Hattifnatt, Kichijōji, Tokyo

menyū 

iced coffee 

Tallulah having a stretch 

brown rice and plenty-of-mushroom doria 

avocado taco rice

Yesterday we headed off to the Ghibli Museum, known for Japanese animation films like My Neighbour Totoro and Spirited Away - cute! Keep an eye out on our Renosslah blog for some pics soon. The museum is located in an area called Kichijōji, which is one cute area! Our favourite Tokyo Guide, Hello Sandwich, helped us find us a spot to fill up before hitting the museum, with that spot being Hattifnatt!

The best way to describe the Kichijōji Hattifnatt is a children's cubbyhouse. The entry is through a tiny door, and the ceiling is so low it is impossible for us tall gaijin to stand up straight! There are elements of traditional Japan in there too, such as taking our shoes off and sitting on cushions with low tables. The walls and ceiling of the main eating area was completely painted in a mural full of animals (and children with guitars), and it was a child's dream! A kid's birthday party was under way when we arrived, and children were running about, finding types of animals as a game, ringing the bell for service and generally having a great time! Tallulah definitely fit in here.

Another benefit of sitting on the floor was that Tallulah could have some time out of the sling (knowing she couldn't fall anywhere), and she spent the whole time checking out the colourful room.

With Tallulah successfully distracted, we scoured the pictures in the menu. I found avocado taco rice and asked for that and Renee thought that the picture of the 'brown rice and plenty-of-mushroom doria' looked good. The doria came with a mini-salad. We chose iced coffees as the accompanying drinks.

The avocado taco rice was delicious! It was avocado, salsa and egg on top of lettuce on top of mince and rice, and it was delicious! The avocado was superb on this dish. Renee quickly found out that under the layer of white sauce (she had a craving for cheese) was her arch-nemesis, the mushroom; plentiful in quantity. No amount of pushing food around could get rid of that mushroom taste! The mini-salad, however, had no mushroom (yay!) and had a tasty dressing.

The ice coffee, once creamy milk and sugar syrup had been added, quenched our thirst.

Being time to head off to the museum, we put our shoes back on (which involved me putting my shoes on first, then taking Tallulah from Renee so that she could put her shoes on - babies make thing harder!) and headed back into the world where ceilings and door frames are at least 2m high. Note: this does not include our apartment where door frames are low; I have a few lumps on my head!

The Verdict
Coffee 3/5
Eggs (the meal!) 3/5
Service 3.5/5
Atmosphere 5/5
Total = 14.5/20

Tallulah's score = 4/5 (Tallulah loved this child-like café)

Would we go again? Yes, and they have another one in nearby Kōenji that we want to check out!

Website You must check out Hattifnatt's website, it is sooo good! It is located here.
Kichijōji station is located on the Chūō line, Sobu line, Tozai subway line and Inokashira line.

Café Wendy, Tokyo

bacon, egg & cheese tortilla 

 lunch

One thing we have learnt about having a child overseas is that you can't just leave the hospital and be on the next flight home! So we found ourselves living in Tokyo in an area called Hasunuma. It is fair to say that Hasunuma doesn't quite appear on any list of cool Tokyo areas like Shimokitazawa or Kichijo-ji, but nevertheless we went on the hunt for some brunch spots.

Luckily, one such spot opened its doors just after we moved in, called Café Wendy, and it looks pretty cute with its pot plant garden and cute façade. So in we went for a bite, with Tallulah in tow! Café Wendy has a small breakfast menu that features a bacon, egg and cheese tortilla, as well as four different types of hotcakes (including banana, maple & cream) - the breakfast is available until 11:30. We arrived a bit late and asked for the tortilla, and they were happy to make one for us! I also ordered their lunch special, which had rice and pork topped with a fried egg, a salad and an onion broth. We also asked for cafe lattes each. Café Wendy also offers a cake and tea set, which we didn't have today but will definitely go back to try!

We have had a couple of breakfast burritos in Perth, so we were interested to see how the tortilla compared. A couple of bites later, and we both confirmed: the tortilla is better than the breakfast burritos back home! It had a good mix of flavours; the salsa had a bit of a kick to it (unusual for Japan) and the cheese was perfect. It was a winner. My lunch was also a winner - the whole lot was flavoursome and was polished off!

The coffee, unfortunately, was not as good as the food, being ground coffee with hot water and milk added to it, like how your mum likes it. If you come back here, our tip is have tea!

The interior was cute and seats 8-10 people, it's also open for diner and they have a selection of international beer available. Our favourite part was the large oval-shaped marble 'globe' table:

We didn't get very far on our RTW trip!

The owners were friendly, and tried to accommodate Tallulah by placing two chairs next to each other like a dangerous-looking cot. We declined and held onto her, but appreciated the thought. Otherwise, Tallulah enjoyed her quick brunch outing!

The Verdict
Coffee 2/5
Eggs (the meal!) 4/5
Service 3.5/5
Atmosphere3.5/5
Total = 13/20


Tallulah's score = 3.5/5 (Tallulah appreciated the chairs/bed)

Would we go again? Yes, to try some cake and tea!


Website No, but here's a map showing the location! The nearest subway stop is Motohasunuma on the Mita line.

Kinder Surprise!

Our beautiful daughter Tallulah

So something a little unexpected happened to us the day after we ate that delicious breakfast at Parlor Ekoda....I was admitted to hospital with stomach cramps (no, it wasn't food poisoning!) and the next thing you know we have ourselves a beautiful little daughter called Tallulah!

Yes we know its quite unbelievable but it's true, we didn't even suspect we were pregnant! So our plans changed and our super round the world trip has been put on the back burner and we have been living in Tokyo for the past couple of months! I started a blog documenting this amazing mind boggling adventure we are on, so if you want to know more do check it out at www.renosslah.blogspot.com

So we will be adding new section to our scoring system: Tallulah's Score= baby friendly! Watch this space!

Parlour Ekoda, Tokyo

Renee's mouthwatering vegetable sandwich 

Iced Latte and flat white 

Delicious selection of bread 

Pecan tart - yum!

Destination: Tōkyō! We have arrived, but not first without filling up on kaya toast at Singapore Airport (kaya is this weird green spread with a flavour that is indescribable, but sort of alluring; read more about it on Wikipedia).

Our only guide to Tokyo is Hello Sandwich, which takes us to places that you will not find in any other guide book. On this day it took us to the suburb of Ekoda, which is just outside the Yamanote rail line which loops around central Tokyo. And are we glad that we found Parlour Ekoda! (パーラー江古田, map)

A good coffee can be hard to find in Tokyo, but not as hard as finding a good breakfast. The traditional breakfast usually includes rice and dried fish; and the breakfast that you can find in one of the numerous American coffee chains is often an average sandwich or worse. The coffee is, on occasions, barely drinkable (the rest of the time it is left behind).

But this is not like us, talking all negative and stuff about such a great city, and so onto the good stuff! Being on the lookout for the best, we eagerly grabbed seats at the small table inside Parlour Ekoda (the other 4 seats are at the bar). We ordered a flat white (which is only possible as the owner trained in Melbourne) and an iced latte. We then settled into the menu, which is basically a choice of 4 or 5 fillings inside any of the Parlour's bread. And this is not just any bread, this is all out French-style bread which looked phenomenal! Renee had her vegetable roll on a rye sourdough roll, and I chose a walnut loaf with a mushroom and chicken filling. The owner warned me that mine would be difficult to eat due to the shape of the loaf (it was - all my filling fell out before I could take one bite)! But we both agreed, these rolls were reaaaaaally good - the bread was fresh and the fillings delicious!

Our coffees (iced latte and flat white) were both reaaaaaally good as well, and we both had to have more. I ordered a short macc, and Renee had another ice latte. And unlike many Perth establishments where the second round falls short of the standard set by the first round, the short macc and second iced latte were delicious!

We finished off with a pecan tart, which like the rest of the food was good. We left feeling very positive about Tokyo!

The Verdict


Coffee 4.5/5
The eggs (the meal!) 4/5
Service 4/5
Atmosphere 4/5
Overall 16.5/20


Would we go again? 
Yes, we would!


Website http://blogs.dion.ne.jp/parlour/ (maybe, maybe not!)

Artichoke, Singapore

Ross' sunny side up 

Renee's butter toasted chicken sandwich

House-blend breakfast cereal - now with Little Creatures Pale Ale!

We love Singapore - it seems that you cannot go wrong with the food lah! Today we joined our friends and our friends' friends at Artichoke Cafe and Bar, which is located in Sculpture Square. It has a large inside area, plus a delightful covered outside area with a long wooden table. We had gathered together enough people to fill the outside table! Artichoke has a great ambience - the owner told us that he had spent some time in Melbourne gathering inspiration. Artichoke officially claims that it is "inspired by the fascinating flavours and smells of Spain, Turkey, Lebanon, Greece and Morocco," and they are spot on in this respect!

The "November weekend brunch V1" menu contains a whole bunch of goodies that cost between S$14-18, that I can't resist going all out on:

• House-blend breakfast cereal w dried apricots, freeze-dried strawberries, almonds & cold milk (S$7);
• Creamy scrambled eggs w organic Kin Yan Farm mushrooms, parmesan & wild rocket, w Turkish bread;
• Eggs baked in tomato sauce w country sausage balls, chorizo, Spanish onions & homemade lebneh;
• Pan-fried haloumi on toast w organic mushrooms, crushed avocado & wild rocket;
• Renee's choice - Butter roasted chicken sandwich, grilled onions, almond romesco sauce & aioli + salad leaves; and
• My choice - Sunny side up w Moroccan mergues lamb nuggets, pistachio dukkah, babaganoush & fresh herbs.

The owner happily told me that my meal had made it into the top 100 dishes of 2010 (in Singapore Cosmo). And boy did it deserve to be in that list - it was meal perfection! It looked great on the plate, and had an array of different ingredients hidden under the egg to be found, like a treasure hunt! Renee found her sandwich to be tasty, but complete food envy!

The presentation was a winner - the dishes were fun, and we enjoyed the way that the cereal was served in a paper bag; cute! When we left, we were all given candy in small paper bags; such a great idea and certainly icing on a great cake!

We both ordered iced caffe lattes (i.e. iced coffee) that were delicious! Renee had another one, and I returned for a macchiato which was honestly one of the best maccs I have ever had.

The Verdict

Coffee 4.5/5
The Eggs (the meal!) 4.5/5
Service 4/5
Atmosphere 4.5/5
Overall 17.5/20
Would we go again?
I think we could easily live on Singapore's food - it really is good. Thanks Artichoke, for showing us how a breakfast place should be!

Website: http://www.artichoke.com.sg/

40 Hands, Singapore

First stop Singapore! Today the weather was a humid 32C, much like yesterday and tomorrow! Our fantastic friends live in Tiong Bahru, on the same block as this delightful cafe, 40 Hands, which was recently established by a couple of Perth expats. The cafe also features art by Creepy. Like many Perth cafes, 40 Hands is all about the coffee.

The interior is well-done. The wooden counter provides a perfect contrast to the concrete surroundings. The order number is a wooden block. In all, it's seriously cool (a nice contrast to humid, no?)

Renee was feeling humid, and thought that an iced coffee would go down nicely; i was quite happy to try the hot fare and ordered a flat white. And they were delicious - perfectly perfected coffees. I would be quite happy to live on the same block as this cafe!

On the food side of things, the menu was limited with just pastries and toasted sandwiches on offer. We started off sharing a ham and cheese croissant, which was average at best and not worth discussing. Luckily our friends suggested, no, implored, that we try their toasted sandwiches, and I ordered the Mediterranean lamb. Others on offer include Jamaican pork, vegetable stack, cheese and tomato, and truffle mushroom (i wish i had ordered the latter - yum!). The Mediterranean lamb toastie was delicious, and full of cucumber, mint, and other yummy fillings.

The Verdict

Coffee 4.5/5
The Eggs (the meal!) 3/5
Service 4/5
Atmosphere 4.5/5

Overall 16/20

Would we go again?
Oh how I wish we could have spent more time in Singapore so that we could have come here again!

Website: http://www.40handscoffee.com/

Poached has gone international!

That's right! Us poached pair were sick of being overworked, and so threw off our employment shackles in an annual-leave-revolution and declared a state of holiday!


To celebrate, we will be introducing the world to our new way of living via Singapore, Tokyo, Shanghai, London, Paris, Brussels, Bruges, Antwerp, Cologne, Istanbul, Seville, Fez, Marrakech, Porto, Lisbon, Chicago, Seattle, Portland, San Antonio, Austin, Toronto, New York, San Francisco, Las Vegas, Los Angeles and Melbourne! And hopefully we can find a brunch-spot or two on the way and report in on progress.


Keep an eye out for a surprise along the way!

The Suite, Shenton Park

Renee's eggs Benedict at the front, and Ross' eggs Florentine

Ok it was a while ago that we visited The Suite in Shenton Park (24 September to be precise!). Our memory, however, is sharp-as. And since we don't stray into the golden triangle often, we would not want to give this review a miss. The Suite is a small bar, and immediately feels cosy and intimate; it's dark and brooding and once inside it is easy to forget that there is a real world outside. This is good. Renee enjoyed the vintage-inspred aesthetic. The Suite is open 6 days for breakfast, lunch and dinner, but it is only the breakfast that interests us.

The menu offers some simple fair, including field mushroom feta on toasted sourdough ($14), smoked salmon dill cream, roquette, brioche ($14) and pancakes maple syrup, berries, whipped cream ($15). We both went standard today with Renee choosing the eggs Benedict ($14) but substituting the muffin for sourdough, and I went for eggs Florentine ($12). Both meals were tasty, cooked and seasoned well. Renee was miffed that her sourdough toast was actually one piece cut into two- she reckons they could have given her two pieces, surely! (yes she notes that she likes carbs in the morning!)

We both ordered flat whites ($3.50) (yes i know that is not a surprise!) - they were quite delicious, well made and tasty-as. So good in fact that we ordered a second round of coffees; but they were nowhere near as good. Almost undrinkable! Which is a shame, because we were enjoying the atmosphere and had completely forgot about the outside world until those second coffees.

Should The Suite maintain its consistency (and maybe over the last 3 months it has?), it would certainly be a choice spot to escape the world.

The Verdict

Coffee 3/5
The Eggs (the meal!) 3.5/5
Service 4/5
Atmosphere 4/5

Overall 14.5/20

Would we go again?
When brooding, yes

Website: The Suite

We've been bad!

Hi everyone, I guess you've all been wondering where we have been? Well, we have been pretty busy (you think that's a lame excuse, I know!) But don't worry, we're back, and with some surprises too!

More posts soon, ^_^ Ross & Renee

Hubbles Yard, East Fremantle

Renee's breakfast

fresh juice and coffee

Ross' breakfast

Ok so this post has been a long time coming, as we had been meaning to visit Hubbles Yard for a long time now. Our past plans were thwarted by making the trip on a Sunday no less than twice. Hubbles Yard is not open on Sunday. So if you see any online article claiming that Hubbles Yard is open on Sunday (we're looking at you, sixthousand), be very, very wary! Learning our lesson we made the trip on a Saturday and almost didn't make it as we arrived at 11:25, 5 minutes before breakfast finished. We made a quick scan of the menu and ordered straight away as we didn't want to miss out a third time!

If memory serves me right, Hubbles Yard had a small but enticing menu. I ordered field mushroom which came with goats' cheese feta, pesto, lettuce & a delicious chutney ($14.50). Renee decided upon the breakfast bruschetta with poached eggs and the chutney ($14.50). Both of our meals went down very, very well, cooked to perfection and balanced nicely. The chutney was a good addition which brought the meal to life. In fact the little side sauces that come with meals everywhere are often underrated, and can make or break a dish (for example, although I don't like to admit it Dôme rolls are nothing without their onion chutney. Keep that on the low-down).

Like Dômes everywhere, Hubbles Yard is located on a street corner (Hubble and George Streets), but in one of this city's most hidden-away activity centres, East Fremantle. Being in such a quiet hidden away location gives Hubbles Yard a great vibe, and this is translated to the interior. We polished off our meal perched on stools at a long high table. The quaint vibe rubs off on the staff too, who were friendly and offered service with a smile.

Hubbles Yard has also taken on board some great baristas, and i was more than happy to go back for a second flat white. Not content with just great coffees, Hubbles Yard also offers fresh juices made on the premises (either $5 or $6, I can't remember!) and you can choose the ingredients. Renee's juice contained apple, pear, orange and ginger, and was very, very good.

We also tried one of their cakes on display at the counter. The one I chose to share was a lime and coconut slice, which tasted nice but was a bit dry and was only edible with slathers of cream. But there were many-more moist-looking cakes on display, so this is no reason not to go!

The Verdict

Coffee 4.5/5
The Eggs (the meal!) 4/5
Service 4.5/5
Atmosphere 4/5

Overall 17/20

Would we go again?
Very, very much so!

Atomic, South Perth

Ross' mushroom & feta bruschetta with poached eggs

Sweet, sweet cinnamon toast

Poached egg with a side of bacon and hollandaise

Some great coffee

Super large menu!

This rainy morning we ventured over the river to South Perth to visit Atomic on Mends Street as we had to drop by my mum's house and she lives in area so it sounded like a good plan all round! About 4 years ago when we first moved in together we used to live in a big old share house in South Perth and we used to go to Atomic when it first opened and we don't remember it ever being this good!

It took me a little while to decide what to order because the menu is LARGE in both options and size and its Sunday and I never can really commit to anything- haha! I ummed and ahhed between the feta and roma tomato bruschetta ($8.50), the Norwegian eggs which featured creamed spinach but then settled on poached eggs with a side of bacon and hollandaise ($14.50). Ross quickly decided on the mushroom & feta bruschetta with a side of poached eggs. He also ordered some cinnamon toast which was quite random and two flat whites.

Atomic was PACKED! Filled with lots of young folk in search for a hangover breakfast and coffee. Atomic serves breakfast till 12:45pm which is perfect for us lazy Sunday risers! Our coffees came out within 10 minutes and they were creamy, smooth and quite delicious. Yay! Our food wasn't too far behind and I was immediately glad with the choice I made. The sourdough was great, the eggs cooked perfectly and seasoned with spring onions, bacon nice and crispy but it was the hollandaise which was a standout. It was yummmmmo! Ross didn't talk much so that means his meal was a winner too! He said his ciabatta was soft and tasty, eggs were great but the danish feta was perhaps a little overpowering however there wasn't anything left on his plate so good sign! The cinnamon toast Ross randomly ordered was sugary goodness...good one Ross!

Overall we have no complaints! Atomic is great- Hi5!

The Verdict

Coffee 3.5/5
The Eggs (the meal!) 4/5
Service 4/5
Atmosphere 3.5/5

Overall 15/20

Would we go again?
Yes!

Food is Good

So this is our first non-review post- how exciting! Its about food so don't stress- hahaha! It was my mums birthday a couple of weeks ago and for some reason I always find it hard to buy her something as she pretty much has everything so I tend to opt for gifts that incorporate 'experiences'! So much more fun! So this year after researching what concerts and events where coming up I settled on a ticket to Good Food & Wine Show, a subscription to Better Homes & Garden and a memo pad which was a donkey haha!

It starts tomorrow (Friday 2 July) and finishes on Sunday, so get on down! We are looking forward to the Friday evening session, where Masterchefs George & Matt will be giving a demonstration in the celebrity theatre. And it's not just them; Manu is also giving a class on the same night - we loove Manu, so does my mum! There's also cooking classes, cheese classes, a wine theatre, and of course what is a night out without a nice glass of red wine in a Riedel glass, from the decanter bar!

Check out their website goodfoodshow.com.au for more details. Take your mum!

Aubergine, South Fremantle

orange juice ... and a flat white

eggs benny with bacon

breakfast burrito

lemon & lime tart. Hey, get your fingers away from that tart!

Ok it's been a while since our last post, and there's a good reason I swear! Thing is, we were called up by ASIO to save the country from hoon terrorists on motorbikes who were threatening our gas supplies which would have put an end to bbqs across the country... ok ok I see you have your dubious face on! Truth is we have just been lazy. So lazy in fact that it was about 3 weeks ago that we had breakfast at Aubergine on South Terrace in South Freo.

Aubergine is good (realllly good!). There are lots of tables inside, and a few outside too. We sat outside with the dogs and the loud motorbikes and the 'doctor', even though there were some cozy spots inside. It has a good relaxed vibe, kinda like "upmarket new-age" in personality and functional - with big glass counters full of goodies and a large blackboard menu that takes up almost an entire wall; and water, condiments and newspapers were all at the front. The menu made you full just looking at it, yes the menu sounded that good - here's a selection:

• field mushrooms with fresh goats curd, wilted spinach & pesto oil on toasted ciabatta ($14.50)
• beans 'in' toast with poached egg, wilted spinach & bacon ($14.50)
• oven roasted mixed nut granola with poached pear & vanilla bean yoghurt ($9.50)
• breakfast burrito with spiced sausage, scrambled eggs, fresh chilli & herbs ($14.50)

I went the latter; Renee chose the eggs benny. Aubergine gave a choice of ham, salmon, bacon or spinach to go with it; Renee decided upon the bacon ($15.50). The food was cooked well, and the breakfast burrito easily beat the burrito I had at another café a while ago. Renee exclaimed that the toast was particularly good and the bacon was crispy and extremely tasty. Renee recalls we had had a boozy night before so the food really hit the spot.

We both had a glass of orange juice which was freshly squeezed with was delish. I also had a flat white which was okay. Finally we finished off with a lemon & lime tart which was really good!

The Verdict

Coffee 3.5/5
The Eggs (the meal!) 3.5/5
Service 4/5
Atmosphere 4/5

Overall 15/20

Would we go again?
Yes

The Dancing Goat, Swanbourne

I heart their sign...a goat drinking coffee! haha

Really delicious coffee. Really.

My Feta & Tomato on toast with a side of eggs!

Ross' brekky burrito with mushroom and spinach!

I can't remember the last Saturday I've had off and boy can I tell you it felt SO nice not rushing off to work today! This morning we thought we'd test out somewhere new and settled on The Dancing Goat in Swanbourne. Ross said he had done some research and promised it would be delish so off we set on this rainy, overcast morning!

Nestled on Railway Parade just past Claremont in a cute strip of shops is the delightful Dancing Goat. It was drizzling with rain and the only seat in the place available was outside on the decking. Had it been sunny it would have been nice, but unfortunately the wind was cutting and the awning was only just stopping us getting wet. The staff were concerned and asked us a couple of times whether we wanted to come inside - eventually we relented and they squeezed us onto a nice warm table inside their quirkily-decorated café - which was quite a feat as it is a small establishment!

The Dancing Goat's menu is chalked on blackboards scattered around the walls, and features some basics like eggs (scrambled or fried) on toast ($9.50) and muesli with banana and rhubarb ($10). Ross was immediately sold on the breakfast burrito, which came with mushrooms, spinach, scrambled eggs and cheese ($10), and I had tomato and feta on toast, with sourdough bread instead of the usual rye bread. For some reason I think feta is just more delicious sliced than cubed so throughout my meal I wanted my cubes to turn into slices haha! Both breakfasts were cooked nicely, but nothing mind-blowing. We agreed that the vibe of the place was like a café you might find down south, like a fun holiday!

The coffee, though, was not holiday at all - it was delicious! We both had flat whites, and they we so good we had some more to take away. We also took away with us a chocolate brownie ($4), which was delicious especially as they hid pieces of rich chocolate in it - yum!

Overall we were impressed with the vibe, the coffee, the cakes, and the food was serviceable too.

The Verdict

Coffee 4.5/5
The Eggs (the meal!) 3/5
Service 4/5
Atmosphere 4/5

Overall 15.5/20

Would we go again?
If we were local, this might just well be our favourite coffee spot!

Website: We think their site has been hacked, so instead have a look at the interior designer's website at www.hankandmatlok.com/dancinggoatcafe.htm

Riki Blake's, North Perth

Fresh OJ & flat white

Renee's Fetta & Pumpkin Skak-Shuka

Roasted Lamb Shak-Shuka

I'll tell you a story...we used to go to Blake's all the time when we lived at our old house it was conveniently on route to my shop! But one morning a long time ago we were slightly fragile from a big night out and were craving their famous 'shak-shuka' which is a middle eastern breakfast dish consisting of tomatoes, capsicum, onion and spices topped with a egg served in a cute little metal pan. It used to (more on that later!) come with homemade bread to dip and green harissa which was the perfect condiment. We took a seat and were violated by this terrible thumping drum and bass music which continued throughout our meal- all I can say is people it is the morning and we were oh-so hungover so Blake's ended up on our blacklist....and we haven't returned until today!

We were looking forward to their food as its quite different to what we usually have for breakfast and we found a nice seat in the sun and we both started to wonder why we'd been so harsh on little old Blake's. Then we got the menu...uh oh it had totally changed! I found a copy of their old menu online which was much more extensive and had items like pancakes with honey and rose-blossom yoghurt but this new menu was stark. I remember Ross' favourite shak-shuka was lamb kofta and I really enjoyed the smoked sausage but they had both vanished! You used to be able to choose from flat, turkish or cumin rye dipping bread- nope not a option now! Anyways we settled on two shak-shukas- I ordered the feta and pumpkin and Ross chose the roasted lamb shak-shuka ($18.50) in hopes that it would actually be lamb kofta (he was dreaming!). We also ordered a flat white ($3.50) and a fresh OJ ($5.20).

Drinks came out and Ross liked his flat white and my fresh OJ was great! Bring on the food! Our meals arrived with 4 pieces of dry Turkish bread which were burnt and there was no harissa in sight... double uh oh....! Ross went and requested some harissa and was told it was no longer part of the dish. It pretty much goes down hill from here- beware! The feta was the best part of my meal and for $17 thats some pretty expensive feta! The pumpkin was hard the egg featured uncooked whites which was still clear (ew) and the sauce was just so bland and had no capscium or spices. It no longer had the pizazz! Shame. Ross' roast lamb was not kofta and was pretty disappointing. Neither of us finished our meal...which is quite unlike us.

On the plus side the service is super friendly and there was no in-your-face drum and bass beats-hooray! The atmosphere is similar to Coode Street Cafe or Lincoln's as Blakes it situated on the back streets just off Walcott Street. Lots of locals stop for take away coffees. We noticed no one else in the cafe were eating...maybe this was the problem? Anyhow, I don't think we'll be back :(


The Verdict

Coffee 3/5
The Eggs (the meal!) 2/5
Service 3/5
Atmosphere 3/5

Overall 11/20

Would we go again?
Um, no...sorry Blake's!