OlMate’s crosses the river

Southbank sandwich bar OlMate’s, spotting a rare sandwich-free zone in Melbourne’s north, has opened in Thornbury. It brings the team’s South Asian-skewed sandwiches, such as roast beef with a rogan josh dipping sauce, to a different, more leisurely crowd.

Chef Pranav Walimbe is responsible for sneaking green chilli, coriander and ginger into bread rolls, as in a recent special featuring porchetta cooked with flavours of cafreal, a coriander-heavy dish hailing from Goa, India.

Vegetarian options include spice-crusted cauliflower with date and tamarind chutney, or crushed chickpeas and salad. More common sandwiches, such as fried chicken and coleslaw on brioche, or a meatball sub, are also in the mix.

The green-tiled shop has 15 seats inside for longer visits, which are more common at this shop according to co-owner Annie Martinu. She and partner Andreas also own Reverence Coffee Roasters, which is the bean of choice across espresso and batch brew.

Open Mon-Fri 7am-2.30pm, Sat 8am-2.30pm.

OlMate’s, 779 High Street, Thornbury, instagram.com/olmates.au

Ima sets up shop

Dearly loved Carlton spot Ima Project Cafe has resurfaced in Brunswick with not one but two ways to enjoy its Japanese-meets-Aussie fare.

While new sit-down venue Ima Asa/Yoru (translating to day/night) is under construction, the team are keeping busy two doors away with Ima Pantry.

The pantry harnesses the best parts of an artisan grocer, cafe and convenience store, stocking everything from milk, soap and fresh produce to hojicha powder and small-batch yuzu kosho.

The spare industrial fit-out is offset by enormous rice-paper lamp shades. Browse the impressive retail range before taking a look at that day’s offering for lunch.

Five different dishes are served bento-style with rice, with the daily menu of okazu (side dishes) recently including Japanese potato salad, a type of stir-fry known as kinpira, and grilled broccolini with sesame dressing. You can also get onigiri, which were only served at Ima as part of meal sets, and Japanese-accented toasties. Keep an eye out for weekend specials.

Open Mon 7.30-3pm, Wed-Sun 7.30-3pm.

Ima Pantry, 9 Duckett Street, Brunswick, imaproject.co

Sydney’s Destination Roll arrives in Melbourne

Lunch on a budget in the CBD is still possible, thanks to the arrival of Sydney chain Destination Roll. The banh mi specialist is filling crusty rolls – apparently baked every 15 minutes – with barbecue pork, crisp-skin chicken or other combinations, plus all the pickles, chilli and coriander you’d expect. Prices start at $10 and don’t go beyond $12.

Since opening in Sydney’s west more than 10 years ago, Destination has grown to have 12 shops around the harbour city. This is its first Melbourne location.

The menu also offers pho and pork chop with broken rice – but with a name like Destination Roll, we reckon the sandwiches are the safe bet.

Open Mon-Thu 9am-2pm, Fri 11am-3pm.

Destination Roll, shop 6, 699 Collins Street, Docklands, destinationroll.com.au