Naughty Boy, North Carlton and their amazing milkshakes

We went to Naughty Boy in North Carlton today because Sylvia and I were so tempted by a photo in an online list of amazing milkshakes.  They looked so beautiful and were available on our side of town.

First, we headed to Readings Bookstore in Carlton for bargain price calendars for 2016.  I was tempted by this Very Veggie Family Cookbook because it has some really lovely simple recipes.

Then we went to Naughty Boy filled with Great Expectations.  The design was very stylish with the exposed brick walls, the giant face peeping over the tables and the pressed metal around the counter.  This cafe is built for the hipster crowd.  And they come.  Don't be fooled by this quick picture I snapped.  It wasn't hard to get a seat but the place was really full and tables were not vacant for long.

Sylvia and I looked about while we waited for our milkshake.  The muffins and slices in the display cabinet looked really good.

Soon our milkshakes arrived.  I am not usually a milkshake fan but when it comes topped with a brownie I can be swayed.  Mine was the Chocolate and Nutella Fudge Milkshake.  It was topped with a gluten free brownie, freeze dried fruit and what I thought was cream (though when I looked up an online menu it says white chocolate mousse and now I am unsure and cursing that I did not take a photo of the menu).  The brownie was very impressively fudgy.  Sylvia and I loved the nutella around the edge of the jar and we both loved the chocolatey creamy milkshake.

Sylvia chose the Pavlova Milkshake.  This was coconut milk, vanilla and lime, passionfruit curd, meringue, kiwi fruit, mixed berries and strawberry fairy floss.  I could not get a decent photo of it when it arrived as Sylvia just wanted to dive into the fairy floss (and the light wasn't great in our window seat).  The cream and curd proved a bigger challenge for her.  She was less keen on the actually milk shake which was really fruity but decided that the meringue was really good when dipped into the fruity drink.

The other milkshake was the Salted Caramel with nutella, sticky date and rice pudding, peanut brittle and butterscotch cream.  It sounded just as over the top as the ones we had but Sylvia cannot eat peanuts so we passed over it.

I had really wanted to order the Spring Greens with pumpkin hummus, nuts and grains.  It just wasn't Sylvia's sort of thing and I thought it best to go halves with her, given that we were having indulgent milkshakes.  So we shared the Red Velvet Pancakes.  This was a veritable forest of delight.

The red velvet pancakes were served with fresh berries, vanilla marscapone, chocolate soil, freeze dried mandarin, citrus powder and burnt meringues.  Yep, they don't do simple at Naughty Boy.  I didn't notice the chocolate soil but I did appreciated the flowers ("what are these?" asked Sylvia in surprise) and the drizzle of maple syrup.

This dish was heavenly.  Everything worked together really well.  Unless you are a small child who is not keen on creamy toppings or mixing lots of unsual textures.  Yet even Sylvia conceded that the pancakes were very good.

E was a bit less flamboyant in his choices.  He had a latte with a BRAT pide.  (That is a bacon, roquette, smashed avocado, tomato and garlic aioli.)  He sang its praises, saying that the avocado was good quality.  His only complaint about the place was that it had too many hard surfaces that made the place noisy.  Mind you, he says this about a lot of cafes.

By the end of the meal Sylvia was squeezing the juice of blueberries into her mouth and giggling hysterically as it dribbled down her chin.  Our table was a total mess.  Like we had just indulged in a Baccanalian feast.  I felt the need to apologise to the waiter as we left.  Then we went home to eat salad for dinner!  Sylvia is already planning to return for another milkshake.

Naughty Boy
499 Lygon St (corner of Richardson St)
North Carlton
Tel: 03 8899 6634
http://www.naughtyboycafe.com.au/