ast week, Untitled Cafe opened beneath the Melbourne Studio of Art, serving Five Senses coffee, crunchy baguettes and granola. Maya Lester is the young lady behind the café and whose mother runs the studio and supply shop upstairs.

“It’s been rocky”, she confides of the business’s early days. But the perfect coffee, friendly service and delicious fare belie her claim.

Untitled has usual suspects like avocado fetta mash, roast veggie pides and tomato and cheese croissants down pat, and it hits the mark by staying basic, being affordable and sourcing excellent produce. Relishes, muesli and sweets are homemade and the bread is from Phillippa’s.

The bright space comprises a small open kitchen, benches and a communal table piled with blank postcards and coloured pencils. “We are bringing something new to the area,” offers Lester. “There aren’t many cafes in Melbourne where you can draw a picture, grab an art book from the bookshelf, do a painting at the coffee table. There’s a massive music and art culture in Melbourne and it’s untapped through hospitality.”

Untitled takes its name from all the great, untitled artworks and makes for an quietly inspirational setting in itself. Black and white silent films like Metropolis are projected on a white expanse of wall, filling the space with a sense of nostalgia while hinting at the creativity blooming upstairs.

An arty angle marks a point of difference for Untitled, a modest little cafe bound to bring more foot traffic to a somewhat lonely end of Glenhuntly Road.

Untitled Cafe
544 Glen Huntly Road, Elsternwick

Hours
Mon to Thu 7.30am–6pm
Fri 7.30am–5pm
Sat 7.30am–4pm

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