Provence Espresso Bar is a quaint cafe in the village area of Burns Bay Road, Lane Cove. They offer coffee, breakfast, brunch, patisserie bites and also catering. 

Inside, it is spacious and there’s also outdoor seating. We chose to enjoy our breakfast outside on this occasion.

The staff are extremely welcoming and accommodating. The owners are a husband and wife duo who had previously run a Japanese fine dining restaurant, Sage, in Crows Nest. 

We popped in for brunch, the flavour combinations were interesting and tasty. The tartine menu is very reasonably priced, with a range of different open sandwiches: asparagus, mushroom, pulled chicken or salami. The asparagus tartine with avocado and truffle essence tartine looked like a work of art, beautifully presented with the chefs knife skills on display. 

 Given it has the flair of a French patisserie, many of their dishes incorporate this. For a tasty bite sized snack we sampled the baked tarts with golden, flaky pastry. The baked pumpkin tart with goats cheese and pumpkin seeds or the salami tart topped with salami, bocconcini and cherry tomato.

There are also some classic options for those that like it regular; like bacon and egg rolls, croissants, and porridge. The porridge is like no other – it was absolutely divine. The oat porridge was topped with seasonal fruits, poached rhubarb and Vin Cotto Marscapone. An absolute winner for the day. 

We were keen for something clean and healthy as well and went for the Asian chicken salad with watercress, a touch of chilli and sesame dressing. The chicken was poached perfectly and this was a healthy and tasty dish.

The coffee is made using beans from Single Origin Roasters, a blend which we really enjoy. They use different brewing methods to suit all comers. Regular, batch brew or pour over; we went for a latte and a chai on this occasion. 

As it’s leading up to Christmas, we tried some of the mince pies they’ve made and are also selling cookies and gingerbread houses. Pop by for some takeaway or eat in for something more substantial. Sample the tasty cafe menu and experience some the culinary skill without the expense of a fine dining price tag.