Noisette

a French café at a Melbourne beach side.
To be honest I wasn’t expecting Noisette to be as good as it turned out to be. It wasn’t just the beachside location, or the delicious fresh pastries, or the tasty ice coffee.
It was the fact that the atmosphere was so friendly that I almost couldn’t believe it.
No ice coffee on the menu? No problem, they will whip one up for you no drama, even whip some cream for it while they’re there.
What’s that now, you want an ice mocha ?
Sure they don’t do that in France but they will do it for you with a smile.
Plan to hang around after closing time?
They are too kind to give you a passive aggressive hint like cleaning everything from around and under you. No, here at Noisette closing time does not turn your friendly waiter to a pumpkin. In fact, I asked for water, and water was served, still with a smile.
The day I went to Noisette, the waiter was French, the Barista was French, the woman who walked past the shop and greeted the shop man was French, the four customers that walked in after were French, It’s like suddenly I’m in seaside France!
Smiles are aplenty here and service is top notch. The fresh delish pastries and coffee is just a delicious bonus really

Good croissants (except extraordinarily buttery). A draw back to Noisette Bay St is the take away coffee. For years I’ve been asking for a half sugar but their barista piles it like a tip truck. Should have gone to third wave…

If you are after traditional French bakery items then this is it. Croissants are to die for, coffee is great and the décor and atmosphere is just right. Very clean and great service. Overall, if you want a nice coffee on a Sunday, a Croissant and jam then this is it. Just a stones throw from Port Melbourne Beach what more could you want.

My partner and I live in Port Melbourne and frequent this café often. We are always amazed by the efficient and friendly staff, their fresh pastries and great tasting coffee. It tends to be difficult to get all three of these right in one café. No tricks, just a really great staff who’s attention detail in everything they do.
I especially needed to write a review after this past good Friday. It was a mad house in there! So many customers picking up their last minute hotcross buns. The staff handled it without breaking a sweat!
Thanks to the Noisette staff for making our Sunday mornings! ;)

A must when I am in Port Melbourne! Great coffee and delicious french pastries.

I didn’t have anything but the macarons but as a macaron addict it was like HEAVEN. There’s not many places I haven’t been in Melbourne (and elsewhere) for macarons but the variety was great and the texture and flavour was AWESOME.
Perfectly perfect but definitely made on site :-)
A must visit for any macaron lover. they also have coffee in small bowls. A+ I can’t wait to go back!

The owner of Noisette, David Menard, is a fifth generation Baker from Brittany, France. And with that kind of skill, it’s no wonder that his bread graces the tables of some of Melbourne’s top Good Food Guide Hatted restaurants and fashionable cafes.
The breads are sourdough leavened which means they are not coeliac friendly. My favourites are the whole grain sourdough, baguettes, Pain de Mie (brioche loaf), chocolate Viennoise and the garlic sourdough that has whole cloves of sweet roasted garlic.
Noisette in my opinion make the best and most authentic, flaky, buttery croissant and Pain au Chocolat. Also on offer are hand made chocolates, beautiful patisserie: cakes — individual and occasion sized — macarons, danish, tarts, sable breton, brownies and more.
Something that makes Noisette unique is speciality items made for French festive calendar events like Galette des Rois and Buche de Noël.
David was one of the Patissier/​Boulangeres that came to Australia to start up Laurent, so you may see a similarity in the sandwiches, filled baguettes and Croque Monsieur. But I think they are much better value here plus half portions are available.
You can practice your French on the cheery staff and they happen to make a decent coffee too. Is it any wonder I’ve been a regular since they opened?

Good bread — get into it.

What a good idea it was to explore seaside Port Melbourne on Sunday. My favourite find was Noisette — a contemporary bakery that claims to have been traditional French baking since 1825. That’s a seriously long time if you think about it and the quality, consistency and taste certainly show.
I normally can’t resist French pastries anyway so even though I was full up from lunch I decided to buy three — to keep for tea the next day of course! (enter: smile here) So the escargot (which lots of juicy raisins and just the right amount of sweet glaze) didn’t last more than 2 hours in the bag. But I have to say, it was delicious! The pastry was slightly flaky and had a nice pull to it — in my opinion, it was just perfect.
But the true taste test happened the day after. The chocolate almond croissant and the plain croissant remained in the bag till the next morning tea. And the verdict: I have found my next love affair! Noisette is not stingy with ingredients and manages to deliver great pastry — even though it’s one day old!
The gentleman who served me also helped the overall experience as he was cheery and showed a genuine desire to serve. And he did this consistently for the next few people after me.