Dessert Archives - One Piece Left

I’m going to take you guys on a trip down memory lane today with a review on Dairy Bell. With so many fancy Gelato places these days, it’s easy to forget the humble old school ice cream shops which started our sweet tooth obsession. Without sugar coating anything, is Dairy Bell as good as it’s successors? That’ll be a definite no. The quality just isn’t up to par for today’s standards, however Dairy Bell will always have a special place in my heart. Just like Neapolitan ice cream, the nostalgia is strong.

After a very filling lunch with my work colleagues, one of them suggested to get Dairy Bell for dessert. Since I hadn’t been in a while, I happily obliged. It was my first time at the Malvern branch because the franchises have been steadily closing one by one. Last time I had Dairy Bell was actually in Dandenong, but that store is long gone now.

First thing I noticed when I walked into the shop was that it smelled like oil! This was very weird for an ice cream shop. I soon realised that they were also selling donuts. When I think of donuts, Dairy Bell wouldn’t spring to my mind, but I’m happy they’re trying different things. I looked around the shop and it looked exactly the same as what I remembered it to be. For this day and age, a revamp couldn’t hurt because the layout is starting to look really dated.

My colleague got the banana split, and I only got a single serve of blood orange sorbet on a cone. The prices are certainly on the cheaper end, and it’s very easy to up your sugar intake at this place for not much money. His banana split just looked like an overkill for someone who’s had a big lunch. I couldn’t believe he finished it all by himself! My blood orange sorbet was on the sweeter side, and tasted a bit artificial. It wasn’t horrible but wasn’t the best either. The cone itself wasn’t anything to talk about, it’s the dime in a dozen ones you find at the supermarket.

Even though I didn’t have the best experience, I would still come back for old time’s sake. I might try some classics next time like chocolate or coffee. Even though the competition has left these guys behind, I’d still show my support for an old Australian icon.

Dairy Bell
Approx $10 AUD per person
Address: 89 Chadstone Road, Malvern East VIC 3145
Phone: +61 3 9530 4369
Website: dairybell.com.au

South Melbourne seems to be one of our favourite places lately, as yet again we came across another lovely eatery there! As soon as I walked into The Crux and Co. I instantly loved the place. It has a nice modern, and clean feel to it with the light woods and white decor, making it feel really spacious inside. Staff were very friendly and let us choose where we wanted to be seated so we sat down at a table that had comfy cushions for our backs.

I started off with a latte which was pretty nice, it had the perfect level of bitterness and didn’t come out scorching hot, so I could drink it straight away. Davin got an iced coffee after seeing quite a few of them come out and that was really good too. It was not sweet at all and had a good balance of coffee and milk. I also ended up getting a fresh orange juice with my meal. We loved the glasses the drinks came out in.

Now onto the food. It was pretty amazing. Davin ordered the smoked salmon and ricotta on house-made croissant with fennel salad and balsamic reduction, which was delicious. The croissant was fresh and had a lovely crunch to it. Add the combination of the salmon and the ricotta cheese, it made it a really enjoyable dish. I ordered the scrambled eggs with smoked salmon, broad beans, bonito, with a tobiko and siracha mayonaise on squid ink toast. This was also a really yummy dish and I easily gobbled this up fairly quickly. The presentation of the dishes was also pretty without being pretentious and trying too hard, something we’ve seen at quite a few other cafes lately.

Finally we couldn’t pass on dessert because they had so many lovely desserts displayed in their glass cabinet. I settled on a lemon eclair which was so good and hit the sweet spot for me. Service was also outstanding and the staff were very friendly. We will definitely be back!