The Thousands

Mixed Business is both a café and a convalescent home. You wander in feeling a bit fragile, even wary of spending a hungover Saturday morning in a fledgling café.

But fear not – you are soon taken under the care of a remarkable waitress who somehow combines Greek yiayia, old-school English nurse and hospitality hottie into one soothing package. You can almost hear her tutting, "You’ve gone and got yourself wasted, haven’t you. Hmm? The sun’s too bright and your tongue feels like an anchovy? We’ll see to this."

And see to it they do, with their impressive repertoire of medicaments: coffee, poached eggs with fancy sides, fruit toast with ricotta, gingerbread and lamingtons. And all in the middle of Clifton Hill – formerly the last remaining caffeine dry zone between the CBD and Northcote.

If you’re still feeling a bit below par, you can retire to their garden (complete with flowers, chirping birds and a lemon tree) to continue your convalescence. We don’t recommend they branch into obstetrics or epidemiology, but they’re doing a great job with rehab.