New York Tomato

I was at the 20 km mark of my bike ride and I felt the Tin Man complex (when you’re biking on empty) come over me. As I was biking along York, I saw a couple of vintage road bikes parked alongside a wall #BAAW. I peered inside and saw an outside patio bounded by brick and wood and stepped up into the actual café. It was such a warm and inviting space on an otherwise gloomy day. I ordered a piccolo and found the coffee a bit weak, but hit the spot at that time. I munched at my croissant and planned out my route to Docklands as I sat on the outside patio. With no signage, I tried to figure out the name of this godsend and it was aptly named New York Tomato. Knowing I was far from the States, I looked over to the cross streets of which it sat on. It was on the corner of New and York. Clever.

I met someone here once for brunch and they brought their French bulldog. Therefore, I spent more time petting and playing with said Frenchie than paying attention to person, décor, brunch or coffee. Hence the clinical review.
This space is airy and tres hip. Think lots of wooden tables and stools.
The soy latte was creamy and generous, along with the banana porridge with cinnamon and honey.
All in all, good experience but presence of Frenchie made it fabulous.

New York Tomato has never been outstanding, especially in comparison to the sort of fare that Melbourne has. We first went there in 2011, and it wasn’t bad, but our most recent visit in February 2012 has left us with no desire to ever go back, and in fact, all four of us will be warning people off. This place has either gotten too big for its boots, become lazy, or simply isn’t hiring people with any sort of kitchen/​service experience or desire to learn.
Upon being seated we were told there would be a slight delay on our food, «of about half an hour». «No problems,» we thought, and ordered coffees and some glasses for water.
We were patient. Our coffees arrived slowly; my cup was dirty and the coffee machine clearly hadn’t been cleaned in months. We were continually advised that our food was «on its way». ONE HOUR AND FORTY FIVE MINUTES LATER… our food arrived… (i.e. we arrived at 11.15 and did not get our food until after 1pm) and it was atrocious.
Out of the three of us that had poached eggs, all were overcooked, saturated in vinegar and stringy across the plate. All of our slices of toast were completely burnt black (not just an edge or two). One person had an orange sticker in their avocado. The hollandaise tasted like it was scooped out of a tub and not made from scratch (it’s not that hard!!!) The avocado was simply scooped out of its husk with no additions, mixing or other attention. And to top it off, apparently there were no water glasses for two of the people at our table because they had «run out». For the whole 2 hours we were there. We left as quickly as we could, didn’t finish our meals and only stayed because we had waited to long all ready.
No longer worth the bother at all, especially given the amazing other options in Melbourne.

This was my fave spot while on holiday in Melbourne. It was great that it was convenient to the townhouse where we were staying. My fiancé’ and I frequented daily, as our little getaway. The coffee was off the hook! I’m a fan of the indie shops in Melbourne, although I’m a Seattle girl, the popular coffee is NOT my go to and I always like to support indie. The food was great! I loved the savory and sweet muffins. It was often difficult to decide which one I’d go with. The atmosphere was really cool, from hipster to business to families. I liked the service and that in such a short time, the servers knew our coffee orders when we walked through the door. I’m looking forward to visiting or even settling in Melbourne again and hope to get a visit to the NY Tomato.

Oh, I get it! Cause it’s on the corner of New and York Street. Okay, now the name is a lot less lame. Oh my, I rhymed.
When I first approached the café, it looked more like a couple of drop beats had crowded their garage with one too many chairs and tables. Once you actually enter the premises, the outdoor area, though cluttered and grungy, offers the ultimate relaxed vibe. This is only enhanced by the café’s residential location. The lush green plants that line the outdoor area bring a sense of peaceful vibrancy to the place, and you feel you could spend forever and a day here. Scratch that, just forever — that about covers it.
The staff are a bit odd, but they’re mostly gentle people who seem to lack social skills. NY tomato seriously makes up for it though in food. DELICIOUS scrambled eggs and mushrooms. WOW. I haven’t had scrambled eggs in a while and I chose an absolutely astounding place to revisit them.
The only reason I’m giving them 4 instead of 5 stars is because the coffee didn’t really float my boat. It wasn’t bitter enough, the flavour wasn’t very intense… yeah, not great which is a huge shame. Otherwise this dig is pretty flawless.

Whenever I’m in this part of Richmond, I get excited about dropping in to New York Tomato. I’ve had a bit of a relationship (don’t get any funny ideas) with this place for a few years now as my other half used to work in a lane around the corner (now, now, don’t be silly). This meant that I’d often spend time waiting for her to finish up, or helping out in the studio. In my downtime, I would make a point of dropping in to NYT for a coffee and a read.
The courtyard here is massive and it’s in front of the main café but fenced from the street. They do Coffee Supreme (brand) from New Zealand, which is one of my favourites and is now roasted right next door in Abbotsford funnily enough. The coffee here is spot on, the vibe is über relaxed and the staff are a friendly bunch.
The thing to know about this joint though is that the food is AMAZING. I can’t afford breakie out much these days, but if I’m gonna eat it anywhere, I’ll endeavour to make it here. The BLT (basic but super good) is a classic, as are the baked eggs.
Make the pilgrimage, you won’t be disappointed.

On the corner of New and York Streets in Richmond, the aptly named New York Tomato is one the area’s best cafes. It is housed in an ex-​workshop, and retains all the industrial features, including a roller door that separates the courtyard from the street when it’s closed.
The courtyard is the best spot on a sunny day, and upstairs is super-​warm in winter with big windows to let the light in. Despite being a local hang out not known to Richmond’s footy and shopping tourists, it still gets packed on weekends, so it’s worth calling ahead to book a table.
On my must-​eat list is the eggs baked in Napoli sauce and the banana smoothie. The coffee is consistently good (they know how to do the ‘strong’ in my strong flat white) and even simple fare like toast with jam is spot on.
Give it’s in the back streets, New York Tomato has remained a hidden treasure for years now, so enjoy a visit but keep it on the low down to stop it getting overrun!