Rococo Italian Restaurant and Monarch Cakes, St Kilda

We first encountered Rococo a couple of years ago and were wowed by the potato pizza as we sat on the pavement in Acland Street enjoying the buzz of hipster St Kilda.  Two years later Sylvia is vegan and was excited to discover that they have a large vegan menu.  We were delighted that we could continue our plans to explore the menu further.  After a delicious meal, we walked a few doors up to the iconic Monarch Cake shop to go back in time to experience the old St Kilda where migrants settled to escape the upheaval in Eastern Europe in the first half of the 20th Century.

The pavement tables at Rococo are shaded by black and white striped umbrellas and are a fine place for people watching.  It always looks busy and inviting.  

Rococo opened in 2005 and feels well established in Acland Street among the many fine places to eat and shop.  Like others popular streets in inner Melbourne, this area has gone through phases of being the-place-to be followed by shabby followed by revival.  Since opening, Rococo has established restaurants in Hawthorn, Point Cook and Mordialloc.

This is the Smashed potato pizza we first had back in 2023.  Actually this photo is from when we returned at the start of 2024 for more pizza.  Both times it was superb with chunks of roast potato, melty oozy taleggio cheese, rosemary, sea salt and caramelised onion on a beautiful pizza base with an amazing puffy charred crust.  Ever since we have talked about going back for more of this pizza.  Of course we wanted to explore the menu more too but this pizza was so good.

 

On our first trip we were also keen to try more than the pizza.  I had the hearty superfood salad: with mixed grains, broccolini, roasted cauliflower, baby beets, candied pumpkin, asparagus, spinach, capers, beetroot, hummus, fetta, chickpeas, toasted nuts & seeds.  It was great but I had pizza envy.  

We also shared some garlic bread. When I think of garlic bread it is a buttered baguette baked in foil so it comes out soft inside with crisp crusts.  Rococo's garlic bread was larger bread slices fried or grilled on both sides so they were crispy and buttery.  It was unexpectedly delicious but filling.  As I had to help out Sylvia was that scrumptious pizza, I took salad and garlic bread home for dinner.  

For drinks, Sylvia got an apple juice and I got a Passionate Times mocktail of apple juice, passion fruit, fresh lime, dry ginger.  Mine was wonderfully refreshing but it was hard to drink with a straw because the passionfruit seeds kept getting stuck in it.  Worth it!

When Sylvia went vegan, she gave up all hope of every having that wonderful pizza again.  Then recently she discovered that they have a large separate vegan menu.  And so we returned with my parents and E last month.  We sat inside for the first time.  It is a big space divided into more intimate areas that combine the traditional and the modern with shelves of old wine bottles and trailing vines against white brick walls.

The waiter was a larger than life character, as one would expect in a good Italian restaurant.  After we ordered the drinks, a latte was brought to our table.  We insisted it was the wrong table.  The waiter was amused when he checked his notes and found that that when my dad had ordered a "light ale", he had written latte.  He then proceeded to explain that some beers were light but not ales, especially in Australia.  It made my dad's drink order far more memorable than the rest of ours.

Sylvia wanted to try a few of the dishes on the vegan menu so I shared a few dishes with her.  First we had the Chickpea dip ($16).  The dip was served with an attractive arrangement of chickpeas, smoked paprika, semi-dried tomatoes, pickled onion, herbs and a couple of generous chunks of toasted focaccia on the side.  It was a fine  way to start our meal.

Of course we had to try the Smashed Roasted Potato, Rosemary & Sea Salt Pizza ($29) which is the vegan version of the one above that we both loved so much.  It came with caramelised onion, a melted cheese and crumbled vegan feta.  Sylvia loved it but found that the feta cheese had an aftertaste of coconut oil.  .  I thought it lovely with the same wonderful charred crust and chunks of potato but the vegan cheese was no match for the gooey crispy cheese on the dairy version that had more flavour, crisp edges and stretchy strings.  As a lacto ovo vegetarian, I would go for the regular potato pizza but I am really glad that as a vegan Sylvia can have a fantastic version of this favourite pizza.

I was interested to compared the regular and vegan menus so I looked at the pizzas.  On the regular menu are 24 pizzas with 6 being vegetarian.  On the vegan menu are 8 pizzas and it was interesting to see that three of them were not on the regular menu. Also both dairy and non-dairy potato pizzas were the same price.  Those who were vegan and/or dairy free were well looked after.

As well as the pizza for our mains, we had the Spaghetti 'Bolognese' ($35) which had an amazing slow cooked lentil, eggplant & mushroom ragu, and was topped with vegan parmesan and herbs.  I loved how the ragu was rich and flavoursome with a good protein but did not have any mock meat.  I much prefer a menu like this vegan menu which had some plant based dairy products but is mainly lots of vegetables and legumes rather than mock meats.

Finally we had a side dish of Mixed Leaf Salad with olive oil, balsamic ($10).  It was excellent lots of variety in the salad leaves and a great dressing.  

Everyone else enjoyed their meal.  My mum had the Brodo: a classic clear chicken broth with 
house-made chicken tortellini and parsley.  My dad and E had the Char Grlled Chicken and Bacon risotto with leek, baby spinach, tomato and basil.

We were full after our lunch but Acland Street is famous for its cake shops.  We could not resist going to the oldest of them all.  Monarch Cakes dates back to 1934 when it was founded by Pearl Levine, a Polish Jewish immigrant who had been a baker in Poland before immigrating to Melbourne.  She brought her recipes with her and they have been passed on to subsequent owners.  

The cake store is fondly remembered for being part of the old St Kilda that was where Eastern European Jewish families of Melbourne met and ate cake before they moved to Caulfield in the 1980s.  There are a few of the cake shops left and it still a joy to admire the cakes in their windows.  Monarch Cakes has a lot of traditional cakes unlike some other stores that have more of the colourful and modern cakes.

Inside the counter tells the stories of over 90 years of being part of the local community with photos of the St Kilda Aussie rules footy club and fading photos of the manager with visitors.  A set of old fashioned scales sits on the counter alongside cakes on display.  The cluttered vintage European charm is one of a place that has seen many years.

We look for a table inside for our group of 5 and slowly discover that the Reserved signs on the table actually say, reserved for groups of 3 of more.  However only 4 can fit on a table so we have to sit across two tables with a walkway in between us.  

 

The wooden shelves are crammed with old magazines and photos.  A charming assortment of vintage vinyl chairs add to the sense of the place having being here for many years.  It is like stepping back in time to a cafe where writers  and bohemians hold spirited conversation over their coffee and cigarettes.  It is markedly different to there modern hipster cafes with brick walls and brightly painted bookshelves where students and creatives take their laptops these days.

We can't resist having cake.  I choose the famous kooglhoupf with its chocolate layers between the sweet yeasted cake.  I have a square of the the slab.  It is delicious with rich smooth chocolate and layers of cake so think they are like pancakes. Only later do I see it also comes in a bundt cake with chocolate swirls.  I think I might like to try this at another visit.  I also would love to come back and try the poppy seed slice.

My parents share a piece of the famous plum cake which is excellent with large pieces of juicy fruit in it.  E has the lemon tart which he describes as being light and lovely.  Sylvia can only find one vegan cake - the brownie which has been dipped in chocolate.  It is very nice but oh so rich.  Everyone but me has a coffee and speaks highly of it too.

Then we walk down Acland Street to browse in Readings Bookstore.  It is always a joy to see all the wonderful books and greeting cards in there.  E buys a book and we leave.  I know that long time residents of St Kilda miss when the era when it had more of the Eastern European community.  I have never known it and am very happy to be able to visit occasionally and enjoy the buzz of the street life with palm trees, street art and interesting places to visit as well as the nearby attractions of St Kilda beach, Luna Park and the Palais Theatre.  Even the expensive parking cannot dampen the joy of a day out in St Kilda. 

Rococo
85 – 91 Acland Street, St Kilda
Open: Monday – Sunday: 12pm – 10pm
https://www.rococo.net.au/

Monarch Cakes
103 Acland Street, St Kilda
Open: Weekdays: 8.30am - 6pm, Weekends: 9am - 6 30pm
https://www.monarchcakes.com.au/ 

 
More St Kilda posts on Green Gourmet Giraffe:

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Sister of Soul cafe

The Snug, Amanda Palmer and Missy Higgins in St Kilda 

St Kilda Farmers Market (Fitzroy Street)