West Juliette

Mid last year, I mad the decision that I needed a change in scenery. My whole life, I have lived in Sydney, and it was about time that I stepped out of my comfort zone and challenged myself in a new setting. As such, I made the decision that I was going to move to Melbourne and pursue my career there. Needing to say bye to all my family and friends for a little while, I decided that this would be the perfect opportunity to explore more of what Sydney had to offer, before i was back in a while to continue the adventure. 

My friends and I decided that Marrickville was an area we had not ventured into for a while, so this would be the location of our next brunch adventure. We chose to visit West Juliett, a small cafe situated on 30 Llewellyn St. The cafe was buzzing with Saturday mid morning brunchers. As the wait was going to be approximately 30 minutes (and given that my friend was starving), she decided to grab a coffee and a small slice of carrot cake with cream cheese topping whilst we waited. Needless to say I was not going to sit there and watch her demolish this cake, so i too took a bite out of it. The cake was moist, had a good carrot and cinnamon flavour running through it, and the cream cheese was a great accompaniment. What i loved most about this however was the walnuts in the cake, which gave it that extra little crunch and texture needed in any good carrot cake. 

The time finally arrived for us to be seated, and I couldnt wait to dig in! I ordered the toasted Sourdough with poached eggs, fresh spinach, avocado smash and spicy lemon dukkah. The crunch and the tanginess from the dukkah really brought the dish together, with the natural oiliness of the avocados and the runniness of the poached eggs. 

My friends ordered the breakfast board which consisted of Sourdough toast, sliced ham, avocado, and ricotta, as well as the poached chicken sandwich with a cabbage coleslaw. They both also enjoyed their dishes, but thought the servings were a little too big, as they both struggled to finish their portions. (I on the other hand cleaned mine out - ofcourse!). 

This would definitely be a cafe I recommend people visit if they want a laid back vibe, and some sunshine on a Saturday or Sunday  morning. As it is situated near a park, it is also easy to burn off all the calories consumed with a stroll around the neighbourhood. Overall, i would score this cafe 7/10.

For more information, visit https://www.facebook.com/westjuliettcafe 

Substation Cafe

From the prying eye, the Substation Cafe looks like a small hole in the wall, but the lines that form outside this little nook is indication that it is nothing short of small in what it provides. As Alexandria is known for its many cafes, with neighbouring venues such as 'Bread and Circus' and 'The Grounds of Alexandria' being quite prominent to those who pass by, it is easy to miss this little gem. I had read reviews about this cafe and the incredible food they served, and had been keen to try it out for a long time. It was only as I was driving to another cafe just around the corner did I spot this cafe, and made a mental note that on my next brunch adventure, I had to visit this place. Little did I know that this would take place the very next day!

 Situated on McEvoy street in Alexandria, it is likely that one would miss this venue if they did not know what they were looking for, as it is a small brick wall placed next to a large smash repairs shop. Walking into the cafe, you get a homely feel from the staff who are very welcoming, and the daily specials is evidence that only the freshest produce available on the day is served.

Although it was raining that day, the little outdoor area was covered with an awning so my friends and I were able to lap up a little sunshine. The menu at this cafe is not extensive, with approximately six or seven choices in its entirety. 

One of my friends ordered the breakfast board complete with scrambled eggs, fennel, salmon, tomato and coriander. Although he enjoyed the individual elements on the plate, he felt that it did not marry together, and there was no bread to combine all the different ingredients. I ordered the 'clean eat' breakfast which consisted of poached eggs, quinoa bread, avocado, spinach leaves, tomato and sesame seeds. I quite liked this dish as i did not want anything too heavy, and felt that it was a nice light way to start the day guilt free. Another friend ordered the chicken sandwich and regretted her choice after seeing my plate (food envy!) as she believed that the chicken was a little dry, and the last friend ordered the sourdough french toast with seasonal strawberries, grapes, pomegranate and ricotta. He was over the moon with his choice!


All in all we had a pleasant experience at this cafe. For me individually, i would score this cafe an 8/10, however for the entire experience would score it a 7/10. 

Visit the following link for more information:
https://www.facebook.com/SubStationCafe

Bread and Circus

Bread and Circus, probably one of the best cafes I have been to in Sydney thus far. Located in Alexandria, this cafe epitomises the 'hipster' culture of the area, from the design of the interior to the items served on the menu. The great thing about this cafe is that the menu constantly changes depending on not only the season, but also the produce that has been collected for the day. This means that all meals served are fresh, organic and healthy. Just the way I like to eat.

Walking into this busy cafe, the smell of the freshly baked bread and the display of all the amazing sweat treats was incredibly enticing. Luckily for us, we got there just as the line began to build, and only had to wait approximately 15 minutes before we were seated (perfect timing considering one of the guys decided to turn up late as he was "putting his makeup on" - his words not mine!)

There were so many appetising options on the menu that we had to send the waitress back several times, as we needed more time to make up our mind! Eventually, my friend and I decided to share our meals with each other as we both wanted to try the same things. We ordered the fried egg with quinoa and kale and a side of spinach, as well as the chilli omelette with tomato, avacado, spinach and sourdough toast. The boys also decided to order the standard omelette plate without the chilli, and of course boys will be boys, so added a side of bacon to the dish.

The great thing about this cafe is that they also had a range of beverages that I had not seen elsewhere in Sydney. My friend had heard about their earl grey hot chocolate from one of her friends and was keen to try this, whilst my other friend and I opted for the slow dripped Jamaican filter coffee. 


The flavours in all the dishes were amazing, and the quinoa salad had just the right amount of pepper in it to elevate the flavour when eaten with the fried egg and spinach. The omelette was a little runnier than i personally would have liked, but the flavour of the chilli with the avacado and sourdough toast was delicious nonetheless. 

Bread and circus definitely met my expectations, and I would recommend that everyone who has not yet tried it to do so. Given that the menu changes so often, I am not sure that you will be able to order the same meals as did my friends and I, however I guarantee that if a healthy and unique menu is what you are after, then you will love this cafe.

For Bread and Circus, I score 9/10.

For more information about this cafe, visit http://www.breadandcircus.com.au/

Grandma's Little Bakery

On so many occasions, the most fun and exciting things have happened when I have least expected them, and this situation was no different. For a week, my friends and I had been planning to meet up for brunch as it had been a while since we had seen each other due to work and university commitments, so we decided to meet at the 'Potting Shed' in Alexandria. Given that this day was quite cold and had been forecasted with a chance of rain, it was a risky choice as the Potting Shed is an outdoor area. Whilst we were driving to the venue the rain began to fall, however we decided to proceed given that we would need to wait in line for a little while and hoped that by the time it was our turn to be seated, the weather would have cleared up. Parking was quite difficult to find around the venue itself, and as we could not find any nearby, decided to continue along the streets and happened to stumble upon 'Grandma's Little Bakery'. As this had also been on my list of cafes to visit, we decided to change our plans to this location instead.


After putting our names down for a table, the staff ushered us to the little shop inside the cafe whilst we waited to be seated. This store had lots of little condiments and cute items such as hard candy bags, small grass rabbits, Grandma's Bakery cookies and loaves of bread just to name a few things. It was a smart move by the staff, because if any of their diners are like me, then they are suckers for caving in to purchasing such items. In the 15 minutes that we had been waiting, I had already picked up some Oregano seasoning for the Zatar I was planning to make when I got back home. 

After being seated, we were given ipads which housed the menus on them. This is a really great idea and one that I had not yet seen in any cafes in Sydney, as not only did it clearly outline the ingredients in each dish, but also provided images of the item to help us better understand what it was. Given that the menu was not incredibly extensive and was organised on the ipad in an easy to follow format, there was minimal confusion about how to navigate through the pages and choose the meal that we desired. After much deliberation and a few questions to the waitress who was attending to us, we made our choices. 

My friend and I chose the Shakshuka (baked eggs) - I opted for the 'Grandma's Mazal Classic Shakshuka' (as it had capsicum in it), and she opted for the 'Spicy Shakshuka' alternative (as she preferred one without the capsicum). The others ordered the 'Beef and Mushroom Vol-au-vent', 'Spinach and Ricotta Pastry' and 'Grandma's Gourmet Basket Pie'. 


Looking around at the other dishes that were being served to those around us, we began to really build an appetite. The dishes not only looked like generous servings, but also smelled amazing. When our meals finally hit the table, we were not disappointed. My classic Shakshuka was delicious - the eggs were baked to just the right amount, and the soft bread that was served with the dish was the perfect accompaniment to mop all the tomato and capsicum sauce up. Tasting the other dishes around the table as we each shared our meal, I thought that I would have actually preferred to have ordered the spicy alternative, as it gave the dish that little extra kick of flavour that mine lacked. The spinach and ricotta pie was also very tasty, with the pastry being beautiful and flaky. Unfortunately, as I am vegetarian, I was not able to taste the other 2 dishes, but from what I heard from the others, their meals were also full of flavour and delicious.

Despite us all being full and content with our meals, we were in the presence of a dessert blogger, so had no choice but to also try out the desserts on the menu (really it was just a perfect excuse to eat more!) From what he had read online, the 'Grandma's Haya Cream & Cheesecake' was apparently highly recommended, and in addition to this was keen to try the 'Malabi', so both these desserts were ordered. Luckily for us, the cheesecake was actually the last one of the day - we had snatched it up just in time! 

To be honest, the cheesecake was a little bit of a let down. Although the sweetness was the right amount to me, the texture was just not right. The thing that excites me about a great cheesecake is the biscuit base that cracks when you put your spoon through it, so to get just a biscuit crumble base that was not solid but rather the same texture as the garnishing on top was quite disappointing. I however really enjoyed the 'Malabi'. This is a custard like dish with its origins from Israel.  It had a good hint of rose water, and was accompanied by a berry syrup and pistachios. Definitely a lovely way to end the meal. 

All in all, our experience at 'Grandma's Little Bakery' was a good one. Good food coupled with great company can never be a bad thing, so from me I would score it an 8/10. 

For more information about this cafe, visit http://www.grandmasbakery.com.au/

If you are looking for the best desserts in Sydney, hit up Dessertified on facebook -

https://www.facebook.com/dessertified or follow him on instagram at @dessertified 

Espresso Organica

Majors Bay Rd in Concord is a popular destination for foodies at any time of the week. With dozens of restaurants packed onto this street covering just about every cuisine, it is the perfect location for either breakfast, lunch or dinner. For weeks, I have been wanting to try the food at 'Espresso Organica', as numerous people had checked into this cafe on facebook and had been posting some seriously tasty looking photos. So when I organised to meet two of my former work colleagues, I decided to take them to this cafe as it conveniently sat in the middle to us all.

Given that it was a sunny Sunday morning, the cafe was extremely busy, with pretty much every table occupied. Luckily for us, we did not have to wait for long for a table, and by the time we all had arrived the cafe was ready to seat us.

After ordering our coffees and catching up on everything that had been happening over the past year (yes it had been that long since I had seen them!), we began to look through the array of options on the menu. Needless to say, the amount of scrumptious often seriously confused us, and it was not until the last second when the waiter came to take our order that we made our decisions.

Two of us (including me) ordered the 'Baked Eggs Cayiana' whilst the other ordered the 'Vegetarian Stack'. We kept peering over to the table next to us to see what our meals would look like given that we had acquired quite an appetite that morning. When the food arrived at the table, we were thrilled with our decisions. The baked eggs were delicious, and had just the right amount of gravy to balance out the eggs. The tomato was also nice when mopped up with the bread that was served with the dish. My friend who ordered the vegetarian stack was also pleased with her choice, and even took a photo to prove to her personal trainer that she had eaten a healthy meal! :P

The service at the cafe was also great (except for the instance where one of the waiters excitedly came up to our friend to serve a meal which we did not order, and gave her a fright in the process - but it added to the entertainment of the catch up for sure!). For our experience at Espresso Organica, I would score 7/10.

For more info on this cafe, visit http://espressorganica.com.au/

Green Gourmet

Being vegetarian is not often an impediment for me. Normally when I go out to eat, I always find dishes that I thoroughly enjoy with most cuisines. The only time I feel as though I am missing out on some seriously tasty dishes is when eating Yum Cha. My friends always seem to have so many choices, however there are only ever 1 or 2 dishes that I can choose from. Browsing the internet for vegetarian Yum Cha restaurants, I came across 'Green Gourmet' in Newtown, and knew that I had to try it out!

Cold weather seems to always be the best time for Yum Cha, with the steamed buns, hot dumplings and warm noodle soups. Luckily for me, the day I had planned to go here turned out to be perfect Yum Cha weather. Given that my friend was also vegetarian, this vegan restaurant was a perfect fit for the both of us - and I knew that I didn't have to put up with complaints of meat dishes being more superior and tasty :P

Located at 115-117 King St in Newtown, this little joint is hard to miss with its bright green exterior. The venue was quite busy given that it was a Saturday night, however given the amount of restaurants located on King St reaffirmed for us that it was a good choice. Scrolling through the menu, there were dozens of options for us to choose from, all of which sounded just as delicious as the other! After much confusion, we ended up choosing the steam buns with spicy pork, the chia and vegetable dumplings along with the deep fried mushroom with crispy noodles. To wash this all down, we ordered the organic coconut water which was not quite what we were expecting (our fault though!)

So from the description of our meal, some of you may be slightly confused as to how 'spicy pork steam buns' falls under the vegan category. At this restaurant, dishes are made with soy fake meat, so although dishes

might have pork, chicken, prawn etc. within the descriptions, those of you who are vegetarian/vegan can rest easy that no actual meat products are used. All dishes that we ordered were delicious and we had no trouble smashing it all down, however the one down side was our organic coconut water. From the description on the menu, we thought that we were purchasing the young coconut which would be served in the actual coconut when it came to the table. However, we received it in a can and accepted the fact that this is what was served at the restaurant. However, 5 minutes later the table next to us received their coconut water in the actual coconut and we were outraged! Only to realise that we had accidentally ordered the beverage above the one we wanted. Derp!

And ofcourse, no meal would be complete without dessert! Luckily for us, even though we were completely bursting at the seams with the amount we had eaten, the fact that the desserts on the menu were gluten free, dairy free and sugar free meant that we could eat our dessert guilt free! We ordered the berry creme cheesecake with fig ice cream - Oh Hello! Amazing! (For those who are looking to try the desserts and don't want to dine in, Green Gourmet have their own little shop attached to the side of their restaurant for the purchasing of their desserts and other vegan products).

All in all, it was a delicious meal, and I encourage anyone to venture out for something a little different.

For this one, I score an 8/10.

For more info on Green Gourmet, visit http://www.greengourmet.com.au/

Earth To Table

I have recently started a clean eating diet. Not that what I was eating before was THAT bad, but there were definite improvements that I could make. Eating healthy meals at home or preparing healthy meals for the office isn't the issue, it 's more what I eat when I go out. This blog is evidence of my love for food, so I find it extremely difficult to choose clean meals that actually taste good when at a restaurant or cafe.

That is, until I cam across 'Earth to Table'.

Nestled on the busy Bronte Rd in Bondi is this small, organic and vegan cafe that absolutely blew me away for the following reasons:
1. I am vegetarian so the fact that they served vegan food meant that I could choose anything I wanted from the menu (WINNING!)
2. They use organic and raw ingredients in their cooking which meant that I was able to indulge in whatever I wanted (including desserts) - guilt free!

Luckily for my friend and I, the line wasn't too long when we arrived and as such, didnt have to wait too long to be seated. This was probably a good thing given the appetite that we were building, just by  looking at all the amazing food flying out of the kitchen and the decadent desserts in the shop front display.

After being seated, we spent a good amount of time browsing the menu, trying to choose what to eat. So many choices that each sounded so delicious! After much discussion, we decided to order the pasta with asparagus, baby peas and zuchini, the roasted mixed vegetables with tomato and quinoa bread, and the banana creme pie.

Given that all the food was organic and fresh, all of the dishes were served cold. Although the pasta was great as a cold dish, I felt as though the roasted mixed vegetables would have been better if the dish was served hot. The banana creme pie though...O.M.G. I would honestly go back to this cafe just to eat their dessers over and over again. How can something that is sugar free, dairy free and gluten free taste so good?!

The only downside to our experience at this cafe was the amount of time that we had to wait between our main meals and dessert. It seemed as though all the waiters that walked passed us did not see us sitting there waiting, and after a substantial amount of time, my friend had to go and let the waiters know that we were still waiting on our dish.

All in all, it was a great meal. I would definitely go back to try the other items on the menu, and have spoken very highly of this cafe to many of my friends. To top this day off, my friend and I spent the rest of the afternoon completing the Bondi to Bronte coastal walk - an activity I encourage everyone to do if they are going to be in the area.

For this cafe, I score 8/10