Melbourne's smashed avocado on sourdough toast became the global brunch cliche of the 2010s: the original version, popularised by Cafe Notting Hill in the mid-1990s and taken mainstream by cafes like St.
Chef Bill Granger of Sydney's Bills served smashed avo on toast from 1993 and many sources credit him with the genesis, though Melbourne cafes including Stepping Stone Cafe were running similar plates the same year. By the early 2000s the format had become standardised across the Melbourne cafe scene, with St. Ali in South Melbourne and Auction Rooms in North Melbourne setting the modern template: thick-cut sourdough, fork-mashed avocado seasoned with lemon, sea salt, chilli and good olive oil, often topped with feta, dukkah or poached egg. The dish briefly became a global culture-war flashpoint when an Australian property executive blamed it for millennials being unable to buy houses.
1 editor pick for Smashed Avocado on Toast in Melbourne, ranked by editorial score. All Melbourne signature dishes · Smashed Avocado on Toast across every city.