Marché Café

Marché Café is a café and takeaway spot on Glenferrie Road in Hawthorn, centred on fresh, wholesome food, specialty coffee and house-made sweets. During the week, the offering focuses on seasonal salads, gourmet baguette sandwiches, brioche-based options, freshly baked savouries and a cabinet of pastries and cakes. The menu changes with the seasons and the day’s produce, so there is a reason to return rather than expect the same display every visit.

Lunch is a strong part of the café’s identity. Salads include vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free choices, while the baguettes are made with bread baked fresh each morning and filled with house-made ingredients. The Roasted Chicken baguette is highlighted as a customer favourite, made with roast chicken, house-made mayonnaise, pickle and Cos lettuce. Other listed menu examples include The Rueben with pastrami, sauerkraut, pickle and Swiss cheese, and a free-range ham baguette with brie, fig compote, mustard and endive. In colder months, house-made soups join the daytime selection.

The sweet cabinet is prepared by Marché’s pastry chef and includes Maple Cinnamon Scrolls, Cinnamon Donuts, Chocolate Brownies, Caramel Slice and Lamingtons. Coffee is served daily using Five Senses beans, with the café catering for takeaway coffees as well as people settling in for a meal. On weekends, Marché shifts into a more relaxed dine-in style, serving brunch built around seasonal specials, café favourites and quality ingredients. The venue’s own description points to simple flavours and careful presentation rather than an overly complicated approach.

Marché opened in October 2016 with a focus on fresh takeaway food and catering, and has since developed a relaxed dine-in offering for Hawthorn and Kew locals. The kitchen says it prepares as much as possible onsite, with chefs baking, roasting, smoking, pickling and fermenting ingredients for the day’s menu. That makes it suited to a quick solo lunch, a coffee and pastry stop, or a casual weekend brunch with friends or family. It also provides catering across Melbourne for offices, schools, events and private functions, with baguettes, salads, breakfast options, sweets and canapés available through its catering service.