The Ripponlea cafe that was Hawk and Hunter has been reborn as big, bright Turning Point, a licensed cafe that's open for dinner Thursday to Sunday.

It's the latest venue from the Undercover Retail Group, owned by sometime chiropractor and all-the-time coffee fanatic Hakan Bilal – the business also includes a Bendigo coffee roastery, and eastern suburbs cafes Short Straw and Collective Espresso.

Executive chef Jose Chavez trained with Shane Delia and worked at Jacques Reymond for five years before moving to the Yarra Valley.

With three children and a fourth imminent, it's not surprising he has families in mind, not only with the menu but also with the spacious, pram-friendly layout.

Breakfast dishes include the nostalgic, yet contemporary, Cocoa Pops with flower-strewn banana, vegan chocolate mousse and chocolate soy milk. At night, the menu leans to the snacky with a few classic main courses.

"The idea is that the parents have steak or fish and wine while the kids have empanadas and croquettes," says Chavez.

If you see black-shirted Mr Miyagi employees on the premises, don't be confused: the back-of-house area is so big that Turning Point shares it with the popular Windsor restaurant, whose staff use it as a production kitchen for their mod-Japanese menu.

Open Mon-Wed 7am-4pm, Thu-Fri 7am-9pm, Sat-Sun 8am-9pm.

8-10 Glen Eira Avenue, Ripponlea, 03 9528 2719.