Hero | Grain Store
I will be making a small tangent to mention Grain Store, before moving on with the central Hero of this post. The team bringing it together at Grain Store in all seriousness do not need any more publicity. With German born Chef Ingo Meissner heading the kitchen, think along the lines of: Buerre bosc pear and Belgian chocolate brioche; Portobello mushroom and raclette potato rosti or blood orange soufflé glace – there is no question why the queues are out the door, and reservations are now a must to get a table at this west end brunch spot.
From the same creators of Grain Store, Michael and Eleena, brings to Melbourne a new niche of Brooklyn (i.e. New York) inspired baguettes at Hero subs. Currently the flagship store is located right behind RMIT building 80, entry from Stewart street, but stay tuned as there are two more stores planning to invade Melbourne. The concept is simple – sourcing artisan foodstuffs locally, “HERO takes the art of the simple sandwich baguette and applies the Melbourne shuffle to its big sandwich flavours”.
I brought along two friends to share around the food (i.e. so we could try more things) – such is always the blogger angle taken wherever possible. What started out as a quiet lunch, quickly became a rowdy lunch hour with the slow trickle in of fellow bloggers – Ashley, Lianne, Daisy to name a few.
Paradise – lemon & thyme roasted chicken, lettuce, hard boiled egg, crispy bacon croutons, Caesar dressing. (aka. Caesar salad in a sub)
Brklyn – 10 hour pulled lamb, shredded pickle beetroot, baby spinach, herb whipped fetta
Kid Royale – smoked hickory rub, slow roasted beef, with onion jam, honey Dijon, baby spinach, crispy onion rings
Throwback – veal, pork, orange & fennel meatballs, simmered in nona’s homemade sauce, baby spinach, shaved grana padano
Catcher – panko crumb shrimp tossed in hero’s secret seasoning, slaw, homemade thousand island dressing
And to finish we had some amaze-ballz Hot ball donuts – deep fried goodness filled with jafa – and Hero cookies with oozing chocolate chips inside.
Rating: Yummy+1. These oversized baguettes (aka gourmet subs) from Hero, were a smashing winner with maximum flavour and punch, using the freshest ingredients, at a mean price of $11.8 / sub. Expect to be satisfied by the overflowing filling and be prepared to make a bit of mess; don’t worry I used at least 5 serviettes! And you might need to schedule in a workout or two afterwards if you can still move.
Of the 5 subs we tasted (5 out of the range of 7, *ahem* gluts!), the Brklyn and KidRoyale easily came in first place with their generous bites of juicy meat, coupled with the necessary slathering of sweet, sour and savoury made it a pleasure for every bite. The Catcher came in a close second on my radar – panko fried anything will tickle your average Asian’s tastebuds.
A massive shout out to Michael and Eleena for their generous hospitality, and feeding our every whim. P.S. there are limited edition subs where only 6 made per day… keep an eye out for them!
[Hero]
Where: 445 Swanston St (Building 80 RMIT), CBD
*enter via Stewart St
Closed: Sundays
[Grain Store]
Where: 517 Flinders lane, CBD
Contact: 03 9972 6993
Opens: 7 days a week for brunch.
[Disclaimer: AAR dined courtesy of Hero & Harvey Publicity]
Almost Always Ravenous 