The Butcher’s Block – for a brunch option in Barangaroo

December 6, 2018December 11, 2018Leave a comment

The Butcher’s Block have planted their culinary seed in many areas of Sydney including Wahroonga, South Hurstville, Parramatta and now with their new eatery located in Barangaroo. With an emphasis on seasonal, locally sourced organic ingredients, this is the place to get some nourishment. With a team of experienced Chefs and a magnitude of high end dining experiences, you will find this a culinary delight. The Butcher’s block team has to put multicultural elements into the menu, providing variety and excitement to the table.

There are many great places to grab a bite to eat in Barangaroo. But there are only a few places to visit for breakfast or Brunch. Butchers Block, with its new breakfast menu is the place to visit.

The Butchers Block use Allpress coffee and have a menu full of breakfast favourites. All menu items are prepared with the freshest of ingredients.

Dessert for breakfast, why not?

The Banoffee waffles were a crowd favourite. the waffles were perfect, nice and light topped with fresh bananas, a ridiculously good ginger butterscotch sauce, vanilla mascarpone and roasted almonds.

If you prefer a healthy start to your day, there is delicious Bircher, topped with a mix of seasonal berries, poached pears, pomegranate honey and a sprinkling of homemade granola.

Another healthy option is the smashed avo bruschetta which is also perfect if you are on the run.

The cornfritters are quality, nice and light and fluffy with plenty of flavour.

The Green Breakfast bowl is another popular breakfast option. This dish was super tasty with a crisp brown rice flavoured with a sweet teriyaki style sauce and served with a mix of BBQ vegetables including broccolini, zucchini, asparagus, add some more green with a generous portion of avocado. There is something satisfying about cutting in to a perfectly poached egg and watching the yolk ooze out over the breakfast bowl, working its magic, adding flavour as it floods with a tidal wave of yum.

The Butcher’s Block is the ideal setting to enjoy a meal in the heart of Barangaroo. This cafe restaurant is modern with a casual vibe. The service is relaxed and the food is great.

The Butcher’s Block

Shop 2/100 Barangaroo Avenue, Barangaroo NSW 2000

Thank you to the venue and to Wasamedia for the invitation to dine.

Family friendly @ The Beach House Maroubra

October 22, 2018October 22, 2018Leave a comment

The Beach house is located on the main strip (Marine Parade) at Maroubra Beach. It is a large cafe, with it’s decor fitting of the theme – with surf pics and boards adorning the walls and rustic furniture.

It has a casual and relaxed vibe and perfect for you to take the kids, with a play section out the back as well as some outdoor seating.

Offering brunch, lunch and dinner, you can visit anytime. There a bar at the front and also pizza and beer deals to get those crowds in.

We visited with friends who have kids for brunch on a weekday and it was good as whilst we sat and chatted, the kids amused themselves in the play area. Genius. We ordered some coffees, tea and babycinos as well as some food. The menu has a good mix of healthy and indulgent options to select from.

We went for a porridge (which isn’t on their online menu), but a dish we really enjoyed. Made with oats and topped with poached pears, it was super flavoursome and filling.

We also tried poached eggs with tomatoes and I ordered a side of spinach which was presented nicely on some really good, fresh bread!

Other options include an acai bowl, shakshuka, buttermilk pancakes and smashed avo to name a few.

Good for a casual meal in a relaxed environment.

Staff were efficient, hospitable and eager to help.

Beach House

198-202 Marine Parade, Maroubra Beach

Clever and creative dishes @ at_neutral

October 14, 2018Leave a comment

Tipped off by a fellow foodie and coffee lover @sakinav, we decided to meet for brunch in Neutral Bay. The area is a hub of places to eat and thus its tough as a new addition to the scene. However, we’re sure at_neutral will have no trouble, with their creative and culinary flair added to each dish. Here, you won’t find your typical eggs on toast with a side of bacon nor fairy floss atop your pancakes, rather some very sophisticated brunch options.

Its decor is clean and stylish with grey and wooden tones, geometric tiles and greenery. We sat on a table outside to enjoy the sunshine and take in all the action of the cafe. If you’re planning on paying a visit, get in early as it has already become popular.

Staff are on their game, despite it being their first cafe venture. They’re all super friendly and efficient. We begin with coffees, and they use Gabriel’s, one we do quite like.

After perusing the menu, we are stuck on what to order, with all options looking extremely enticing. Whilst the banana bread with honeycomb butter was calling our name, we slected a few larger dishes to share.

The apple and coconut chilled oats, with house made granola, seasonal fruit and rhubarb consomme was a lovely healthy dish and beautifully presented, with the consomme served in a small jar to pour at your leisure.

If you’re into the cool healthy options, the cacao infused chia would also be a good choice.

We then had the mushrooms atop a carrot and cardamon puree at incredibly amazing bread, served with spiced blacberry. We could not fault this in any way. It would certainly be a dish to re-order.

One cannot go without ordering truffle scrumbled eggs, served on the same amazing bread and presented with greens. Aesthetically appealing and stomach satisfying.

We’re always fans of ordering healthy options where possible, and the poached chicken salad with puffed rice, quinoa, soft herbs, greends, tomato and radish with an edamame pesto was light and refreshing, whilst also being extremely tasty.

If you’re bringing the family, there’s options for children too and a number of solid toasties for the bigger eaters.

We recommend this cafe for those who like brunch options that are a bit more interesting than your run of the mill cafe.

Find them on Instagram @at_neutral

Located at 9 Rangers Road, Neutral Bay, NSW

Where to great brekkie in Bondi @ Parida

October 2, 2018October 3, 20181 Comment

Parida, Bondi Beach has a grand new menu. It is the perfect excuse to visit this beachside oasis. Located on Campbell parade, this cafe is a great spot to enjoy a beautiful brunch meal. Parida has has a cool and casual atmosphere with comfortable indoor and outside seating options. The decor is stylish with Moroccan tiles and bifold windows, apt for the trendy Bondi Beach location.

The new menu has fabulous takes on our brunch favourites, with some of the typical classics, healthy options and some exciting creations that will entice you. We were excited by this since we like cool brunch dishes that differ from the norm.

Very importantly, the coffee is pretty good, they use Gabriel beans for coffee which we do like. There are also some fresh made juices available, great for that spring health kick. The ‘Bondi juice’ is made of pineapple, apple carrot, lemon and ginger was a tasty refreshing blend. Parida also have a range of smoothies, teas, and if you are up for it wine and boozy drinks too. Can’t beat a weekend mimosa!

The menu has good variety to suit all. Our pick of the meals was the “Baby Parida”, that was thankfully not so baby. This dish had us excited with a cheese and chorizo croquette showcasing a crisp panko like outer shell, gooey cheese inner with bits of chorizo thrown in the mix. It had a potato rosti, perfectly poached eggs with hollandaise sauce and toast, oh baby! Perfect for sharing!

The classics were also solid, the avo and feta smash which is a good version of this dish. It has a decent amount of avo and feta, served on a large slice of sourdough with heirloom tomatoes. Opting for the poached egg is a good idea and they were perfectly poached. The granola and yogurt, served with berries and passionfruit, a good choice if you are looking for a lighter meal.

Bondi beach and Campbell Parade can at times be a little hit and miss with all the tourist haunts. However, if you are looking at a good cafe to hit, pop into Parida. It is the perfect choice before or after the coast walk, a surf or just enjoying the serenity. A top weekend brunch spot, but any day suits as they’re open 7 days a week. All day breakfast is their specialty with fresh and simple ingredients and reasonably priced too.

We enjoyed our visit and will undoubtedly be back.

Parida, Bondi

Shop G08A, 180 – 186 Campbell Parade Bondi Beach NSW

61 280697910

Where to get a Middle Eastern Breakfast – @ The Middle Feast

September 11, 2018September 11, 2018Leave a comment

The Middle Feast restauraunt in Merrylands has been operating since 2012 and up until recently served lunch on weekends and dinner throughout the week. Recently, they’ve started opening at 8am on weekends with a new breakfast menu and we were invited to sample it.

Merrylands is deceptively simple to travel to especially if you are driving. It was about 20 minutes west from the city on the freeway – we loved that the freeway exit took us to the restaurant in five minutes with easy parking all around.

Owner Zayd and his manager Marion warmly greeted us and seated us in the front of the restaurant – it’s a large dining space which opens out to the kitchen, bar and grill.

Inside there is an even larger dining space and private room. Designed for entertainment, they often have singers and dancers performing there.

The new breakfast menu spans several pages and offers predominantly middle eastern breakfast dishes as you’d expect, though we did notice a muesli bowl ($12), acai bowl ($12) and a five egg omelette for you to customise ($18). We wanted the more traditional experience and opted for the middle eastern offerings – especially given a family recommended the breakfast platter to us – we queried them and they said it was delicious and their first visit there.

The breakfast platter or “The Middle Feast Banquet” ($27 per person minimum 2 people) was a beautifully presented two-tiered platter including two sides of scrambled egg dishes. You receive scrambled eggs with sujuk (sausage), menemem (tomato and pepper scrambled eggs), sigara borek (Turkish cheese rolls), aged cheddar cheese, danish fetta cheese, mixed olives, fresh tomato, cucumber, strawberry jam, cream and honey, tahini and grape molasses, apricot jam, halawa (halva), fresh seasonal fruits, walnuts and oven baked bread topped with black and white sesame seeds, and Nutella French toast (as dessert).

The banquet includes unlimited Turkish tea and owner Zayd assured us the kitchen would bake more complimentary bread if desired (we had plenty but this is a very generous offer especially given the chef bakes the bread to order!). The banquet was delicious – fresh, tasty and it was obvious a lot of love went into plating this up. The presentation was superb.

We also tried the Zaatar with Labne ($7). Three pieces of freshly baked mini bread with homemade Zaatar mix, served with cucumber, tomato wedges and labne. Very special and still warm from the oven.

Next we tried the Sujuk and Egg Guvec ($18), an absolute meal in itself and perfect to share. Plenty of sauce to mop up with the homemade sesame bread served with the dish too. This dish consists of Turkish sausage (Sujuk) pan tossed with fresh tomato, lemon juice, Napoletana sauce, layered in a crock pot, with 2 eggs sunny side up topped with fetta cheese, all oven baked. The flavours and textures made this a delight to eat.

Owner Zayd reminded us of their diverse range of fruit cocktails and gourmet shakes – we tried two: the avocado cocktail ($12) and halawa and pistachio shake ($11.50) Beautifully presented, with the avocado cocktail blended with fresh avocado and served with ashta (clotted cream), honey and fresh nuts. A healthier choice, and delicious.

The halawa and pistachio shake was a sweet indulgence, topped with halawa fairy floss and pistachios, and drizzled with melted Belgian chocolate. You could skip dessert for this shake, it’s very generously served, and delicious.

We finished off with some Arabic Coffee (Kahwa) $6 for 3 people, $12 for 6 people – a very strong coffee with a hint of cardamon – served unsweeteended, some might prefer to add sugar. We tried it unsweetened and it made a nice contrast to the cocktails and shakes. Beautifully presented and generously proportioned.

Overall, this is a breakfast worth travelling for. The restaurant space is superbly decorated in middle eastern art and the lighting is worth wandering around to look at – it’s beautiful. Merrylands is a fascinating suburb worth spending more time in too – we are spoilt in this city with the diverse range of food on offer. Get out one weekend for breakfast and see for yourself.

Girdlers for delicious and nutritious food

June 26, 2018June 26, 2018Leave a comment

Girdlers has made a name for itself, not only because it’s owned and named after the silver fox, Mr Ryan Girdler himself, but because of the wholesome and amazing food on offer.

Although it’s located in Warringah Mall, the design of the cafe and ambience makes you feel like you’re at a beach, especially if you are seated in one of the three cabanas.

They serve fresh, wholesome food which is not just nutritious but also well presented and super tasty. The menu is enticingly diverse and caters for all dietary requirements. They support local, organic produce and promote sustainability. Very good service and friendly staff who don’t mind a joke or two.

On this visit we tried the Holy Avo – avocado and kale florets with grilled haloumi, fresh micro herbs and poached eggs on rye sourdough. You can replace this with gluten free bread if you wish.

The organic buckwheat crepes had multiple options and we went for the Veggie Patch crepes, which were beautifully made into a little pocket, with baby spinach, crumbled fetta, mushrooms, avocado and spiraled beetroot. We added a free range egg to this.

The Love Me Berry crepes are on the sweet portion of the menu, topped with seasonal berries, blueberry infused maple syrup and coconut ice cream.

On the menu you can also order Shakshuka, oats, granola, chia pots and more!! So many healthy options, that this really is the perfect cafe for us.

Girdlers also proudly roasts their own coffee serving their own house blend but single origin is also available. We had a few drinks on this visit including a beautiful turmeric latte, Almond latte and a hot chocolate, as well as some Kombucha (from a local supplier) and a Mango & Almond Smoothie.

A place that is definitely worth a visit!!!

Bik’s cafe – new to Botany

June 3, 2018Leave a comment

Biks cafe is a new cafe, occupying a large space on Botany Road in the main shopping junction. This is a welcome addition to the area. It has a bright open plan cafe that has plenty of indoor space, tables and booths for you to enjoy a meal. Scandinavian styling with greenery and wood panelled walls, it’s certainly a palette that is inviting.

It’s also inviting to your palate. A great menu with food that showcases the talent of the chef through its aesthetically pleasing plating and depth of flavours. Paying respect to the community and local area, Biks sources it’s ingredients from local suppliers. Bread from Brassiere, meat from Viks meats and a local supplier for milk too. The coffee is from a local roaster, Single Origin, a smooth blend that’s received well by customers.

It is run by local identity, Bik, having worked on the cafe scene in the area for a while now. He’s sure to gain a loyal following here. Keen for beautiful dishes that are also healthy. He’s also keen to support charities in the future. He greets us on arrival, has a great chat and his hospitable nature is extremely welcoming.

We’ve been here on numerous occasions and as such sampled quite a few of the dishes.

On my first visit we had a lovely roasted granola with fresh fruits and coconut yoghurt. A lovely healthy dish that is suitable for vegan diners too.

On a later visit, it was a lot colder so we shared some winter warmers such as the truffled mushrooms. This is a few varieties of mushroom, with crunchy spring onions in a soupy liquid. The flavour is of truffle and miso and you can mop up the source with fresh and crunchy bread and you will be competed satisfied.

The veggie shakshuka is a small bowl of an eggplant and tomato mixture (seasonal ingredients), topped with some fetta and asparagus. The flavours work well together and it has a nice light kick of chilli to it as well. Again, it comes with a side of sourdough to dip in the liquid or spread some Pepe Saya butter on your bread and you’ll enjoy this a lot too!

We also sampled the crowd favourite, a bacon and egg roll with fennel sauce and slaw on milk brioche bun and the light and fluffy fritters, made with pumpkin and zucchini and topped with smashed avo. These are also a gluten free option.

You’ll find the food here to be beautifully presented, lovely flavours and suitable for all dietary requirements. The cafe is homely and you feel very welcomed.

Steam Brothers – new to Menai

March 26, 2018March 26, 2018Leave a comment

If you find yourself in Menai and are looking for a good local cafè, make sure you check into Steam Brothers cafe. This establishment is located close at the local shopping mall and is serving up some quality food and coffee. Steam Brothers cafe has a clean modern fitout with plenty of seating both indoors and out. They have only been open a short time, but they are certainly making a positive impact on the cafe scene.

The menu is diverse with a range of breakfast and lunch options to cater to many diners. Steam Brothers have a range of heathy breakfast options. The green baked eggs are a great healthy option with a baked egg kale, sicilian olives, mint and fennel salad on a slice of sourdough.

The Mushroom bruschetta, served on Brasserie bread with a fried egg and parmesan is another quality breakfast option which we really enjoyed.

If you sleep in and are arriving later in the morning or at lunch time, steam brothers do an all day breakfast and there are a number of tasty lunch items too. The Schnitty roll is a lunch time staple in Australia and the Steam Brothers version is at the top of the list. They use of quality ingredients, fresh salad, the schnitty perfectly cooked and a tasty mustard aioli, all served on a soft brioche long roll. One of the best we’ve had.

The burgers also the source of some food envy as they passed the table, but the portions are so generous, we couldn’t eat everything!

The owner Aleks has worked hard to roast his own blend at Collective Roasting Solutions in Marrickville.

Head to Steam Brothers has a good setting to grab a quality coffee and some tasty food. Be sure to pay them a visit.

Thanks to the Chew Crew for the invitation to dine and to Steam Brothers Coffee for the hospitality provided.

Steam Brothers Coffee

5/21 Carter Road

Menai, NSW

Be inspired by flavour and design @Cafe 0.6

January 2, 2018Leave a comment

Cafe Zero Point Six (0.6) is a trendy little cafe and retail space in Bowden Street in Alexandria. Having driven past a number of times and not visited, I saw some instagram coverage from friends which inspired me to visit.

A big and bright space, scandi styled, it has a very beautiful aesthetic appearance. They have a small retail space selling some cool handmade gifts like cards and candles.

We were there on a Saturday morning at it wasn’t too busy at all. We sat down and ordered coffees. Unfortunately they were out of cold brew on this day, so the waitress suggested a long black over ice. We also got some filtered coffee over ice and a cappucino.

The food here is pretty interesting, with a Japanese influence. They’re quite keen on their carbs and have a range of bread inspired dishes, in particular croissants.

As a group, we all ordered different things to share, including the Farmer’s Jo granola, topped with plain yoghurt and fruit – a good option if you’re into something healthy.

The SMH was great – creamy scrambled eggs and haloumi on a brioche bun

The tastiest dish was definately the “Pop da Prawns” or lightly battered prawns and a secret sauce on a in house made croissant with fresh avocado.

Wanting something other than a croissant, I got the crispy chicken thigh (an extremely generous serving on a cauliflower puree and salad. This was a lovely dish and thoroughly recommended.

Pop on in, we’re sure you will enjoy it.

Cafe 0.6

11 Bowden Street, Alexandra

New kid on the block in Marrickville @Labld

December 12, 20172 Comments

Labld is a relatively new cafe in Marrickville. Set up in an old cornerstore, with the original facade, inside is a hip hop trendy locale. The place is busy with punters enjoying the morning grind. The milked based coffee is really good, using beans from Mecca, served alongside their delicious menu using local artisan products, which they also sell instore.

The menu has interesting choices, with Asian inspired flavours. With the likes of momos, typically a Nepalese specialty, these dumplings morphed into an amazing breakfast choice with their “Breakfast momos”. These little pockets of joy, filled with wine infused bacon, egg tomatoes and shallots.

There are also a few heathy options that also deliver in the flavour department. The house cereal was the goods. This vegan dish uses nicely seasoned organic granola topped with seasonal fruit and a generous serve of co-yo (that’s coconut yoghurt) which was actually very tasty. Then there is the 3 mushketeers if you are after something savoury. The trifecta of mushrooms made up of king, field and enoki, served atop of berry rice gremolata and a fried egg. This dish is gluten free and a great choice for breakfast or lunch.

If you like your eggs, they have the amazing birds nest. This dish is a spectacle, with a nicely presented poached egg wrapped in crisp potato spaghetti, served with avocado puree, fried leek and snow pea tendrils.

A great new comer to the Marrickville cafe scene. Labld. has great coffee a cool set up and innovative menu. One to add to your list of must visits in the area

Labld.

132-134 Illawarra Rd, Marrickville (02) 8056 0686

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