First Look: The Green Stuff Is Stone-Milled In-House at Matcha Kobo

From specialty cafes and Japanese chains to dedicated dessert bars and specialty drinks , matcha has taken over Melbourne.

But at Matcha Kobo, a new CBD cafe, the drink is treated with extreme reverence. “I think everyone loves matcha right now,” says head of pastry Sharon Zou. “But very few places are taking it as seriously as we are.”

Four Japanese ishi usu (stone mills) sit at the centre of the 90-seat venue. Owner Stella Dong says the ishi usu – which were handmade in Japan’s Aichi Prefecture and came with a price tag of $20,000 each – are the only ones of their kind in Australia. “We’re one of a handful of venues outside Japan using a machine like this,” says Dong, who runs Matcha Kobo with her husband William Guo. The mills grind tea leaves into matcha powder at a painstakingly slow pace, each mill taking 24 hours to produce one kilogram (enough to make about 300 cups of the drink).

All the matcha used at the cafe is milled on-site, with fresh batches harvested twice daily. There are no refills until the next cycle. Once the powder runs out – that’s it. “It’s not about volume,” Dong says. “It’s about honouring the quality. Stone-grinding fresh keeps the matcha from oxidising, which means the flavour is fresher, smoother and lower in bitterness.”

The matcha used is strictly ceremonial grade. “We wanted everything here to be premium. That’s what sets us apart,” says Dong, who, with Guo, is also behind Waku Waku , Nikoland and Fortune Alley. It’s all sourced from tea farms in Uji, Kyoto, all of which are listed on the drinks menu similar to how coffee beans are often denoted by farm region at specialty coffee shops.

Each cup is made to order using a traditional chawan (ceramic bowl) and chasen (bamboo whisk), and takes two to three minutes to prepare. “We want to give people the full experience,” Dong says. “Not just a drink, but something special.”

The drinks menu includes matcha, hojicha and genmaicha served with or without milk, and more creative drinks such as a matcha and yuzu soda, and the Hide in Forest (sencha topped with matcha cheese foam and a pecan crumb). There’s also coffee made with Five Senses beans.

The desserts are the work of Zou (ex- Adriano Zumbo Patisserie , ex- Koko Black ). Her menu leans on French patisserie techniques, but uses a Japanese flavour profile. The signature is the triple matcha tart: a crisp pâté sucree base layered with matcha cream cheese, white chocolate and a whipped matcha Chantilly. “It’s all about texture and balance,” says Zou. “We wanted to show what matcha can do when it’s treated with care.”

Other standouts include a seasonal tart made with autumn crisp grapes and orange blossom jelly, a savoury-sweet hojicha-chestnut tart and a crepe cake with red bean and mochi. Everything – including the mochi, hojicha spread and red bean paste – is made in-house.

Dong says the cafe’s late-night hours and calming, minimalist interiors were driven by her own habits. “I’m not a morning person,” she laughs. “I wanted somewhere to go at night – somewhere quiet, where I could still have the full cafe experience.”

Matcha Kobo
Level 2/258 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne
0437284029

Hours:
Daily 11am–9pm

@matchakobo