cold. We also had to wait around 40 minutes for food which isn’t a huge deal but it’s just a shame it wasn’t worth the wait. Our server was very apologetic about the wait.

For what ended up being 120 dollars for two meals a side and 3 small glasses of wine we felt pretty stiffed considering the chips were cold and my meal was incredibly basic. I’d go back for a drink, as mentioned the floor staff were really lovely so there’s absolutely no judgement about them, just the kitchen needs to up their game and make their food seem less like a bad home cooked meal. It can be really hard for meat based chefs to make good plant based food, but if you wouldn’t eat it yourself don’t bother putting it on the menu especially at the...