REVIEW: Pearl Cafe

The breakfast café scene in Brisbane has exploded in the last few year, perhaps even as far back as a decade ago.  In this world of revolving door restaurants, opening and closing with the wind, 8 years is literally a lifetime. Pearl Café is a Brisbane landmark, open since 2008. Tucked in the chic café district of Woolloongabba, the café is an anchor establishment. We visited on an overcast Saturday with hopes of some sunny eggs to brighten up our day.

The café was busy but not so crowded that a table couldn't be snagged quickly. We sat inside the café, which has exposed brick interiors and the atmosphere of a French bistro. Although perhaps because of the exposed brick, the noise of conversation and the din of café business bounced around with nothing to dampen it. It is a noisy space, but the ambiance is warm and so it's easy to rise above the cacophony.

I'd heard things about the Pearl Café butterscotch milkshake. It's legendary around the Brisbane milkshake scene...what do you mean you've never heard of the Brisbane milkshake scene? It's a thing, I'm telling you. And Pearls milkshakes are reputedly a pearler. Ha. Classic. The legend was true. The shake was thick, which is already half the battle won. The butterscotch flavour wasn't the strongest, but the shake wasn't cloying or overly sweet.

For meals, we stuck to what Pearl is famous for, the classics. We each chose Two Eggs Your Way with Toast for $11. I choose scrambled eggs with a side of mushrooms ($5). The eggs were scrambled perfectly, they were creamy and buttery. The mushrooms were not amazing, they were a touch bland and the serving size left something to be desired. More mushrooms. Boom!

My friend chose her eggs poached with a side of bacon ($6). The poached eggs were overcooked, which I confess I prefer. Runny egg whites turn my stomach. My dining partner though prefers her eggs in the conventionally poached way. Each to their own. The side of bacon though was something to behold. It was thick and caramelised, with lovely crunchy bits.

Pearl deserves its landmark status and it's clear to see why it's the anchor café of the Woolloongabba dining district. While some things weren't perfect, it's nice to have a place to go for those pared back, home cooked flavours. Others may buffet about on the winds of food trends, Pearl sticks to simple food, done well.

Food: 3/5
Service: 3/5
Price: 3/5
Atmosphere: 4/5

REVIEW: Apples on Ainsworth

An organic café without being obnoxious.

There was a time when doors turned into tables and rickety chairs was just shabby instead of shabby chic. The tides have certainly changed and some of my most favourite cafes (namely the groovy hole in the wall, Southside Tea Room) have adopted this decorating style. There's something comforting about repurposed furniture, old items that otherwise would have been disposed of are given a new life. But in their new life, they bring with them their history and there's a warmth in the history of old things. And there's warmth to this café, Apples on Ainsworth, which comes not only from it's worn and mismatched furniture but from the welcoming staff as well.

These cups of coffee need a pool fence and a CPR poster.

Not far back from Kessels Road, Apples on Ainsworth sits on it's namesake street in suburban Salisbury and I'm not sure I would have found it if it had not been recommended to me by a friend. We met with my parents for a Sunday breakfast. The café was fairly busy, but there was a table (made from a door, of course) available outside in the mild sun.

Looks like someone took a big old sip of my milkshake...that's my trick!

We ordered at the counter and drinks arrived soon after at our door-table. The coffees were big enough to drown in! And they were served in vintage crockery, consistent with the rest of the café. As I did spot that the milkshake flavourings were the old Cottees pump bottles, I went with a chocolate milkshake instead of my favourite breakfast milkshake, trusty caramel. I find that the caramel flavourings out of a bottle tend to be too sweet and don't give the true caramel hit I desire. The chocolate ones are passable though. This milkshake came in a steel canister which is always a good sign, but it had cream on top, which I don't like and I would have liked it if I were asked if I wanted it on there, as I didn't see it stated on the menu. Also, it wasn't filled up all the way, and was a even a fair way from the top. It was okay in flavor though. See where it ranks on the Milkbar!

Me and that toast could be related, we're both pretty pale.

We didn't have to wait long for the meals to come out. The first of the three dishes was the old classic, Bacon & Eggs ($12), a piece of organic sourdough with scrambled eggs, bacon and a side of halloumi ($3). The bacon was blissfully well-done, so often bacon is pale and undercooked, so it was nice to see it cooked through and the fat rendered. The eggs were also well cooked, a yellow, fluffy cloud of morning goodness. The halloumi was a little chewy, it would have fare well with a squeeze of lemon. And although the bacon was well cooked, the toast could have used a minute or two longer in the toaster. But considering the price, it was pretty decent.

Yum. Population: this dish.

I love the current trend of baked or Mediterranean eggs or whatever they want to call the tomato-y medley that is usually served in some sort of earthen ware. And at Apples on Ainsworth, they call is Spanish Eggs ($10), Baked Eggs in a Spanish Salsa mixed with homemade house mix beans & organic mince, served with organic sourdough cheese fingers, with bacon ($3). The toast served with the Spanish Eggs were little solider fingers of toasted cheese sandwich, which was so cute. The side of bacon was generous and also well cooked.

So healthy.

I went with a veggo option, the delightfully named Mushroom Boat ($12), Organic grilled mushrooms served on a bed of spinach with avocado and halloumi topped with a sunny side up egg and dressed with pesto. This was a lovely dish, very fresh and light...maybe too light for my cavernous stomach. If you're anything like me, order a bit of toast on the side. The milkshake did go a fair way to filling to void.

So much stuff.

All in all, Apples on Ainsworth is a suburban gem with great service and decent food. With the authentic vintage feel, the ambience feels like a visit to grandma's kitchen...not my grandmother, her kitchen is rather contemporary but perhaps a TV grandmother or your grandmother or the nice lady down the road who doesn't have any children but is just a really nice, older lady.

Food: 3.5/5Service: 4/5Price: 4/5Atmosphere: 3.5/5

REVIEW: Harveys Bar + Bistro



Lovely Harveys is a great place for people watching.

Can I just ask why, if they're going to serve breakfast at an establishment, why do they not serve it all day? Do they not know that I drank one and a half bottles of the second cheapest wine from a inner city pub last night and had to sleep til 9 then lay around in my pants for an hour watching reruns of The Love Boat? And therefore cannot possibly be expected to present for breakfast before 11 am? Do they not know!? Outrageous. And this is why we did not have breakfast at Gerards Bistro but instead made the perilous journey across the carpark driveway to Harveys Bar + Bistro. And you think I'm joking when I say it was perilous, but I'm not. Range Rover drivers think James Street is their personal Grand Theft Auto game and we're nothing but dispensable street walkers scurrying out of the way.

I'm not a fan of Dave Hughes, his voice annoys me but the women who sat down after he left were more annoying.

In any case, we made it across the driveway like frogs in a Frogger game, in the rain no less. We were seated with a slightly peevish attitude which was offset by the plum table in the corner of the outdoor patio area. We ordered drinks, two Bellini's to get the morning started in true New Farm style. While we supped our breakfast cocktails like two extras from Ab Fab, we did happen to spy a well known comedian (who I won't name, lets just call him Dave Hughes) seated at the table next to us.


I want all the liquids!

After we'd sated both our a.m. alcohol and celebrity spotting needs, we got down to the need of food. I was pleased to see a caramel milkshake on the menu and did my honourable duty of ordering one. And I was pleasantly surprised, I had not picked Harveys for the makers of a fine milkshake but they proved me wrong. The texture was silky and thickened with good quality ice cream. And though I could taste ice cream, I could taste milk. Which sounds strange, but with ice cream and caramel flavour, it's rare to actually taste the milk. The caramel flavour was a little weak but overall a very good milkshake. Check it's ranking on the Cassie Cakes Milk Bar.

I took all those chilli flakes and it was awesome.

Our breakfasts were delivered soon after. First was the Confit Potato, Ricotta and Spinach Omelette, with Tomato Chutney and Chilli Flakes with Serrano Jamon for $19.90. The omelette was packed with flavour, the egg was soft but also cooked through. The omelette is often a skill test for chefs, a simple dish but when done well, it's light, yet rich in flavour. And the omelette cooker at Harveys had it down. The jamon was perfect, salty and tasty. Had we not gone with the optional ham though, the dish might have been lacking a little.


Oh I wish I had this now. I'm jealous of past myself.

The second dish we ordered was the Potato and Feta Roesti, Creamed Sweet Corn, Poached Egg and Herb Salsa for $17.90, with bacon for $5.50 extra. The rost, or roesti as it was written, was really squat and fat, which usually means the insides would be stodgy and dense. But this roesti was really transcendent! The outside was crisp and the inside was light, fluffy potato, like it had been whipped by the wings of angels. The bacon was salty, thin and crispy and there was a dollop of sour cream that paired perfectly with everything. Also, creamed corn is amazing and I love it and I want to marry it. I was hugely impress with the poached egg, also perfectly cooked, no translucent white bits that can turn me off my breakfast. That's a lie, nothing turns me off food.


Yolk porn.

It is obvious to me why Harveys is a New Farm institution. Everything on the menu was simple but it was done so well. For this approach, I would really love to visit Harveys for dinner. And besides a slightly unhappy greeting, all the other staff were lovely and helpful. And hey, maybe that one member of staff was hungover too.

Food: 4/5
Service: 3.5/5
Price: 3.5/5
Atmosphere: 4/5 

REVIEW: Dandelion & Driftwood

The lovely northside cafe, Dandelion & Driftwood

Guess who's back! Back again! Cassie's back! Tell your friends! I am not an Eminem fan or even a hip hop...or rap?...that-genre-of-music fan, but those sentiments are fitting as I am back. Where did I go? Well, no where but I was without a laptop to blog on for a long time and if Cassie have no telly, Cassie no bloggy. Did you miss me? You did!? You like me! You really like me!

Anyway, I'm back and I have a pretty exciting recipe post coming up but I just can't keep you waiting any longer so I've got a review to warm up the engine for me. I rarely get over to the Northside and then to the Northside that isn't Paddington...fuggedaboutit! So when the chance to eat at Dandelion & Driftwood in Hendra, I couldn't pass the opportunity to expand my reviewing horizon.

The side entrance to the Tea Garden.

We found Driftwood & Dandelion amongst the pretty backstreets, nestled at the end of a small row of shopfronts. Even on a workday, a park was not available close by as Driftwood & Dandelion as well as the cafe close by were very busy with almost all the tables taken. But not all. We snagged a table in the unexpected courtyard of Driftwood & Dandelion. The cafe was small with a compact kitchen but the owners have utilised every spare inch and have fit in a lot of tables. The cafe does feel full but not unpleasantly...just very cosy.

Wonderful selection of baked goods.

The menu was extensive with a great selection of all day breakfast items as well as baked goods and sandwiches. The coffee menu was equally as detailed with explanations on the different blends and roasts available. My caffeine connoisseur friend indulged in the very cutely named Piccolo Tasting Plate which was a choice of two of the piccolos for $6. She went with the house recommendations - the Dandelion Blend and the Driftwood Blend. Each came with a laminated information sheet about the coffee. Absolutely charming!

The piccolo "tasting plate". More of a pair of piccolos, but a lovely name nonetheless.

As a non-coffee drinker, there wasn't much on that list to interest me but fear not - there were juices, teas, hot chocolates and milkshakes too. Can you guess what I ordered? If you guessed a caramel milkshake, you would be correct. The milkshake came in a big, frosty steel canister, which is the best way to serve a milkshake. There was a definite taste of vanilla ice cream and there was a lovely frothy top. The texture was a little thin and I think the caramel flavour could be a little stronger but overall, solid effort. See where this milkshake ranks in the Cassie Cakes Milkbar.
 

Nice froth and cute straw!

The breakfast menu is pretty extensive with some of the more uniques breakfasts getting around. We decided on The Dandy Man ($18.50) to share and the Popeye the Bagel Man bagel ($13.50). The florentine bagel was topped with spinach (which may lend the bagel it's name), bacon, free range fried egg, tasty cheddar cheese, hollandaise and tomato relish. The staff were really helpful and the bacon on the side for our sole carnivorous diner. The bagel was toasted well and the hollandaise tasted like homemade. As bagels are, it was a little chewy and dense but bagel is as bagel does. For a breakfast on the smaller side, the cheese and sauces helped the bagel pack a punch.

In New York, they pronouce it bag-elle. o_0

The Dandy Man was the second meal which we ordered to share between two. It consisted of traditional corn and zucchini fritters with fluffy scrambled eggs, avocado, rocket, toasted pinenuts, sweet chilli jam and cream cheese. There were two decent sized fritters which were delicious with the avo, jam and cream cheese but I need to tell you about these eggs. They were the lightest, fluffiest eggs I've ever had. Ever. They were like a delightful, pale yellow cumulonimbus cloud on the end of my fork. How did you do it, Dandelion and Driftwood? Tell me. They were fantastic.


BEST EGGS EVER!

The northside is an unexplored treasure trove for me, I only wish the Northside roads made more sense and people didn't park in the left lane of what was a main road until 10 metres ago. I think if all the cafes are as nice as Dandelion and Driftwood, I might just be able to put up with that too.

Food: 3.5/5
Service: 4/5
Price: 4/5
Atmosphere: 4/5
 

REVIEW: The Book Kitchen

See the black dog on the left there? He's a groodle and his name is Gus and he's a good boy.

Oops! How can it be two weeks since my last post? I'll tell you how. I went to Sydney! And then I got sick. But...I went to Sydney! For my birthday! And I had one of the best birthdays of my 20 something years. That's right, 20 something. That gives you an indication of how old I might be, since I'm not willing to say outright what something in the 20's I am. But you shush your mouth! I'm 20 something, goddamn it!

The wonderful industrial yet cosy interiors.

As far as chronology goes, this is the second restaurant I have to review from my Sydney jaunt but I wanted to do this one first. The morning after the night before, we were a touch shady and boy, was I looking forward to breakfast. Hold up..."boy"? What am I, a mid-western choirgirl? Um, no. Anyway, moving on.

Book lined walls.

My lovely friend who lives in Sydney took me to one of my favourite Sydney suburbs, Surry Hills. Alliteration for the win! Surry Hills is full of so many lovely cafes with a great food scene and this little café was no exception. The Book Kitchen sits on Devonshire Street, which is pleasantly busy, making it great for people watching from the tables outside. A table inside also seemed a great place to sit, with the book lined walls and great bustling atmosphere but on this sunny Saturday, we nabbed a seat in the cool winter sun.

Action shot.

Service was prompt with water and menus delivered quickly and drink orders taken swiftly. We ordered a hot chocolate ($4) and a pot of TBK Chai Leaf Tea ($5.50). There were tragically no marshmallows for my hot chocolate and after Felix, few other hot chocolates please me without marshmallows. What's the bloody point. Still, it wasn't horrid and it did the job. The chai tea was delightful - wonderfully spiced, milky and sweet - it hit the spot.

Looks the goods...wasn't the goods.

After drinking our hot drinks, we were ready to order. The waitress was so accommodating and thoroughly knew the menu. There were many tempting choices with lots of vegetarian options, which I'm really learning to notice as I move away from such meatcentric eating. We ordered two dishes and decided to share. There was a caramel milkshake on the menu however the kitchen was heartbreakingly out of caramel, so I got a chocolate milkshake ($7). The texture was very thin and the flavour was not very strong but the canister was cold and the serving was big. Check out where it ranks on The Cassie Cakes Milk Bar.

The meals arrived quickly and together and were presented invitingly! First, the Trio Corn Fritters - Poached Edd, Avo Salsa, Rocket with Roast Tomato ($20), plus we got extra Haloumi ($6). The haloumi was good and I'm glad we ordered it, but it was nothing on the Greek Festival haloumi. But for café haloumi, very good. Maybe the haloumi tempted comparison but the fritters...stand aside! No comparison came close. These fritters were so tasty, the corn was juicy and sweet, they were friend well and along with the avocado salsa and egg poached to perfection...mouth party. Please get the fritters if you come to The Book Kitchen.

For our second meal, we ordered the Slow Cooked Greek Beans - Rich Tomato Sauce, Poached Eggs, Salsa Verde, Pancetta and Sourdough for $19. The waitress kindly got our beans sans pancetta. The beans were tasty and firm to the bite, as though al dente. The toast was delightfully buttery, scooping up the beans with a hunk of buttery sourdough was an absolute treat. The eggs were also stellar and as with the Corn Fritter, just perfect. I love a well poached egg - the whites firm and the yolk runny.

The food at The Book Kitchen was top, everything was well cooked and well seasoned, balanced and tasty. The drinks were okay, not the best milkshake or hot chocolate but the chai tea was spot on. With such great food, backed by friendly and quick service, The Book Kitchen is really a wonderful brunch spot. It was such a pleasant café. Highly recommended.

Food: 4/5
Service: 4/5
Price: 3.5/5
Atmosphere: 4/5

REVIEW: Paleo Cafe Bulimba

 

I think the cow should be in the centre, rather than the apple.

I'm pretty much always trying - and failing - to eat healthier. Given that I frequent restaurants regularly, I appreciate when there are lighter options. However, lighter options mean squat if it doesn't taste good. The paleo movement doesn't seem to be going anywhere either and with those two facts in mind, we decided to try Paleo Café.



The bright, industrial interior.

Paleo Café is local to us, sitting at the start of Oxford Street in a fairly new complex, The Avro. We visited one Saturday, and given the popularity of the Oxford Street Area, I expected the café to be a hive of activity with a line out the door. To the contrary, there were plenty of tables so we choose a table outside.

The smoothies, icy and not so icy.

Along with the coffees, we ordered a few cold drinks. The Signature Iced Chocolate ($8) sounded pretty appealing with cacao and honey syrup mixed with almond and coconut milk, but it felt like a berry sort of day. I went with the WOD Warrior smoothie for $8, made from strawberries, mango, granola and coconut milk. Mr Cakes ordered the Piña Colada smoothie for $9, a coconut, pineapple and lime concoction. Both smoothies were nice, I could have done with more ice in mine. I like my smoothies to be cold and icy.


Sweet Chilli Eggs, poached, with bacon.

For meals, two of us ordered the Sweet Chilli Eggs - Soft Poached Eggs Served on Savoury Bread with Fresh Spinach Leaves, Avocado, Crispy Bacon and Topped with a Sweet Chilli Capsicum Jam, Fresh Coriander Sprigs and Lime for $16.50. I ordered mine without bacon, as I'm cutting down on meat consumption and eggs fried, cos I hate undercooked whites. So often poached eggs are undercooked.

Damn you, slimy whites! Scourge of my breakfast days!

Unfortunately, ordering fried eggs did not allow me to escape my fate and the whites of my eggs were a little translucent. The bread was fairly unique, being paleo and made from coconut flour. It was not dissimilar to that of banana bread. Still, for a wheat free option, it was okay. Not sure I'd be running back to consume the bread. We both enjoyed the chilli jam and the avocado was nice and ripe. 

So much meat.

Not everyone is concerned about cutting down on meat so next up, we had the Caveman Big Breakfast - Free Range Eggs, Steak, Veal Sausage, Bacon, Mushrooms, Oven Roasted Tomato, Sautéed Baby Spinach, Savoury Bread and Chunky Tomato Relish ($22.50). And if that sounds like a lot, it was. The steak was a particularly nice steak, it appeared to a fillet of some sort. It was mostly meat and there was no "bread" with the meal. This makes it a very low carb option. Any committed meat eater would be very pleased with this choice, Mr Cakes was extremely jealous of the Caveman Breakfast.


I see you, yucky white bits! Nice yolk though.

Mr Cakes got what he felt was the consolation prize of the Bacon and Free Range Eggs - Free Range Eggs with Sautéed Baby Spinach, Savoury Bread, A Golden Sweet Potato Rosti and Double Smoked Bacon ($14.50). Even though he was very envious of the steak on the Caveman Breakfast, he did get a decen amount of bacon. The spinach couldn't really be called sautéed and looked more to be slightly wilted. The rosti was nice and very crispy. Mr Cakes was happy with the eggs too, but they looked similar to mine with a bit of the whites undercooked. That of course is just my opinion on eggs though. Mr Cakes was not the biggest fan of the bread either.

Paleo Café was pretty good, and a few of the things I didn't like about the food had to do with paleo food itself, not the café. Don't go to a paleo café if you want a big, doorstop piece of white sourdough. The staff were nice and the owner has a great passion for the lifestyle. It wasn't quite enough to turn me but I did leave feeling guilt free and satisfied.

Food: 3/5
Service: 3/5
Price: 3/5
Atmosphere: 3/5

REVIEW: Locavore Cafe

Sustainable eating at Locavore.

The term Locavore means one who is interested in eating food from a 100 mile radius, or 160 kilometres. Locavore Café focuses on this ethos, serving food within such a distance with a emphasis on ethical and sustainable eating. And I just love this idea. It's not hard to uncover lots of nasty facts about where our food comes from, if you look a little. So anything that helps our winged and four legged friends is good in my eyes. With such a wonderful manifesto, it was the perfect place to meet some fellow foodies, lovely ladies from Braking for Breakfast and Yelp Brisbane.

Some tempting baked goods at the counter.

Brand spanking new, Lovacore Café sits on Logan Road between the heart of Woolloongabba and the edge of Stones Corner. The café is new and light, with lots of sun being let in from the floor to ceiling windows. The service was attentive as well, with a waiter taking drink orders as soon as I sat.

Good froth on an okay milkshake.

I ordered the Salted Caramel milkshake for $8. If it's on the menu, I order it. It arrived quickly and was a good size. However the flavour was pretty weak, with a some caramel flavour but no discernible saltiness. The texture was also quite thin. It did have a lot froth on top which was quite tasty. For the price though, it was a bit meh. Check out the Milkshake Bar for it's ranking.

Scrambled eggs.

Along with lots of amazing sounding hot beverages - heirloom hot chocolate anyone? - the breakfast menu offers a few different and unexpected options, such as the Prawn Congee ($18.90) looked interesting as did the Gingerbread Pancake with clotted cream, fresh figs and Bee One Third honeycomb and bee pollen ($16.90) but unusually, I wasn't hungry so I ordered Eggs on Toast - Echo Valley Free Range Organic Eggs, Crust & Co. Artisan Sourdough ($10.90) which I got scrambled. It and the other meals arrived quickly. And unfortunately, it wasn't the most impressive of dishes. The eggs okay, a tad overdone and the bread tasted a bit burnt. A little disappointing.

Corned beef fritters with some well done tomatoes.

Next up was the Corned Beef Fritter - Grass Fed Beef Fritter, Wilted Greens, Poached Egg, Onion and Corn Relish for $18.90. This dish was slightly more impressive looking, but didn't fare much better, taste wise. The greens weren't wilted and the poached eggs were again a bit overdone. The fritters were deep fried, rather than pan fried, which would be matter of preference. However, the fritters had a generous amount of corned beef.

Wholesome wholegrain porridge.

The by far and away winner was the Mixed Wholegrain Porridge - Poached Rhubarb & Pear, Vanilla Milk and Hazlenut Praline ($11.90). The porridge was sweetened by the poached fruit and vanilla. The serving was generous as well. The use of wholegrain oats gave the oats a great, firm bite to it.

A pretty flat-lay, styled by @brakingforbreakfast

Overall, I was disappointed with Lovacore. However they have only been open a week and perhaps the training wheels are still on for them. It certainly wasn't the worst food I've ever eaten, the interior is pleasant and airy and the staff were very attentive. I do wonder how they'll fair with the Woolloongabba café precinct, full of so many stellar cafes, at the end of Logan Road so close by.


The interior.

Food: 2.5/5
Service: 3.5/5
Price: 3/5
Atmosphere: 3.5/5