Category Archives: Coffee

You are here: Home » Category: "Coffee"

Layup Cafe, Northbridge

Posted by  | Categories: Breakfast/Brunch, Coffee, Featured, Perth, Restaurants

Birthdays are meant to be celebrated and it is an incredible surprise to me that this humble blog has just turned four. Four human years converted into food blog years must equate to at least a decade. That is definitely a cause to crack open the champagne. Writing this blog has certainly been a colourful journey of eating amazing food, but also has seen me cultivate wonderful, lasting friendships and interact with some very passionate Perth business people and chefs. I have loved every minute of it.
For me, this year has been all about time and its ability to slip through my fingers like sand. Admittedly I am my worst enemy and perpetually keep taking on more than I realistically have time for. To add to this dilemma, I spent a decent chunk of my year debilitated with back pain which terminated all physical activity in my life at the time. Thankfully my back troubles are becoming something of the past, and I am embracing life with a new found zest.
DSC_0679-1
Last Sunday I woke up quite early, hours before the Boy and the cats cared to be awoken and couldn’t get back to sleep. It was a stunning Spring morning so I snuck quietly out the front door and took my new bike for a spin around the river leaving the sleeping beauties snoring peacefully in a pile together. Upon returning home later I was chuffed to see the Boy up and about, ready to go out for breakfast. I was recently followed on Instagram by a new café called Layup Cafe that has just opened in Northbridge so we agreed to check it out.

"62 degree egg" "egg porn" "slow cooked egg" "yolk porn" "pica de gallo" "gluten free toast" "smoked corn" "jalapeno custard" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "layup" "layup cafe" "northbridge" "gluten free northbridge" "brunch northbridge" "breakfast northbridge"

Guacamole & pica de gallo ($16, V, GFO) with added slow cooked egg ($4)

Layup’s menu had plenty of gluten free options with a number of interesting dishes that moved away from the comparatively boring egg benny and big breakfasts. We selected a few dishes to share, all gluten free adapted.
"62 degree egg" "egg porn" "slow cooked egg" "yolk porn" "pica de gallo" "gluten free toast" "smoked corn" "jalapeno custard" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "layup" "layup cafe" "northbridge" "gluten free northbridge" "brunch northbridge" "breakfast northbridge"
The guacamole on toast came with smoked corn and pica de gallo and we elected to have it topped with optional slow cooked eggs. A few dollops of jalapeño custard decorated the side of the plate and this custard had just a gentle chili kick to it. Being a hater of all things spicy, the Boy didn’t trust my description of “very mild” and gave the custard a wide berth. He was determined to avoid tasting something too hot for his delicate palate.

"sicilian anchovies" "charred gluten free bread" "slow cooked egg" "shichimi togarashi" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "layup" "layup cafe" "northbridge" "gluten free northbridge" "brunch northbridge" "breakfast northbridge"

Sicilian anchovies, charred gluten free bread, slow cooked egg and shichimi togarashi ($8, GFO)

Sadly these efforts were in vain as I didn’t get to warn him in time about the shichimi togarashi that accompanied the Sicilian anchovies.
"sicilian anchovies" "charred gluten free bread" "slow cooked egg" "shichimi togarashi" "62 degree egg" "egg porn" "slow cooked egg" "yolk porn" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "layup" "layup cafe" "northbridge" "gluten free northbridge" "brunch northbridge" "breakfast northbridge"
After proudly thinking he dodged a bullet with the jalapeño custard, the Boy proceeded to dunk his charred gluten free bread in gooey slow cooked egg heaven before coating it liberally in the innocent looking red powder. He nearly choked in horror at the heat and proceeded to gulp gallons of water quickly.

"sicilian anchovies" "charred gluten free bread" "slow cooked egg" "shichimi togarashi" "sicilian anchovies" "charred gluten free bread" "slow cooked egg" "shichimi togarashi" "62 degree egg" "egg porn" "slow cooked egg" "yolk porn" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "layup" "layup cafe" "northbridge" "gluten free northbridge" "brunch northbridge" "breakfast northbridge"

After the subtle tease of the jalapeño custard I was much more game and dunked my generously coated bread confidently. It was a wonderful, nostril clearing experience that had me going back for more. Combined with the salty fishiness of the anchovies this was a flavour combination I hadn’t tried before and would happily try again.

"breakfast pannacotta" "honey toasted muesli" "goji" "strawberry compote" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "layup" "layup cafe" "northbridge" "gluten free northbridge" "brunch northbridge" "breakfast northbridge"

Breakfast pannacotta ($15, V, GF)

Thankfully there was a cooling dish on the table to soothe the poor lad’s burning tongue. The breakfast pannacotta came on a bed of toasted gluten free muesli and goji berries topped with a strawberry compote and fresh berries.
"breakfast pannacotta" "honey toasted muesli" "goji" "strawberry compote" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "layup" "layup cafe" "northbridge" "gluten free northbridge" "brunch northbridge" "breakfast northbridge"
I love having two courses for breakfast. This was something my dear friend and business partner Chis and I started doing long ago and that habit has stuck. Making the decision for sweet or savoury is far too difficult to do first thing in the morning so my advice is having both is the best way to go.

Layup Cafe only opened this month and it looks like they are well on their way to fulfilling the high expectations of regular Perth breakfast punters. I loved their creative menu options and use of local produce and hope to return soon.

Layup Cafe
197-199 Brisbane Street, Northbridge WA 6003 | 0481 064 166 | Facebook
Layup Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

May Street Larder, East Fremantle

Posted by  | Categories: Breakfast/Brunch, Coffee, Featured, Perth, Raw Food, Restaurants

After graduating from high school I left Adelaide and moved across to Perth to study for my dream career in Vet Science. Being only seventeen at the time, my worldly possessions consisted of a suitcase of clothes, some hand-me-down pots and pans, a hand written note book with all of Mum’s family recipes and my stereo tape deck. I couldn’t imagine why I would need or want anything more; music and food were enough to keep me happy.

It was fortunate that I was so easily satisfied because for the next six years I got to experience what it is like to live below the poverty line on Austudy, Australia’s government funded student income. It is easy to learn to go without when you barely have enough income to eat and pay your rent, and it forces you to become much more resourceful.

Many years have passed since then and reflecting back I struggle to comprehend how on Earth I made ends meet on such a small amount of money. I am so grateful that through all my years of perseverance, sacrifice and hard work it has finally paid off. Whilst I can hardly call myself a “rich bitch”, I am enjoying a level of luxury that I wouldn’t have even dreamed of having in my student days.

The Boy has developed a similar appreciation for the finer things in life having originally also come from humble beginnings. He has recognised my last couple of years have been tough ones and so he decided to spoil me for my 40th birthday with a brand new AMG A45. After driving a 1999 Honda Civic for the past ten years now I feel like I’m in a fantasy land. I never thought I could be in love with something with no heartbeat but who am I kidding, I’m completely smitten. She is fast, has a satisfying loud sporty engine and comes complete with personalised plates.

"perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "east freo" "east fremantle" "fremantle" "may street larder" "bib & tucker" "eamon sullivan" "jamie dwyer" "steve hooker" "gluten free brunch" "breakfast" "perth breakfast" "perth gluten free breakfast" "lupin foods"

Of course I now want to get behind the wheel at every given opportunity and our occasional weekend lunch dates generally involve a Sunday drive paired with a pit stop somewhere decent for food. In keeping with this concept we headed down to East Fremantle to check out May Street Larder, a new café from the creators of Bib & Tucker. Knowing Bib & Tucker’s food well I was anticipating good things.

"perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "east freo" "east fremantle" "fremantle" "may street larder" "bib & tucker" "eamon sullivan" "jamie dwyer" "steve hooker" "gluten free brunch" "breakfast" "perth breakfast" "perth gluten free breakfast" "lupin foods"

Banana fig smoothie

As we waited for our table in the standing area, the barista called out to us to see if we wanted any coffees. We had been up quite late the night before and a hit of caffeine was just what I needed.

The Boy isn’t a coffee drinker which is something I will never quite understand. To each their own I guess. Once we were seated at our table he ordered himself a banana fig smoothie instead. It was not overly sweet and quite creamy, and he didn’t utter a single word until it was all gone.

"lupin fritters" "zucchini lupin lemon fritters" "smashed avocado" "tomato" "jam" "poached eggs" "savoury granola" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "east freo" "east fremantle" "fremantle" "may street larder" "bib & tucker" "eamon sullivan" "jamie dwyer" "steve hooker" "gluten free brunch" "breakfast" "perth breakfast" "perth gluten free breakfast" "lupin foods"

Zucchini, lupin and lemon fritters (GF, $21)

I was keen to try the zucchini, lupin and lemon fritters. Lupins are a Western Australian grown product and were one of the main hero ingredients for last year’s WA Signature Dish. They are high in protein and fibre making them very filling.

"lupin fritters" "zucchini lupin lemon fritters" "smashed avocado" "tomato" "jam" "poached eggs" "savoury granola" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "east freo" "east fremantle" "fremantle" "may street larder" "bib & tucker" "eamon sullivan" "jamie dwyer" "steve hooker" "gluten free brunch" "breakfast" "perth breakfast" "perth gluten free breakfast" "lupin foods"

"lupin fritters" "zucchini lupin lemon fritters" "smashed avocado" "tomato" "jam" "poached eggs" "savoury granola" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "east freo" "east fremantle" "fremantle" "may street larder" "bib & tucker" "eamon sullivan" "jamie dwyer" "steve hooker" "gluten free brunch" "breakfast" "perth breakfast" "perth gluten free breakfast" "lupin foods"

My lupin fritters were topped with smashed avocado, savoury granola and a couple of poached eggs. The eggs were cooked magically with the fluffy whites encasing liquid gold yolks. We were seated on a communal table and I received a couple of bemused looks as I furiously photographed to capture ever second of my egg porn moment.

"chipotle aioli" "pulled pork" "slow cooked pork" "house pickles" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "east freo" "east fremantle" "fremantle" "may street larder" "bib & tucker" "eamon sullivan" "jamie dwyer" "steve hooker" "gluten free brunch" "breakfast" "perth breakfast" "perth gluten free breakfast" "lupin foods"

Pulled pork sandwich ($21)

The lack of sleep was giving the Boy a small dose of indecisiveness over the menu until he saw a waiter with a pulled pork sandwich scoot past to a nearby table and then his choice was crystal clear. The pork shoulder was slow cooked to a near melting point and was ever so moist and flavoursome. The chipotle aioli wasn’t too intense for his sensitive tastebuds and he informed me he liked that it had a subtle sweetness to it. His sandwich also came with some May Street Larder house pickles along with very moreish deep fried sweet potato crisps.

"chipotle aioli" "pulled pork" "slow cooked pork" "house pickles" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "east freo" "east fremantle" "fremantle" "may street larder" "bib & tucker" "eamon sullivan" "jamie dwyer" "steve hooker" "gluten free brunch" "breakfast" "perth breakfast" "perth gluten free breakfast" "lupin foods"

Sadly this was a rare day where my appetite lacked its usual gusto due to a persistent hangover. Additionally my dish of lupin and zucchini fritters was so filling it left me no room for any sweets. I was so disappointed and consoled myself by wandering over to the counter to at least have a peek. What a shame! There were heaps of desserts for people like me; gluten free, vegan and raw options so I would have been spoilt for choice. Basically this simply means I will just have to come back again another day!

May Street Larder

Shop 23, 155 Canning Highway, East Fremantle WA 6158 | www.maystreetlarder.com.au

May Street Larder on Urbanspoon

Blogger's Brunch at The Wolf The Bean The Walnut

Posted by  | Categories: Breakfast/Brunch, Coffee, Featured, Paleo, Perth, Raw Food, Restaurants, Vegan, Vegetarian

For those who work from home or perhaps don’t work at all, it is easy to labour with love in the kitchen preparing all your food from scratch. When I have time to do this myself, I gain great satisfaction knowing every ingredient I put in my food. However for those like myself who work long hours and often in places where there are no hip cafes with raw, vegan, vegetarian and gluten free options, it is easy to resort to eating less healthy meals. I was recently invited to a blogger’s brunch at The Wolf The Bean The Walnut which is a new café that has opened up on Wolf Lane in Perth City offering healthy food whilst accommodating for us with specific dietary requirements.

Over the course of the morning, we were taken on a journey through their menu with tasters of their signature dishes.

"flu tonic" "lemon ginger spinach" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "perth cbd" "perth city" "perth raw food" "perth gluten free" "perth city gluten free" "the wolf the bean the walnut" "wolf bean walnut" "wolf lane"

Flu Tonic juice

I started off with a “Flu Tonic” juice; it was the fructose friendly option made with lemon, ginger and spinach. It is a relief to find somewhere I can get a take away juice without having to ask for the apple to be omitted! Guests were given some breakfast bars made with oats, pistachio, cranberry and buckwheat however due to the inclusion of oats they were not gluten free.

"gluten free granola" "coconut yoghurt " "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "perth cbd" "perth city" "perth raw food" "perth gluten free" "perth city gluten free" "the wolf the bean the walnut" "wolf bean walnut" "wolf lane"

Gluten free granola with coconut yoghurt

The Wolf The Bean The Walnut offer both toasted and gluten free options for their granola which is then topped with dairy free coconut yoghurt. Although I have not excluded dairy from my diet completely, I do try to avoid it as it flares up my eczema quite severely so that I scratch my fingers until they are red raw. It was comforting to see there are a number of dairy free alternatives on their breakfast menu for allergic intolerants like me.

"perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "perth cbd" "perth city" "perth raw food" "perth gluten free" "perth city gluten free" "the wolf the bean the walnut" "wolf bean walnut" "wolf lane"

"chia pudding" "chia seed pudding" "almond coconut milk" "fruit coulis" "gluten free granola" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "perth cbd" "perth city" "perth raw food" "perth gluten free" "perth city gluten free" "the wolf the bean the walnut" "wolf bean walnut" "wolf lane"

Chia pudding

Our second dish to sample was their chia pudding. This is normally made with toasted granola on the bottom layer which is not gluten free so the Chef made me one using their gluten free granola instead. The chia seeds were soaked in almond coconut milk to set into a pudding and topped with a fruit coulis. It wasn’t overly sweet and I could imagine a normal serve would be quite filling.

"chia pudding" "chia seed pudding" "almond coconut milk" "fruit coulis" "gluten free granola" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "perth cbd" "perth city" "perth raw food" "perth gluten free" "perth city gluten free" "the wolf the bean the walnut" "wolf bean walnut" "wolf lane"

Chia pudding

"turmeric custard" "turmeric" "custard" "coconut custard" "pistachios" "pepitas" "seasonal fruits" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "perth cbd" "perth city" "perth raw food" "perth gluten free" "perth city gluten free" "the wolf the bean the walnut" "wolf bean walnut" "wolf lane"

Turmeric custard

Next up was a taster of their signature turmeric custard. This was an interesting and colourful dish served cold with fresh mango, pistachios, pepitas and coconut. The custard had a delicate, mild flavour with a lovely hint of sweet fragrant spice.

"crispy salmon" "lima beans" "red quinoa" "white quinoa" "dukkah" "poached egg" "egg porn" "runny egg" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "perth cbd" "perth city" "perth raw food" "perth gluten free" "perth city gluten free" "the wolf the bean the walnut" "wolf bean walnut" "wolf lane"

Salmon superbowl

Our final dish was one of their “superbowls” and by this point I was feeling pretty stuffed. Chia pudding, coconut yoghurt, seeds and nuts; these are all foods that can leave one feeling very satisfied without being overly full. I wasn’t sure if I would have any room left for this next morsel.

"crispy salmon" "lima beans" "red quinoa" "white quinoa" "dukkah" "poached egg" "egg porn" "runny egg" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "perth cbd" "perth city" "perth raw food" "perth gluten free" "perth city gluten free" "the wolf the bean the walnut" "wolf bean walnut" "wolf lane"

Salmon superbowl

"crispy salmon" "lima beans" "red quinoa" "white quinoa" "dukkah" "poached egg" "egg porn" "runny egg" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "perth cbd" "perth city" "perth raw food" "perth gluten free" "perth city gluten free" "the wolf the bean the walnut" "wolf bean walnut" "wolf lane"

But after cutting into my poached egg and witnessing its egg porn in full glory I cast away any fears of fullness and tucked in. Buried underneath the perfectly poached egg was some pieces of crispy salmon, lima beans and red and white quinoa. Flavoursome dukkah was sprinkled on top to give some extra texture.

"date cashew raw cheesecake" "raw cheesecake"  "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "perth cbd" "perth city" "perth raw food" "perth gluten free" "perth city gluten free" "the wolf the bean the walnut" "wolf bean walnut" "wolf lane"

Date cashew raw cheesecake.

Sadly I couldn’t stay until the end of the blogger’s brunch as I had a test drive booked for a new car that the Boy was considering to buy for my birthday present….(more on THIS later!)…. On my way out I was handed a luscious looking raw treat to eat on the drive home. Suffice to say it didn’t last long!

I am so chuffed to know that there is somewhere I can stop into in the CBD to get a bite for lunch that will be safe for my belly and won’t set my allergies off into a storm.

Disclaimer: Chompchomp would like to thank The Wolf The Bean The Walnut for their invitation to dine with them. All opinions on this post are Chompchomp’s own.

The Wolf The Bean The Walnut

Arcade 800, 800 Hay Street, Perth WA 6000 | (08) 9481 6315 | Facebook

The Wolf The Bean The Walnut on Urbanspoon

A Day in KL – My gluten free Kuala Lumpur experience

Posted by  | Categories: Accommodation, Coffee, Featured, Hotels, Malaysia, Malaysian, Markets, Restaurants, Travel

Back in March I attended a two-day feline veterinary conference in Kuala Lumpur. The Boy joined me at the end of the conference where we stayed on for an extra day to explore the city together before flying onto Vietnam for our anniversary holiday. As I’m not accustomed to sitting still for long periods, by the time the Boy arrived after my two conference days had finished I was full of energy like crazed, caged animal. We had only allocated one day for KL so to cover as much ground as possible I planned a busy schedule of eating with some sight-seeing and shopping thrown in for good measure.

"marriott kuala lumpur" "renaissance hotel" "renaissance hotel KL" "renaissance hotel kuala lumpur" "accommodation kuala lumpur" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "kuala lumpur restaurant reviews" "kuala lumpur restaurants" "kuala lumpur gluten free" "kuala lumpur fructose friendly" "kuala lumpur food reviews" "restaurants kuala lumpur" "food photos" "kuala lumpur food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "kuala lumpur" "kuala lumpur travel blog" "malaysian food gluten free" "malaysia gluten free"

We stayed at the Renaissance Hotel which was where the conference was held and was conveniently located within walking distance to the shopping areas and the monorail station. Our room was one of the “Lifestyle Rooms” which overlooks the beautiful Petronas Towers. The room gave us access to the Lifestyle Club floors however I felt this probably was a waste of our money as I only went in there once. The bathroom had a good range of Tokyomilk amenities which were refreshed daily.

"marriott kuala lumpur" "renaissance hotel" "renaissance hotel KL" "renaissance hotel kuala lumpur" "accommodation kuala lumpur" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "kuala lumpur restaurant reviews" "kuala lumpur restaurants" "kuala lumpur gluten free" "kuala lumpur fructose friendly" "kuala lumpur food reviews" "restaurants kuala lumpur" "food photos" "kuala lumpur food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "kuala lumpur" "kuala lumpur travel blog" "malaysian food gluten free" "malaysia gluten free" "marriott kuala lumpur" "renaissance hotel" "renaissance hotel KL" "renaissance hotel kuala lumpur" "accommodation kuala lumpur" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "kuala lumpur restaurant reviews" "kuala lumpur restaurants" "kuala lumpur gluten free" "kuala lumpur fructose friendly" "kuala lumpur food reviews" "restaurants kuala lumpur" "food photos" "kuala lumpur food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "kuala lumpur" "kuala lumpur travel blog" "malaysian food gluten free" "malaysia gluten free"

The breakfast on offer in the club lounge was much smaller than the buffet downstairs and wasn’t worth returning for. We didn’t get a chance to check out their free afternoon cocktail hour. The gym was huge and certainly one of the better equipped, more modern hotel gyms that I have seen. It was nearly as big as my regular gym back home.  The breakfast buffet had all the usual suspects that I would expect in a South-east Asian hotel however I would have preferred better quality. They had gluten free bread and muffins available on most albeit not all days.

1. Local breakfast snack at Nyonya Colours, Suria KLCC

Unless I’m staying five-star, hotel breakfasts are not really a deal clincher for me as I prefer to get out and about to sample the city’s cuisine. We skipped our hotel breakfast and headed off on foot towards the Petronas Twin Towers. Located at the base of the twin towers is Suria KLCC; six heavenly levels of shopping with something for everyone ranging from high ends brands like Tiffany, Chanel, Gucci and LV through to some more affordable fashion, sport wear and accessories stores. The Boy was kind enough to tolerate a short spurt of shopping before stopping in at Nyonya Colours for a quick morning snack.

"nyonya" "nonya" "otak otak" "malaysian fish cake" "gluten free fish cake" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "kuala lumpur restaurant reviews" "kuala lumpur restaurants" "kuala lumpur gluten free" "kuala lumpur fructose friendly" "kuala lumpur food reviews" "restaurants kuala lumpur" "food photos" "kuala lumpur food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "kuala lumpur" "kuala lumpur travel blog" "malaysian food gluten free" "malaysia gluten free"

Otak otak (GF)

I flashed my home-made Malaysian gluten free, fructose friendly eating card to the cashier to which he initially frowned and shook his head. After giving my request more thought he then pointed to the only two suitable options in the glass cabinet; a type of fish cake wrapped in banana leaf called otak otak and a rose sago dessert. Beggars can’t be choosers I thought to myself so I ordered them both.

"nyonya" "nonya" "otak otak" "malaysian fish cake" "gluten free fish cake" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "kuala lumpur restaurant reviews" "kuala lumpur restaurants" "kuala lumpur gluten free" "kuala lumpur fructose friendly" "kuala lumpur food reviews" "restaurants kuala lumpur" "food photos" "kuala lumpur food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "kuala lumpur" "kuala lumpur travel blog" "malaysian food gluten free" "malaysia gluten free"

If they are made traditionally, Otak otak should be naturally gluten free but as always if you are Coeliac or very sensitive please ensure to check with the seller before you buy. Otak otak are a type of spicy fish cake made with coconut milk, shrimp paste, egg, rice or tapioca flour and spices such as kaffir lime, turmeric, lemongrass and chilli. They can often contain some shallots so for those sensitive to onion be aware of this.

"rose sago" "kuih" "nyonya" "nonya" "gluten free sweets" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "kuala lumpur restaurant reviews" "kuala lumpur restaurants" "kuala lumpur gluten free" "kuala lumpur fructose friendly" "kuala lumpur food reviews" "restaurants kuala lumpur" "food photos" "kuala lumpur food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "kuala lumpur" "kuala lumpur travel blog" "malaysian food gluten free" "malaysia gluten free"

Rose sago (GF)

Rose sago is another traditional Malaysian dessert made from sago, coconut milk, palm sugar and fresh coconut. It is flavoured with rose essence for a subtle hint of floral flavour. I have been a big fan of eating these “kuih” since I first tried Red Hot Spatula’s some years back.

"vegan" "vegetarian" "sushi" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "kuala lumpur restaurant reviews" "kuala lumpur restaurants" "kuala lumpur gluten free" "kuala lumpur fructose friendly" "kuala lumpur food reviews" "restaurants kuala lumpur" "food photos" "kuala lumpur food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "kuala lumpur" "kuala lumpur travel blog" "malaysian food gluten free" "malaysia gluten free"

The Boy wasn’t keen on any of the vegetarian options from Nyonya Colours so after I finished my otak otak we headed downstairs to the food hall in search of something else for him to eat. As we entered the basement area I saw a post office and dashed over to send postcards home to family and friends. Meanwhile the Boy found a food stall serving some vegetarian sushi. Whilst the stall holder nodded to me that his selection was gluten free, I didn’t want to take the risk it as there was some suspect looking marinated tofu inside that looked like it contained soy sauce.

"garrett popcorn" "garretts popcorn" "chicago mix" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "kuala lumpur restaurant reviews" "kuala lumpur restaurants" "kuala lumpur gluten free" "kuala lumpur fructose friendly" "kuala lumpur food reviews" "restaurants kuala lumpur" "food photos" "kuala lumpur food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "kuala lumpur" "kuala lumpur travel blog" "malaysian food gluten free" "malaysia gluten free"

"garrett popcorn" "garretts popcorn" "chicago mix" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "kuala lumpur restaurant reviews" "kuala lumpur restaurants" "kuala lumpur gluten free" "kuala lumpur fructose friendly" "kuala lumpur food reviews" "restaurants kuala lumpur" "food photos" "kuala lumpur food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "kuala lumpur" "kuala lumpur travel blog" "malaysian food gluten free" "malaysia gluten free"

As the Boy sat down to eat his breakfast, my eyes gazed around the mall and caught sight of a brightly lit Garrett’s popcorn store. I have been lusting over this world famous popcorn for a very long time and was dying to try it. I ran over to the store like an excitable child and ordered a large bag of their popular Chicago mix to eat later back in the hotel room. Most of Garrett’s popcorn flavours are gluten free but once again be sure to double check before you order. Oh, and another warning…it is very addictive and once you open the packet you need to be prepared to be unable to stop until it’s all gone.

2. Petronas Twin Towers

Our first touristy stop was the Petronas Twin Towers; KL’s 88 floor 452 metre tall skyscraper. We were on a fairly tight schedule so had I pre-booked our tickets to go up to the top online the day before. For those less organised there are also a small allotment of tickets available every morning at the ticket counter but get there early as they sell out quickly. The tickets cost 80 RM per person.

"petronis tower" "petronis twin towers" "twin towers malaysia" "twin towers kl" "kuala lumpur twin towers" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "kuala lumpur restaurant reviews" "kuala lumpur restaurants" "kuala lumpur gluten free" "kuala lumpur fructose friendly" "kuala lumpur food reviews" "restaurants kuala lumpur" "food photos" "kuala lumpur food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "kuala lumpur" "kuala lumpur travel blog" "malaysian food gluten free" "malaysia gluten free"

Our journey consisted of two parts; the first was up to the 41st level where the twin towers are joined by a 58 metre sky bridge. We were given around ten minutes or so to explore the bridge and take photos.

"petronis tower" "petronis twin towers" "twin towers malaysia" "twin towers kl" "kuala lumpur twin towers" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "kuala lumpur restaurant reviews" "kuala lumpur restaurants" "kuala lumpur gluten free" "kuala lumpur fructose friendly" "kuala lumpur food reviews" "restaurants kuala lumpur" "food photos" "kuala lumpur food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "kuala lumpur" "kuala lumpur travel blog" "malaysian food gluten free" "malaysia gluten free"

Sky Bridge

After this we were escorted to the 68th floor which is the highest point in the building that the general public are permitted. Once at the top we were left to our own devices to explore, read the display information and take in the 360 degree view of Kuala Lumpur CBD.

"petronis tower" "petronis twin towers" "twin towers malaysia" "twin towers kl" "kuala lumpur twin towers" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "kuala lumpur restaurant reviews" "kuala lumpur restaurants" "kuala lumpur gluten free" "kuala lumpur fructose friendly" "kuala lumpur food reviews" "restaurants kuala lumpur" "food photos" "kuala lumpur food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "kuala lumpur" "kuala lumpur travel blog" "malaysian food gluten free" "malaysia gluten free"

"macaron" "macaron kl" "macaron kuala lumpur" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "kuala lumpur restaurant reviews" "kuala lumpur restaurants" "kuala lumpur gluten free" "kuala lumpur fructose friendly" "kuala lumpur food reviews" "restaurants kuala lumpur" "food photos" "kuala lumpur food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "kuala lumpur" "kuala lumpur travel blog" "malaysian food gluten free" "malaysia gluten free"

After our Petronas experience was over we headed back down to the ground level to find ourselves a taxi to Batu caves. On our way we passed a macaron stall allowing me to have a quick impromptu mac attack. Well, it’s not like I could walk past and not try a couple of flavours, could I?

3. Batu caves

Our next stop was the Batu caves. These caves are accessible by either taxi or train with a substantial difference in price. We paid about 80 RM for one way by taxi however we made the mistake of catching it outside our hotel, you could probably get a metered taxi for half the price if you were a bit savvier.

"murugan" "lord murugan" "Hindu god of war" "batu caves" "dark cave" "dark cave malaysia" "batu cave kl" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "kuala lumpur restaurant reviews" "kuala lumpur restaurants" "kuala lumpur gluten free" "kuala lumpur fructose friendly" "kuala lumpur food reviews" "restaurants kuala lumpur" "food photos" "kuala lumpur food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "kuala lumpur" "kuala lumpur travel blog" "malaysian food gluten free" "malaysia gluten free"

The Kommuter train line runs right out to the caves with a direct stop and our return trip on the train only set us back 4 RM each. We are not the biggest fans of public transport and found the taxi much easier and more relaxing. Additionally the connection from the Kommuter train to the Monorail at KL Sentral station wasn’t the easiest to find as the signposting was quite poor.

"batu caves" "dark cave" "dark cave malaysia" "batu cave kl" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "kuala lumpur restaurant reviews" "kuala lumpur restaurants" "kuala lumpur gluten free" "kuala lumpur fructose friendly" "kuala lumpur food reviews" "restaurants kuala lumpur" "food photos" "kuala lumpur food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "kuala lumpur" "kuala lumpur travel blog" "malaysian food gluten free" "malaysia gluten free"

There are a few noteworthy things to see at the Batu caves. Your first hurdle is to climb the 272 steps to get to the caves. There is no lift available which is worth knowing in advance if you are injured, infirm or wheelchair bound. At the foot of the stairs is the world’s tallest statue of Lord Murugan, the Hindu god of war. He stands nearly 43 metres tall and it took 300 litres of gold paint to paint him!

"murugan" "lord murugan" "Hindu god of war" "batu caves" "dark cave" "dark cave malaysia" "batu cave kl" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "kuala lumpur restaurant reviews" "kuala lumpur restaurants" "kuala lumpur gluten free" "kuala lumpur fructose friendly" "kuala lumpur food reviews" "restaurants kuala lumpur" "food photos" "kuala lumpur food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "kuala lumpur" "kuala lumpur travel blog" "malaysian food gluten free" "malaysia gluten free"

After spending a few days cooped up in lectures, the stair climb was just the workout that I needed. I do have to confess that we both stopped halfway to catch our breath! Dotted all up the stairs were a multitude of long-tailed macaques all scampering about trying to forage amongst the rubbish left by messy humans.

"cynomolgus monkey" "crab eating macaque" "long-tailed macaques" "batu caves" "dark cave" "dark cave malaysia" "batu cave kl" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "kuala lumpur restaurant reviews" "kuala lumpur restaurants" "kuala lumpur gluten free" "kuala lumpur fructose friendly" "kuala lumpur food reviews" "restaurants kuala lumpur" "food photos" "kuala lumpur food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "kuala lumpur" "kuala lumpur travel blog" "malaysian food gluten free" "malaysia gluten free"

The Cathedral Cave located at the top of the stairs is a huge area with an impressive high ceiling and was filled a number of Hindu statues and ornate shrines although they were not very well maintained with rubbish littered about the place.

"batu caves" "dark cave" "dark cave malaysia" "batu cave kl" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "kuala lumpur restaurant reviews" "kuala lumpur restaurants" "kuala lumpur gluten free" "kuala lumpur fructose friendly" "kuala lumpur food reviews" "restaurants kuala lumpur" "food photos" "kuala lumpur food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "kuala lumpur" "kuala lumpur travel blog" "malaysian food gluten free" "malaysia gluten free"

After walking through the Cathedral cave, we also took a tour through the Dark Cave. Tours cost 35 RM per adult and last about an hour. Our tour guide Zarris was an entertaining chap who spoke excellent English and was very informative. In contrast to the cultural experience of walking through the temple, the Dark Cave tour is focussed on educating about conservation. It highlights some of the intriguing invertebrate wildlife living in the caves and if you are lucky you might get to sight a bat or two. We also got to view some beautiful large stalagmite and flow stone formations.

"batu caves" "dark cave" "dark cave malaysia" "batu cave kl" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "kuala lumpur restaurant reviews" "kuala lumpur restaurants" "kuala lumpur gluten free" "kuala lumpur fructose friendly" "kuala lumpur food reviews" "restaurants kuala lumpur" "food photos" "kuala lumpur food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "kuala lumpur" "kuala lumpur travel blog" "malaysian food gluten free" "malaysia gluten free"

Dark Cave (this was the only bit of light in there!)

"cynomolgus monkey" "crab eating macaque" "long-tailed macaques" "batu caves" "dark cave" "dark cave malaysia" "batu cave kl" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "kuala lumpur restaurant reviews" "kuala lumpur restaurants" "kuala lumpur gluten free" "kuala lumpur fructose friendly" "kuala lumpur food reviews" "restaurants kuala lumpur" "food photos" "kuala lumpur food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "kuala lumpur" "kuala lumpur travel blog" "malaysian food gluten free" "malaysia gluten free"

On our way to the Batu train station to return back to the city centre, the Boy stopped at one of the street food vendors to grab a quick on-the-go snack. Unfortunately the stall holder couldn’t read any of my translated eating cards meaning I couldn’t identify whether anything was gluten free.

"perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "kuala lumpur restaurant reviews" "kuala lumpur restaurants" "kuala lumpur gluten free" "kuala lumpur fructose friendly" "kuala lumpur food reviews" "restaurants kuala lumpur" "food photos" "kuala lumpur food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "kuala lumpur" "kuala lumpur travel blog" "malaysian food gluten free" "malaysia gluten free"

Instead I settled for some durian popcorn. I can see why some people go nuts for this fruit, it has a very distinct and pungent flavour!

"durian popcorn" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "kuala lumpur restaurant reviews" "kuala lumpur restaurants" "kuala lumpur gluten free" "kuala lumpur fructose friendly" "kuala lumpur food reviews" "restaurants kuala lumpur" "food photos" "kuala lumpur food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "kuala lumpur" "kuala lumpur travel blog" "malaysian food gluten free" "malaysia gluten free"

4. Shopping at the Pavilion and a Hello Kitty coffee at Komugi Cafe

My next checkpoint was to buy myself a Hello Kitty latte. As many of you know, I am a self-confessed crazy cat lady and whenever I’m on holidays I need to get a kitty fix from somewhere. A few weeks back I had seen a picture of cat coffee art at Komugi Café on my Instagram newsfeed and was determined to head there and score one for myself.

"hello kitty coffee" "cat coffee" "coffee art" "komugi cafe" "komugi" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "kuala lumpur restaurant reviews" "kuala lumpur restaurants" "kuala lumpur gluten free" "kuala lumpur fructose friendly" "kuala lumpur food reviews" "restaurants kuala lumpur" "food photos" "kuala lumpur food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "kuala lumpur" "kuala lumpur travel blog" "malaysian food gluten free" "malaysia gluten free"

Latte 9.90 RM, background Frappe matcha 12.90 RM

Komugi Café is a Japanese bakery selling a variety of Japanese baked goods including a lot of different types of breads and pastries. Regrettably none appeared to be gluten free so we settled on some chocolates instead.

"komugi cafe" "komugi" "chocolate" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "kuala lumpur restaurant reviews" "kuala lumpur restaurants" "kuala lumpur gluten free" "kuala lumpur fructose friendly" "kuala lumpur food reviews" "restaurants kuala lumpur" "food photos" "kuala lumpur food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "kuala lumpur" "kuala lumpur travel blog" "malaysian food gluten free" "malaysia gluten free"

Chocolates 3.90 RM each

The coffee tasted a lot milkier and was weakly flavoured, quite a contrast to my normal preferences. However the pure novelty of having a Hello Kitty face decorated in my coffee’s foam made this one of the best coffees I have ever had! 😉

"hello kitty coffee" "cat coffee" "coffee art" "komugi cafe" "komugi" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "kuala lumpur restaurant reviews" "kuala lumpur restaurants" "kuala lumpur gluten free" "kuala lumpur fructose friendly" "kuala lumpur food reviews" "restaurants kuala lumpur" "food photos" "kuala lumpur food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "kuala lumpur" "kuala lumpur travel blog" "malaysian food gluten free" "malaysia gluten free"

Komugi is located in the Pavilion shopping centre which is also multi-level and has a different collection of shops to that in Suria KLCC. After doing a spot more shopping we were ready for something more substantial to eat having only nibbled on things throughout the day.

5. Jalan Alor Hawkers food

It was a short walk from the Pavilion to Jalan Alor where there is a wide variety of street food with prices that won’t break the travel budget. I brought with me all my translated eating cards written in Malaysian, Chinese and Thai and this made it a bit easier to find someone willing to help us.

"jalan alor" "jalan alor gluten free" "hawker market kl" "malaysian hawker market" "kuala lumpur hawker market" "gluten free hawker market" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "kuala lumpur restaurant reviews" "kuala lumpur restaurants" "kuala lumpur gluten free" "kuala lumpur fructose friendly" "kuala lumpur food reviews" "restaurants kuala lumpur" "food photos" "kuala lumpur food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "kuala lumpur" "kuala lumpur travel blog" "malaysian food gluten free" "malaysia gluten free"

"jalan alor" "jalan alor gluten free" "hawker market kl" "malaysian hawker market" "kuala lumpur hawker market" "gluten free hawker market" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "kuala lumpur restaurant reviews" "kuala lumpur restaurants" "kuala lumpur gluten free" "kuala lumpur fructose friendly" "kuala lumpur food reviews" "restaurants kuala lumpur" "food photos" "kuala lumpur food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "kuala lumpur" "kuala lumpur travel blog" "malaysian food gluten free" "malaysia gluten free"

Gluten free alcohol options are grim with most hawker restaurants only serving beer. I was happy to abstain and enjoy a fresh young coconut instead. Veterinary conferences can be quite heavy going with a lot of alcohol drinking so I’m sure my liver appreciated some time off.

"street corn" "jalan alor" "jalan alor gluten free" "hawker market kl" "malaysian hawker market" "kuala lumpur hawker market" "gluten free hawker market" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "kuala lumpur restaurant reviews" "kuala lumpur restaurants" "kuala lumpur gluten free" "kuala lumpur fructose friendly" "kuala lumpur food reviews" "restaurants kuala lumpur" "food photos" "kuala lumpur food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "kuala lumpur" "kuala lumpur travel blog" "malaysian food gluten free" "malaysia gluten free"

"sambal" "stingray" "sambal stingray" "jalan alor" "jalan alor gluten free" "hawker market kl" "malaysian hawker market" "kuala lumpur hawker market" "gluten free hawker market" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "kuala lumpur restaurant reviews" "kuala lumpur restaurants" "kuala lumpur gluten free" "kuala lumpur fructose friendly" "kuala lumpur food reviews" "restaurants kuala lumpur" "food photos" "kuala lumpur food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "kuala lumpur" "kuala lumpur travel blog" "malaysian food gluten free" "malaysia gluten free"

Sambal stingray (GF)

Before choosing our dinner location we started off with some grilled corn and sambal stingray. After showing the stall holder my gluten free eating card I watched them carefully while they prepared our dishes to ensure there wasn’t any gluten containing sauces like soy added. The sting ray was a bit of a disappointment as it wasn’t as spicy as that I’ve had in Singapore and the meat wasn’t tender and flaky.

"jalan alor" "jalan alor gluten free" "hawker market kl" "malaysian hawker market" "kuala lumpur hawker market" "gluten free hawker market" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "kuala lumpur restaurant reviews" "kuala lumpur restaurants" "kuala lumpur gluten free" "kuala lumpur fructose friendly" "kuala lumpur food reviews" "restaurants kuala lumpur" "food photos" "kuala lumpur food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "kuala lumpur" "kuala lumpur travel blog" "malaysian food gluten free" "malaysia gluten free"

Mangosteens

"jalan alor" "jalan alor gluten free" "hawker market kl" "malaysian hawker market" "kuala lumpur hawker market" "gluten free hawker market" "prawns with egg yolk" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "kuala lumpur restaurant reviews" "kuala lumpur restaurants" "kuala lumpur gluten free" "kuala lumpur fructose friendly" "kuala lumpur food reviews" "restaurants kuala lumpur" "food photos" "kuala lumpur food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "kuala lumpur" "kuala lumpur travel blog" "malaysian food gluten free" "malaysia gluten free"

Prawns with egg yolk (GF)

Our next round of meals were from Restoran Sun Chui Yuen who were very happy to accommodate and help choose some gluten free dishes for me. We ordered steamed ginger crab, prawns with egg yolk, fried tofu and fried rice. As we looked around us we saw that we had ordered a lot more dishes than any of our adjacent tables despite it just being for the two of us. Locals pointed at all our food and laughed while they rubbed their bellies to indicate our greediness. We smiled back sheepishly.

"fried tofu" "jalan alor" "jalan alor gluten free" "hawker market kl" "malaysian hawker market" "kuala lumpur hawker market" "gluten free hawker market" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "kuala lumpur restaurant reviews" "kuala lumpur restaurants" "kuala lumpur gluten free" "kuala lumpur fructose friendly" "kuala lumpur food reviews" "restaurants kuala lumpur" "food photos" "kuala lumpur food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "kuala lumpur" "kuala lumpur travel blog" "malaysian food gluten free" "malaysia gluten free"

Fried tofu (GF)

Whilst I had tried my best to explain to our waiter about potential contamination of gluten in food, this is the hardest part of ordering in a foreign country. Many waiters will understand about not including ingredients with gluten, but to ensure the frying oil and the chopping board is clean is much more difficult.

"ginger crab" "steamed crab" "jalan alor" "jalan alor gluten free" "hawker market kl" "malaysian hawker market" "kuala lumpur hawker market" "gluten free hawker market" "perth restaurant reviews" "perth restaurants" "perth gluten free" "perth fructose friendly" "perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food photos" "perth food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "perth" "perth travel blog" "chompchomp" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "low fodmap diet" "fructose malabsorption" "gluten free cooking" "raw food cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "coeliacs" "coeliac disease" "kuala lumpur restaurant reviews" "kuala lumpur restaurants" "kuala lumpur gluten free" "kuala lumpur fructose friendly" "kuala lumpur food reviews" "restaurants kuala lumpur" "food photos" "kuala lumpur food blog" "food blog" "travel blog" "kuala lumpur" "kuala lumpur travel blog" "malaysian food gluten free" "malaysia gluten free"

Steamed crab with ginger (GF)

Later that night I did get a reaction however thankfully it wasn’t too severe and I am guessing it would have just been in the deep fryer rather than actually in the food. I should have used my common sense and stuck with steamed dishes.

6. Night cap at Marini’s on 57 Sky bar

The fact that the locals at Jalan Alor thought our eating habits were hilarious were well founded. We were feeling very full and ready for late night cap before hitting the sack. Before we did, I wanted to show the Boy how beautiful the Petronis Towers looked all lit up at night so we walked back to the city centre for a drink at Marini’s on 57 Sky bar.

"petronis tower" "petronis twin towers" "twin towers malaysia" "twin towers kl" "kuala lumpur twin towers"

The Petronis Twin Towers at night

Marini’s is located on the 57th level of Petronis Tower 3 adjacent to the Twin Towers and gives a spectacular view of the building and city below. It is claimed to be Malaysia’s highest rooftop bar and has floor to ceiling glass windows to maximise on the view. Marini’s has three areas with a funky bar, Italian restaurant and cigar lounge.

"petronis sky bar" "sky bar kuala lumpur" "roof top bar kuala lumpur" "marinis" "sky bar kl" "roof top bar kl" "mary's melon" "petronis tower" "petronis twin towers" "twin towers malaysia" "twin towers kl" "kuala lumpur twin towers"

Mary’s Melon

We made ourselves comfortable at the bar and I ordered a Mary’s Melon cocktail; made with 42 below Manuka honey vodka, Midori melon, rosemary syrup and vanilla syrup and garnished with a rosemary stalk and chunks of honey dew. Not exactly a fructose friendly drink but it was completely worth it.

Whilst it wasn’t easy to find a gluten free Kuala Lumpur; with eating cards in hand things were made a bit easier for me. For those foodies not restricted by the shackles of food intolerances it is definitely a city worth eating your way around. Street food vendors are everywhere and I wish I could have sampled more dishes. Alas I have learnt that whilst I can tolerant a bit of fructose here and there, gluten is my enemy and is simply not worth the pain.

 

Suria KLCC Shopping Centre | www.suriaklcc.com.my/index.html
Petronis Twin Towers | Lower ground level, Petronis Twin Towers, KLCC 50088 Kuala Lumpur | +603 2331 8080 | www.petronastwintowers.com.my
Jalan Batu Caves, 68100 Jalan Batu Caves, Selangor | +603 6189 6284 | en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Batu_Caves | Dark Cave Educational Tour, Batu Caves | www.darkcavemalaysia.com
Komugi Café | Lot 24/1A, Tokyo Street, Level 6, Pavilion Shopping centre, Kuala Lumpur | +603 214 80369 | www.komugi.com.my
Jalan Alor Street Food | Jalan Alor Bukit Bintang, 50200 Kuala Lumpur
Marini’s on 57 | Level 57, Menara 3 Petronis, Persiaran KLCC, 50088 Kuala Lumpur | +603 2386 6030 | www.marinis57.com

Breakfast at Venn Cafe + Bar, Perth City | Eat Drink Perth

Posted by  | Categories: Bars, Breakfast/Brunch, Coffee, Featured, Perth, Restaurants

I don’t work in the city centre and with my chosen line of work it is unlikely that I ever will. I passionately love my job as a vet; I get to save lives and make a positive impact on individual animal’s welfare every day. However there is girlie part of me that would love to have a job where I could wear beautiful clothes, style my hair and grow my nails. Working with animals excludes all of these things, the job of a vet is far from the glamorous kitten hugging, puppy kissing career that some of you may believe it to be. Those of you who know me well will have been subjected to many of my gross and detailed stories involving unsavoury smells and body liquids!

In addition to vetting, I am also part of the practice’s senior management team and we meet together monthly with our most recent meeting falling on my rostered day off. Kindly embracing the spirit of Eat Drink Perth with me, my fellow colleagues Chris, Wayne and Liz were happy to journey into the city to have a work meeting at Venn Bar + Café located on Queen Street.

 "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth gluten free" "Perth fructose friendly" "Perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "food photos" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "gluten free cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "food event" "West Australia food festival" "launch event" "food festival" "wine festival" "Perth food festival" "eat drink Perth" "eat drink perth 2014" "City of Perth" "Perth city" "Queen street" "Venn" "Venn cafe" "venn bar" "egg porn" "breakfast perth" "brunch perth" "gluten free breakfast perth"

"Short macchiato" "coffee" "five sense coffee" "5 senses"  "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth gluten free" "Perth fructose friendly" "Perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "food photos" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "gluten free cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "food event" "West Australia food festival" "launch event" "food festival" "wine festival" "Perth food festival" "eat drink Perth" "eat drink perth 2014" "City of Perth" "Perth city" "Queen street" "Venn" "Venn cafe" "venn bar" "egg porn" "breakfast perth" "brunch perth" "gluten free breakfast perth"

Short macchiato ($3.50)

Venn serve a blend of 5 Senses coffee which is a guaranteed way to start my morning off on a good note. Better still they served my short macchiato short and traditional, just the way it should be. I hate it when baristas top up my macchiato with hot milk, that’s not how a macchiato should be! Let’s recall what macchiato actually means in Italian; a “stain”. A proper short macchiato should be a shot of espresso with a dash or stain of milk, not a cup full.

"House braised beans" "rich tomato sauce" "chorizo" "soft poached egg" "sourdough" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth gluten free" "Perth fructose friendly" "Perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "food photos" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "gluten free cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "food event" "West Australia food festival" "launch event" "food festival" "wine festival" "Perth food festival" "eat drink Perth" "eat drink perth 2014" "City of Perth" "Perth city" "Queen street" "Venn" "Venn cafe" "venn bar" "egg porn" "breakfast perth" "brunch perth" "gluten free breakfast perth"

House braised beans in a rich tomato sauce with chorizo, soft poached egg and sour dough ($13)

Chris and I have been breakfast buddies for many years and have enjoyed numerous outings together. As soon as I saw house braised beans and chorizo on the menu I guessed it would be her choice. I was not wrong. If it has chorizo or prosciutto and it is for breakfast, she will claim it for her own. Her serving size was more than ample and even someone with an appetite as big as hers couldn’t finish it all.

"Warm potato gruyere cakes" "smoked salmon" "chive citrus yoghurt" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth gluten free" "Perth fructose friendly" "Perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "food photos" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "gluten free cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "food event" "West Australia food festival" "launch event" "food festival" "wine festival" "Perth food festival" "eat drink Perth" "eat drink perth 2014" "City of Perth" "Perth city" "Queen street" "Venn" "Venn cafe" "venn bar" "egg porn" "breakfast perth" "brunch perth" "gluten free breakfast perth"

Warm potato and Gruyère cakes with smoked salmon and chive and citrus yoghurt ($16, GF)

Liz chose the warm potato and Gruyère cakes with smoked salmon. I was glad she selected this as it was my second preference and it meant I got to try a little nibble. The potato cakes were thick and well-formed however they only had a very subtle flavour of Gruyère. The soft folds of salmon were topped with a chive and citrus yoghurt which lightened this otherwise quite stodgy and filling dish. Once again I noted this was a good value meal considering we were in the heart of the city.

"Warm potato gruyere cakes" "smoked salmon" "chive citrus yoghurt" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth gluten free" "Perth fructose friendly" "Perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "food photos" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "gluten free cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "food event" "West Australia food festival" "launch event" "food festival" "wine festival" "Perth food festival" "eat drink Perth" "eat drink perth 2014" "City of Perth" "Perth city" "Queen street" "Venn" "Venn cafe" "venn bar" "egg porn" "breakfast perth" "brunch perth" "gluten free breakfast perth"

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth gluten free" "Perth fructose friendly" "Perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "food photos" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "gluten free cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "food event" "West Australia food festival" "launch event" "food festival" "wine festival" "Perth food festival" "eat drink Perth" "eat drink perth 2014" "City of Perth" "Perth city" "Queen street" "Venn" "Venn cafe" "venn bar" "egg porn" "breakfast perth" "brunch perth" "gluten free breakfast perth"

Free range eggs poached on gluten free bread with house made avocado butter and citrus sea salt ($13, GF)

I used to have avocado religiously every morning on my toast but in recent years I have had to drop that luxury from my daily life to avoid being the size of a small house. We eat out a LOT so when at home I try to eat as clean and lean as possible.

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth gluten free" "Perth fructose friendly" "Perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "food photos" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "gluten free cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "food event" "West Australia food festival" "launch event" "food festival" "wine festival" "Perth food festival" "eat drink Perth" "eat drink perth 2014" "City of Perth" "Perth city" "Queen street" "Venn" "Venn cafe" "venn bar" "egg porn" "breakfast perth" "brunch perth" "gluten free breakfast perth"

The money shot LOL

My free range poached eggs came with a spoonful of house made avocado butter and citrus sea salt. The total contrast in creamy smooth avocado and tangy saltiness was all these eggs needed. And yes, I got that all important yolk shot; always a win for me. They were served with house made gluten free bread.

"eye bacon" "princi bacon" "thick cut bacon" "Thick cut Princi eye bacon" "free range eggs" "salt dried tomato" "pork chipolatas" "toasted sourdough" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth gluten free" "Perth fructose friendly" "Perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "food photos" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "gluten free cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "food event" "West Australia food festival" "launch event" "food festival" "wine festival" "Perth food festival" "eat drink Perth" "eat drink perth 2014" "City of Perth" "Perth city" "Queen street" "Venn" "Venn cafe" "venn bar" "egg porn" "breakfast perth" "brunch perth" "gluten free breakfast perth"

Never serve a South African greens I’ve been told. Well at least not to my colleague Wayne. This is a man who deliberately removes his lettuce from his burgers before eating them. It was no surprise what he chose for his breakfast. Meat, meat and eggs. No greens, no fuss. He actually even picked the green garnish off his eggs and refused to eat it. Venn source their bacon from a local small goods company called Princi who specialise in free range bacon and other smallgoods. The cut was nearly as thick as a piece of steak and yet was richly flavoured and tender. Paired with the slab of bacon were pork chipolatas, eggs and a token vegetable that thankfully wasn’t green.

"eye bacon" "princi bacon" "thick cut bacon" "Thick cut Princi eye bacon" "free range eggs" "salt dried tomato" "pork chipolatas" "toasted sourdough" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth gluten free" "Perth fructose friendly" "Perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "food photos" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "gluten free cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "food event" "West Australia food festival" "launch event" "food festival" "wine festival" "Perth food festival" "eat drink Perth" "eat drink perth 2014" "City of Perth" "Perth city" "Queen street" "Venn" "Venn cafe" "venn bar" "egg porn" "breakfast perth" "brunch perth" "gluten free breakfast perth"

"Orange almond cake" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth gluten free" "Perth fructose friendly" "Perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "food photos" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "gluten free cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "food event" "West Australia food festival" "launch event" "food festival" "wine festival" "Perth food festival" "eat drink Perth" "eat drink perth 2014" "City of Perth" "Perth city" "Queen street" "Venn" "Venn cafe" "venn bar" "egg porn" "breakfast perth" "brunch perth" "gluten free breakfast perth"

Orange almond cake ($8, GF)

Our meeting ran a little later into the morning than planned meaning a third round of coffees was needed at which point the talk of sharing sweets was bantered across the table. There was only one gluten free choice available; an orange almond cake. It was moist and soft but I confess I have eaten enough orange almond cake to last me a life time. Nevertheless it filled the void for my sweet spot.

"chocolate cake" "Chocolate swirl" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth gluten free" "Perth fructose friendly" "Perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "food photos" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "gluten free cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "food event" "West Australia food festival" "launch event" "food festival" "wine festival" "Perth food festival" "eat drink Perth" "eat drink perth 2014" "City of Perth" "Perth city" "Queen street" "Venn" "Venn cafe" "venn bar" "egg porn" "breakfast perth" "brunch perth" "gluten free breakfast perth"

Chocolate swirl ($8, not GF)

The gluten eaters were spoilt with the chocolate swirl cake which judging how quickly it got torn into two, three and then four pieces before vanishing in a whirl of crumbs I am figuring this was a positive sign.

Venn is a hip little venue tucked away in the back of the building behind the Venn store and is divided into a small ground floor dining area with a rooftop deck on the second level. I would love to return here for an evening and try some of their small bites. Their bar focuses on Australian wines and craft beers with some killer looking cocktails.

For the 2014  Eat Drink Perth Festival, Venn Bar and Café have a couple of offers in the Eat Drink Perth Passport. Head over to the EDP website to find out where you can pick up your copy of the passport.
 
Chompchomp is one of the official bloggers for the Eat Drink Perth Festival 2014. This meal at Venn Cafe was not sponsored and was paid for in full. 
 
Venn Bar + Café
16 Queen Street, Perth WA 6000 | (08) 9321 8366 | venn.net/bar

 Venn Bar+Cafe on Urbanspoon

Distance really does make the heart grow fonder at Bar 9, Adelaide

Posted by  | Categories: Adelaide, Breakfast/Brunch, Coffee, Featured, Restaurants, Travel

I consider myself a Perth girl and love our city in so many ways but I wasn’t actually born here. I was born in Manly and my moved to Adelaide in my childhood years. I went on to spend most of my teenage years in Adelaide before moving to the other side of Australia on my own at the impressionable age of seventeen. Whilst my loyalties will always lie with Perth, I cannot deny that Adelaide holds a very sweet place in my heart and returning feels like coming home despite leaving so many years ago. One of the big attractions to return to Adelaide for is my Mum. Mum and I have always been best friends and being physically separated by thousands of kilometres makes our times together even more precious. After letting all the madness of Christmas die down, the Boy and I made a weekender trip to see her for the first time since our wedding. Being a total foodie herself, Mum had planned a busy weekend of feasting starting off with a hearty breakfast at a gorgeous restaurant called Bar 9.

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth gluten free" "Perth fructose friendly" "Perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "food photos" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "gluten free cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "Adelaide Restaurant Reviews" "Adelaide food blog" "Adelaide restaurants" "Adelaide gluten free" "Adelaide fructose friendly" "Adelaide food reviews" "restaurants Adelaide" "breakfast Adelaide" "breakfast" "gluten free breakfast Adelaide" "Bar 9" "Bar nine" "Parkside"

As I looked at the forecast back home in Perth where it was predicted to hit 42°C I was thankful to be away for the weekend as Adelaide was blessed with the most perfect weather. Bar 9 was packed full and we had to wait around fifteen minutes for a table. It was bustling, noisy and full of life which is just the way I like to start my morning but I could see both the Boy and my step dad cringe a little at the decibels.

"coffee" "short macchiato" "5 senses coffee" "short mac" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth gluten free" "Perth fructose friendly" "Perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "food photos" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "gluten free cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "Adelaide Restaurant Reviews" "Adelaide food blog" "Adelaide restaurants" "Adelaide gluten free" "Adelaide fructose friendly" "Adelaide food reviews" "restaurants Adelaide" "breakfast Adelaide" "breakfast" "gluten free breakfast Adelaide" "Bar 9" "Bar nine" "Parkside"

Short Mac ($3.50)

Bar 9 take their coffee quite seriously and purchase 5 Senses coffee roasted to order and then blended and aged on site. My short macchiato was richly flavoured with a complexity I wasn’t expecting and ending on a smooth aftertaste with hints of caramel. I was truly impressed by the quality of their coffee.

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth gluten free" "Perth fructose friendly" "Perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "food photos" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "gluten free cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "Adelaide Restaurant Reviews" "Adelaide food blog" "Adelaide restaurants" "Adelaide gluten free" "Adelaide fructose friendly" "Adelaide food reviews" "restaurants Adelaide" "breakfast Adelaide" "breakfast" "gluten free breakfast Adelaide" "Bar 9" "Bar nine" "Parkside"

The menus were hidden inside Golden Books like they are back home at Mrs S and my menu was coincidentally inside one called “I love you, Mommy!”. Bless.

"charred asparagus" "poached eggs" "slivered almonds" "grana prado" "asparagus" "asparagus on toast" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth gluten free" "Perth fructose friendly" "Perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "food photos" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "gluten free cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "Adelaide Restaurant Reviews" "Adelaide food blog" "Adelaide restaurants" "Adelaide gluten free" "Adelaide fructose friendly" "Adelaide food reviews" "restaurants Adelaide" "breakfast Adelaide" "breakfast" "gluten free breakfast Adelaide" "Bar 9" "Bar nine" "Parkside"

Asparagus on toast ($15)

For a slim, tiny framed person my Mum can put away a decent amount of food despite retorts to the contrary.  Sound familiar at all? I guess what they say about the apple falling from the tree has some merit. Mum ordered the charred asparagus spears on toast with poached eggs, slivered almonds and finely grated grana prado.

"egg porn" "truffle honey" "mushroom ragu" "poached egg" "Creamy truffled mushroom ragu" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth gluten free" "Perth fructose friendly" "Perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "food photos" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "gluten free cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "Adelaide Restaurant Reviews" "Adelaide food blog" "Adelaide restaurants" "Adelaide gluten free" "Adelaide fructose friendly" "Adelaide food reviews" "restaurants Adelaide" "breakfast Adelaide" "breakfast" "gluten free breakfast Adelaide" "Bar 9" "Bar nine" "Parkside"

Creamy truffled mushroom ragu ($18)

The Boy didn’t hold back and went straight for the ultimate decadence; creamy truffled mushroom ragu. Rich, meaty mushrooms were stewed into tender slippery morsels and drizzled with truffled honey.

"egg porn" "truffle honey" "mushroom ragu" "poached egg" "Creamy truffled mushroom ragu" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth gluten free" "Perth fructose friendly" "Perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "food photos" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "gluten free cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "Adelaide Restaurant Reviews" "Adelaide food blog" "Adelaide restaurants" "Adelaide gluten free" "Adelaide fructose friendly" "Adelaide food reviews" "restaurants Adelaide" "breakfast Adelaide" "breakfast" "gluten free breakfast Adelaide" "Bar 9" "Bar nine" "Parkside"

Egg porn part I

My stepdad looked on with mild bemusement as I stopped the Boy mid-way through slicing into his poached eggs to catch the wonderful moment on camera. Being much more accustomed to such moments my Mum chuckled at my strangeness and explained to him what it was all about.

"gluten free toast" "dill" "egg porn" "creme fraiche" "house cured ocean trout" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth gluten free" "Perth fructose friendly" "Perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "food photos" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "gluten free cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "Adelaide Restaurant Reviews" "Adelaide food blog" "Adelaide restaurants" "Adelaide gluten free" "Adelaide fructose friendly" "Adelaide food reviews" "restaurants Adelaide" "breakfast Adelaide" "breakfast" "gluten free breakfast Adelaide" "Bar 9" "Bar nine" "Parkside"

House cured ocean trout ($17 + $2 for GF option)

I ordered the house cured ocean trout with some initial regrets as I looked over at the Boys truffiliciousness.  My jealousy was short lived as my dish provided more than just satisfaction from hunger relief. The gluten free bread came in small post-stamp sized pieces but this was made up for by providing three pieces. Each piece was adorned with vibrantly coloured trout which was as soft as velvet on the tongue.

"gluten free toast" "dill" "egg porn" "creme fraiche" "house cured ocean trout" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth gluten free" "Perth fructose friendly" "Perth food reviews" "restaurants perth" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "food photos" "gluten free" "fructose friendly" "gluten free cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "Adelaide Restaurant Reviews" "Adelaide food blog" "Adelaide restaurants" "Adelaide gluten free" "Adelaide fructose friendly" "Adelaide food reviews" "restaurants Adelaide" "breakfast Adelaide" "breakfast" "gluten free breakfast Adelaide" "Bar 9" "Bar nine" "Parkside"

Egg porn part II

My dish didn’t come with any eggs so not wanting to miss out I ordered one poached egg on the side. Once again I got the privilege off seeing it gently pop before oozing out golden perfection. Don’t you love how those simple things in life can often be some of the best?

You always know that the food is good when everyone across the table suddenly goes silent and for a brief few minutes we all sat in comfortable silence enjoying our breakfasts. Fueled and ready for a big day we rolled ourselves out of the restaurant, into the car and headed off for a day in the McLaren Vale wine region.

Bar 9
96 Glen Osmond Road, Parkside SA 5063 | (08) 8373 1108 | bar9.com.au/wp
 
Price:                     $$ (Breakfast $11-18)
 Food:                    4/5 (polished breakfast grub with a slightly fancier twist)
Service:                3.5/5 (quippy and quick)
Ambience:          3/5 (noisy and action packed)
Drinks:                  4.5/5 (go even just for the coffee)
Total:                     15/20

  Bar 9 on Urbanspoon

Typika Artisan Roasters, Claremont

Posted by  | Categories: Breakfast/Brunch, Coffee, Featured, Modern Australian, Perth, Restaurants

It isn’t often that the Boy wants to go out for a bite to eat and I turn him down. Being not just a mad foodie but also a food blogger means I am forever on the search to find myself decent content to publish. Ordinarily I will take every opportunity I can grab as not all our meals end up being blogworthy; be it because my photos aren’t good enough or maybe there just isn’t a story worth telling.

After working two full weekends in a row on top of my usual full working week, my overtime hours clocked through the roof. Tired, grumpy and in a rare moment of unsociability all I wanted to do was engross myself in front of the computer and work on my massive “blog-log” which is my term for the ever increasing back log of posts needing to be written. After barely seeing each other for the past two weeks, the Boy implored me to stop being so lazy, get up off my bum and go out with him for a late lunch. Having heard mixed reports about Typika Artisan Roasters in Claremont, we both agreed to go there and see for ourselves.

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth gluten free" "Perth fructose friendly" "restaurants perth" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "food photos" "Gluten free" "Fructose friendly" "gluten free cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "Fructose malabsorption" "raw food cooking" "Claremont" "Claremont Restaurant Reviews" "Claremont food blog" "Claremont restaurants" "Claremont gluten free" "Claremont fructose friendly" "restaurants Claremont" "Claremont coffee" "Claremont cafe" "Typika" "Typika Artisan Roasters" "Typika Claremont" "Artisan roaster" "artisan coffee" "coffee roaster" "single origin" "Stirling Highway"

Situated in a large warehouse style building, Typika import their own beans and roast them on site. In the centre of the dining area is a glass encased room housing their huge coffee roaster so you can watch their creations unfold before your eyes. We didn’t arrive until minutes before the kitchen was closing which made it far too late in the day for me to try their coffee. In fact, I was wired enough from work and didn’t actually need further stimulation to add to the mix. Instead we opted for a couple of fruit smoothies to accompany our nuts and olives whilst we waited for our food.

"warm olives" "Warm spiced olives" "kalamata" "ligurian" "olives" "chilli" "garlic" "rosemary" "cumin" "lemon" "Spiced nuts" "Macadamias" "cashews" "almonds" "spiced" "smoked paprika" "chilli" "honey" "garlic" "sea salt" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth gluten free" "Perth fructose friendly" "restaurants perth" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "food photos" "Gluten free" "Fructose friendly" "gluten free cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "Fructose malabsorption" "raw food cooking" "Claremont" "Claremont Restaurant Reviews" "Claremont food blog" "Claremont restaurants" "Claremont gluten free" "Claremont fructose friendly" "restaurants Claremont" "Claremont coffee" "Claremont cafe" "Typika" "Typika Artisan Roasters" "Typika Claremont" "Artisan roaster" "artisan coffee" "coffee roaster" "single origin" "Stirling Highway"

Spiced nuts ($6.50, GF)

Within a couple of minutes of being seated our nibbles were brought to the table. The nuts contained a lovely mix of macadamias, cashews and almonds. They were spiced with smoked paprika, chilli, honey, garlic and sea salt. The serve was quite substantial in size.

"warm olives" "Warm spiced olives" "kalamata" "ligurian" "olives" "chilli" "garlic" "rosemary" "cumin" "lemon" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth gluten free" "Perth fructose friendly" "restaurants perth" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "food photos" "Gluten free" "Fructose friendly" "gluten free cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "Fructose malabsorption" "raw food cooking" "Claremont" "Claremont Restaurant Reviews" "Claremont food blog" "Claremont restaurants" "Claremont gluten free" "Claremont fructose friendly" "restaurants Claremont" "Claremont coffee" "Claremont cafe" "Typika" "Typika Artisan Roasters" "Typika Claremont" "Artisan roaster" "artisan coffee" "coffee roaster" "single origin" "Stirling Highway"

Warm spiced olives ($8.50, GF)

Typika’s olives contain their own mix of kalamata and ligurian olives warmed with chilli, garlic, rosemary, cumin and slices of lemon. Soft and nearly velvety, the olive flesh slipped clean off the pit in one easy slurp.  The amount of spice was fairly mild and I could easily have enjoyed a bit more kick.

"fish and chips" "sweet potato chips" "Beer battered fish" "chips" "Beer battered fish chips" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth gluten free" "Perth fructose friendly" "restaurants perth" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "food photos" "Gluten free" "Fructose friendly" "gluten free cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "Fructose malabsorption" "raw food cooking" "Claremont" "Claremont Restaurant Reviews" "Claremont food blog" "Claremont restaurants" "Claremont gluten free" "Claremont fructose friendly" "restaurants Claremont" "Claremont coffee" "Claremont cafe" "Typika" "Typika Artisan Roasters" "Typika Claremont" "Artisan roaster" "artisan coffee" "coffee roaster" "single origin" "Stirling Highway"

Beer battered fish and chips ($30)

The Boy wasn’t that thrilled with any of the vegetarian options and opted for the beer battered fish of the day. After reminding me that he “isn’t really a fish and chips person” I was surprised that he ordered it. If any serve of fish and chips was going to win him over this would have been it. Swirls of batter fried to a crisp golden colour coated each fillet of fish. It was served with battered chips and sweet potato wedges with a side serve of tartare sauce and a bottle of vinegar.

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth gluten free" "Perth fructose friendly" "restaurants perth" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "food photos" "Gluten free" "Fructose friendly" "gluten free cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "Fructose malabsorption" "raw food cooking" "Claremont" "Claremont Restaurant Reviews" "Claremont food blog" "Claremont restaurants" "Claremont gluten free" "Claremont fructose friendly" "restaurants Claremont" "Claremont coffee" "Claremont cafe" "Typika" "Typika Artisan Roasters" "Typika Claremont" "Artisan roaster" "artisan coffee" "coffee roaster" "single origin" "Stirling Highway"

I have to admit I was a little envious of the appearance of his dish and longed to be able to at least sink my teeth into one bite. That was until later in the day when all that fried batter started to disagreed with him. Being on a plant based diet and no longer used to such fatty foods his digestive system uttered roars of complaints which spanned throughout our yoga class!

"Scallops" "black pudding" "pea" "minted pea puree" "romesco" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth gluten free" "Perth fructose friendly" "restaurants perth" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "food photos" "Gluten free" "Fructose friendly" "gluten free cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "Fructose malabsorption" "raw food cooking" "Claremont" "Claremont Restaurant Reviews" "Claremont food blog" "Claremont restaurants" "Claremont gluten free" "Claremont fructose friendly" "restaurants Claremont" "Claremont coffee" "Claremont cafe" "Typika" "Typika Artisan Roasters" "Typika Claremont" "Artisan roaster" "artisan coffee" "coffee roaster" "single origin" "Stirling Highway"

Scallops, black pudding and pea ($22, GF)

Unlike the hungry lad, I only felt like something light and enquired to our waitress which of the two gluten free scallop options on the menu could be adapted to be fructose friendly. The chef recommended the scallops with black pudding, minted pea puree and romesco sauce. They were happy to serve the romesco on the side as it contained garlic which is something a lot of FM’s have to limit.

"Scallops" "black pudding" "pea" "minted pea puree" "romesco" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth gluten free" "Perth fructose friendly" "restaurants perth" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "food photos" "Gluten free" "Fructose friendly" "gluten free cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "Fructose malabsorption" "raw food cooking" "Claremont" "Claremont Restaurant Reviews" "Claremont food blog" "Claremont restaurants" "Claremont gluten free" "Claremont fructose friendly" "restaurants Claremont" "Claremont coffee" "Claremont cafe" "Typika" "Typika Artisan Roasters" "Typika Claremont" "Artisan roaster" "artisan coffee" "coffee roaster" "single origin" "Stirling Highway"

Scallops, black pudding and pea ($22, GF)

Plump and only briefly seared each scallop was a little raw on the inside which fortunately is just how I prefer them although I realise others may prefer them more cooked through. The black pudding was cut into the skinniest slivers such that its flavour didn’t overpower the delicate scallops. The pea puree was a little under-seasoned but had enough of a hint of sweetness to allow the scallop’s fresh taste to shine.

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth gluten free" "Perth fructose friendly" "restaurants perth" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "food photos" "Gluten free" "Fructose friendly" "gluten free cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "Fructose malabsorption" "raw food cooking" "Claremont" "Claremont Restaurant Reviews" "Claremont food blog" "Claremont restaurants" "Claremont gluten free" "Claremont fructose friendly" "restaurants Claremont" "Claremont coffee" "Claremont cafe" "Typika" "Typika Artisan Roasters" "Typika Claremont" "Artisan roaster" "artisan coffee" "coffee roaster" "single origin" "Stirling Highway"

I didn’t think it was fair to write a blog post on a coffee roaster without trying their coffee so as all that overtime gave me an extra day off in lieu I chose to head back to Typika Artisan Roasters solo. That day luck was not on my side as it turned out that a power line had come down across Stirling Highway making access nearly impossible with the Police blocking off the road completely. After getting lost winding my way through the back streets I finally managed to pop out upwind of the drama.

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth gluten free" "Perth fructose friendly" "restaurants perth" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "food photos" "Gluten free" "Fructose friendly" "gluten free cooking"  "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "Fructose malabsorption" "raw food cooking" "Claremont" "Claremont Restaurant Reviews" "Claremont food blog" "Claremont restaurants" "Claremont gluten free" "Claremont fructose friendly" "restaurants Claremont" "Claremont coffee" "Claremont cafe" "Typika" "Typika Artisan Roasters" "Typika Claremont" "Artisan roaster" "artisan coffee" "coffee roaster" "single origin" "Stirling Highway"

Short mac ($3.50)

It was bustling for a late weekday morning and most tables were occupied. I sat down on my lonesome ready to get down to business. The drive had taken me a lot longer than I anticipated and I was champing at the bit for a coffee. Served with a bit more milk than I prefer for my short macs, my coffee was quite smooth and creamy however lacked the wow-factor that I expected from a self-proclaimed artisan roaster.

"Typika Breakfast Stack" "Breakfast Stack" "Shredded potato crisp" "wilted spinach" "avocado" "house smoked" "ocean trout" "fried egg" "sunny side up" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth gluten free" "Perth fructose friendly" "restaurants perth" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "food photos" "Gluten free" "Fructose friendly" "gluten free cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "Fructose malabsorption" "raw food cooking" "Claremont" "Claremont Restaurant Reviews" "Claremont food blog" "Claremont restaurants" "Claremont gluten free" "Claremont fructose friendly" "restaurants Claremont" "Claremont coffee" "Claremont cafe" "Typika" "Typika Artisan Roasters" "Typika Claremont" "Artisan roaster" "artisan coffee" "coffee roaster" "single origin" "Stirling Highway"

Typika Breakfast Stack ($21)

I um-ed and ah-ed whether I needed a second breakfast for about two full seconds before I called the waiter back to take my food order. I chose the Typika breakfast stack which included a shredded potato crisp, wilted spinach, avocado and house smoked ocean trout all topped with fried egg. Service was prompt and before I had finished my coffee my meal arrived. The waiter seems rushed and as he placed my dish on the table the whole mountain of food came toppling down in one messy and very un-photogenic pile. I sheepishly requested if it could kindly be send back to the kitchen for reconstruction.

"Typika Breakfast Stack" "Breakfast Stack" "Shredded potato crisp" "wilted spinach" "avocado" "house smoked" "ocean trout" "fried egg" "sunny side up" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "Perth food blog" "Perth restaurants" "Perth gluten free" "Perth fructose friendly" "restaurants perth" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "food photos" "Gluten free" "Fructose friendly" "gluten free cooking" "gluten free recipes" "fructose friendly recipes" "gluten free raw food" "fructose friendly raw food" "Fructose malabsorption" "raw food cooking" "Claremont" "Claremont Restaurant Reviews" "Claremont food blog" "Claremont restaurants" "Claremont gluten free" "Claremont fructose friendly" "restaurants Claremont" "Claremont coffee" "Claremont cafe" "Typika" "Typika Artisan Roasters" "Typika Claremont" "Artisan roaster" "artisan coffee" "coffee roaster" "single origin" "Stirling Highway"

Typika Breakfast Stack ($21)

I guessed at this point there was no way of remaining incognito for the purposes of my blog post. I winced a little at openly giving myself away and acting like a diva sending my food back. As I pricked my knife into my egg these thoughts quickly vanished to the back of my mind as I watch the bright yellow yolk porn dribble gracefully down my enormous stack. Oh yes.

Typika Artisan Roasters makes a nice modern change from the surrounding old-fashioned styled cafes in the Claremont area. Whilst their coffee was by no means incredible, it still hit the sweet spot for me. Their menu is very gluten free friendly and has a good variety of options beyond the standard eggs benny and big breakfasts.

Typika Artisan Roasters
331 Stirling Highway, Claremont WA 6010 | (08) 9284 6088 | www.typika.com.au
 
Price:                     $$$ (Breakfast $12-21, Lunch $17-34)
Food:                    3/5 (a touch on the oily side, plenty of GF options)
Service:                3/5 (quick, friendly but minimal menu knowledge for ingredients)
Ambience:          3/5 (loud, busy, hive of activity)
Drinks:                  3.5/5 (great coffee but not blow-your-socks-off coffee)
Total:                     12.5/20

  Typika Artisan Roasters on Urbanspoon

Gordon Street Garage: Breakfast through to dinner

Posted by  | Categories: Coffee, Desserts, Featured, Modern Australian, Perth, Restaurants, Wine Bar

I am a very enthusiastic person and whilst most of you are well aware of my passion towards food, not all of you may know me for my devotion to my career.  Nearly fifteen years have past since my graduation yet my love for being a vet grows even more as time goes on.  I thrive on sharing this zeal with other like-minded colleagues. Fortunately our team of vets is filled with similar fanaticism and this creates a strong bond amongst many of us. One of our long-term employees Elaine started her career journey with us as a student many years ago and it has been a wonderful experience watching her skills and knowledge develop. It was only natural that through this mentoring process the two of us would become close friends and we have both joined each other’s wedding celebrations. It had been months since we had a chance to be able to catch up socially and agreed to meet at Gordon Street Garage, West Perth for breakfast on our day off. I have been curious to check out this hipster joint knowing it is owned by the same legends that run Duende; one of my favourite tapas bars in Perth.

"Short Macchiato" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Perth bars" "Perth restaurants" "Perth food reviews" "Gordon Street Garage" "tromboli" "duende" "hipster" "breakfast" "casual dining""West perth" "coffee roaster" "wine bar"

Just the coffee alone is worth coming back for

Based in a building that did indeed once operate as an auto electric garage, the place is flooded with lots of natural light during the day and decorated with a lot of the furniture and fixtures made from recycled materials from the original garage. They take their coffee very seriously and roast their own single origin sourced beans on site. And it shows; their coffee is damn good; not too bitter with subtle fruity flavours. I dream of the day I can work closer to this joint so I can drink their brew more often! Maybe more on this later 😉

"Hot smoked salmon" "corn" "cucumber" "sour cream" "focaccia" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Perth bars" "Perth restaurants" "Perth food reviews" "Gordon Street Garage" "tromboli" "duende" "hipster" "breakfast" "casual dining""West perth" "coffee roaster" "wine bar"

Hot smoked salmon, corn, cucumber, sour cream & focaccia

Elaine ordered the hot smoked salmon served with fresh corn, cucumber, sour cream on a toasted focaccia. All the ingredients were obviously fresh; some of the little corn kernels were still stuck together in rows to prove they had just been scrapped off the cob itself.  The trout was delicately flavoured and balanced well with the sweet acidity of the cherry tomatoes and creamy dressing.

"Vegetarian breakfast" "eggs" "fetta" "corn" "avocado" "tomato" "basil" "potato" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Perth bars" "Perth restaurants" "Perth food reviews" "Gordon Street Garage" "tromboli" "duende" "hipster" "breakfast" "casual dining""West perth" "coffee roaster" "wine bar"

Vegetarian breakfast: eggs, fetta, corn, avocado, tomato and basil potato

Whilst the Boy has embraced a vegetarian lifestyle with gusto, I have to admit I’m yet to come on board 100%. My food intolerance issues mean that I struggle with iron deficiency anaemia and my symptoms wax and wane along with my haemoglobin counts. Consequently whilst not being a hard core carnivore, I am reluctant to give up meat altogether as I feel I should be obtaining my iron from more than just plant and tablet sources!

"Vegetarian breakfast" "eggs" "fetta" "corn" "avocado" "tomato" "basil" "potato" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Perth bars" "Perth restaurants" "Perth food reviews" "Gordon Street Garage" "tromboli" "duende" "hipster" "breakfast" "casual dining""West perth" "coffee roaster" "wine bar"

Vegetarian breakfast: eggs, fetta, corn, avocado, tomato and basil potato

"Vegetarian breakfast" "eggs" "fetta" "corn" "avocado" "tomato" "basil" "potato" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Perth bars" "Perth restaurants" "Perth food reviews" "Gordon Street Garage" "tromboli" "duende" "hipster" "breakfast" "casual dining""West perth" "coffee roaster" "wine bar"

Sorry. Had to hit you with this again.

The Gordon Street Garage’s vegetarian breakfast looked too good to miss. More of those cute little rows of corn kernels featured alongside ooey-gooey poached eggs, herbed fetta, fresh avocado, roasted tomato and basil potatoes.  Once again each element of my dish oozed freshness and tasted like it was plucked straight out of someone’s veggie patch.

"Gateau" "peanut butter cake" "dessert" "desserts" "macaron" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Perth bars" "Perth restaurants" "Perth food reviews" "Gordon Street Garage" "tromboli" "duende" "hipster" "breakfast" "casual dining""West perth" "coffee roaster" "wine bar"

SO hard to choose!

We both had the day off and had nowhere to be in a hurry so our thoughts turned to the very conspicuous cake cabinet that we had ogled on our way in.  We walked back over to the cabinet with our waitress where she gave us a lengthy lowdown on all the colourful Alice-In-Wonderland-esque delights that are all made on the premises.

"dessert" "desserts" "pannacotta" "Coconut pineapple pannacotta" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Perth bars" "Perth restaurants" "Perth food reviews" "Gordon Street Garage" "tromboli" "duende" "hipster" "breakfast" "casual dining""West perth" "coffee roaster" "wine bar"

Coconut and pineapple pannacotta

Gluten free dessert options were limited but I was fairly happy with my choice of a coconut and pineapple pannacotta.  Creamy and uber coconutty this tropical breath of sweet deliciousness seemed like the perfect way to end my brunch. In a moment of thoughtfulness I asked our server to box up one of each flavour of their macarons to take home to share with the Boy.

"Gateau" "peanut butter cake" "dessert" "desserts" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Perth bars" "Perth restaurants" "Perth food reviews" "Gordon Street Garage" "tromboli" "duende" "hipster" "breakfast" "casual dining""West perth" "coffee roaster" "wine bar"

The “Gateau”

Elaine couldn’t go past “The Gateau”; a peanut butter and chocolate slice that our waitress claimed was out of this world. It was very rich but Elaine impressively slowly but surely managed to eat the whole lot as I watched on enviously.

"Raspberry Macaron" "orange Macaron" "Pistachio Macaron" "lemon Macaron" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Perth bars" "Perth restaurants" "Perth food reviews" "Gordon Street Garage" "tromboli" "duende" "hipster" "breakfast" "casual dining""West perth" "coffee roaster" "wine bar"

Macarons:Raspberry, orange, Pistachio and lemon

By comparison my pannacotta was devoured in a couple of mouthfuls and as Elaine savoured her decadence I gazed at my box of macarons; raspberry, orange, pistachio and lemon flavours. As we chatted away she eventually successfully demolished her gateau and I looked down into my macaron box…..it was empty, I had eaten all four!

A few weeks later it was my last night with my dear husband before I flew solo to Barcelona for a conference.  I have never travelled overseas without him and the thought of being apart left us both feeling torn between grumpy and sad. After such a glowing experience for my brunch I dragged him out on a cold weeknight back to Gordon Street Garage. The evening vibe was totally different to the sunlight-flooded experience I had previously but it still maintained the charm. The acoustics allowed music and conversation to melt into one meaning and we had to lean in close to hear each other.

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Perth bars" "Perth restaurants" "Perth food reviews" "Gordon Street Garage" "tromboli" "duende" "hipster" "breakfast" "casual dining""West perth" "coffee roaster" "wine bar"

In contrast to their very gluten friendly lunch menu I was disappointed to discover the only two dishes that could be adapted were the beef cheeks and the steak.  Bad luck if you are Coeliac and don’t want to eat cow.  I enquired if any vegetarian dishes could be adapted to be gluten free and was informed that although this could be done for me it would result in leaving out key elements that would greatly affect flavour.

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Perth bars" "Perth restaurants" "Perth food reviews" "Gordon Street Garage" "tromboli" "duende" "hipster" "breakfast" "casual dining""West perth" "coffee roaster" "wine bar"

So beef cheeks it was. I could see the Boy’s newly turned vegetarian eyebrows lift. I retorted that although I could clearly see the many benefits of his recently found way of life, I had to eat something! The beef cheeks tore apart beautifully and whilst this was a simple dish it was beautifully complemented with fresh greens and powerfully tasty wood fired mushrooms.

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Perth bars" "Perth restaurants" "Perth food reviews" "Gordon Street Garage" "tromboli" "duende" "hipster" "breakfast" "casual dining""West perth" "coffee roaster" "wine bar"

There were a number of vegetarian options and the Boy chose a couscous salad with sumac pumpkin, coriander and mint dressed with a lemony yoghurt dressing.  The couscous was actually Israeli couscous which are more like pasta balls and are much bigger than regular couscous. It was a fair size for an entrée but wasn’t enough to fill his long legs so we ordered some olives and frites to accompany our meals.

Throughout our evening we found it increasingly difficult to get any waiters’ attention and spotted them on a number of occasions standing around in groups chatting casually amongst themselves. Although our food orders came out of the kitchen quickly, this was not the case with our drinks and ordering each round was painfully slow. This was somewhat worsened as some waiters would clear our empty glasses away without pausing to ask if we wanted another.

"Crème catalane" "desserts" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Perth bars" "Perth restaurants" "Perth food reviews" "Gordon Street Garage" "tromboli" "duende" "hipster" "breakfast" "casual dining""West perth" "coffee roaster" "wine bar"

Crème catalane

After a wait we eventually placed our dessert order for the only gluten free dessert available; crème catalane. This is Spanish variation of crème brûlée. It had a bit of tang to it and was just as creamy as the pannacotta I enjoyed at my breakfast.

After my first glowing visit to Gordon Street Garage I was left feeling a little stumped why they get such a mixed bag of reviews out there.  Now having returned back for dinner it makes more sense.  The food is simple and fresh however the menu is designed to get the food out quick and without alterations. The lack of options for gluten free dishes for dinner service was somewhat disappointing and I would love to see this change in the future along with their slow inattentive service.

Gordon Street Garage

16 Gordon Street, West Perth WA 6005 | 08 9322 8050 | http://www.gsgarage.com.au/
 
Price:              $$$ (Breakfast $12-24, Lunch $15-20, Dinner $17-35)  
Food:               4/5 (love the use of fresh local produce, some more accommodation for  
                                    us intolerants would be greatly appreciated) 
Service:           2/5 (maybe just an off night, but save chitter chatter until the end of your shift)
Ambience:      4/5 (if you love noise and atmosphere this place has an awesome buzz)
Drinks:           4/5 (great wine list, lots of interesting options by the glass)
Total:              14/20

 Gordon St Garage on Urbanspoon

Food For Me, Victoria Park

Posted by  | Categories: Breakfast/Brunch, Burgers & Snags, Coffee, Featured, Perth, Restaurants

We rocked up obliviously late for lunch just as Food For Me was near their closing time hoping to grab a bite to eat.  I still hadn’t twigged that they were about to shut and began to peruse the menu at which point the waiter politely informed me the kitchen was closed.  Not perturbed in any way he kindly smiled and offered to reheat some of the food from the cabinet for us. After apologising profusely for our ignorance we accepted his offer.

"Spinach frittata" "bacon" "feta" "pinenuts" "frittata" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "travel blog" "Breakfast" "brunch" "coffee" "Food For Me, Victoria Park" "Food For Me" "Victoria Park" "Vic Park" "Vic Park Cafe" "Albany Highway" "organic"

Spinach, bacon, feta and pinenut frittata

I selected the spinach frittata with bacon, pine nuts and feta plus a beetroot and spinach salad.  The frittata was light and set firmly without being chewy or unpleasant.  The salad was obviously reaching the end of its life span but seeing as we had rudely barged our way in at the thirteenth hour I figured this to be expected at this time of day.

"Spinach beetroot and feta salad" "beetroot" "salad" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "travel blog" "Breakfast" "brunch" "coffee" "Food For Me, Victoria Park" "Food For Me" "Victoria Park" "Vic Park" "Vic Park Cafe" "Albany Highway" "organic" "vegetarian"

Spinach, beetroot and feta salad

The Boy ordered one of his time old favourites; the beef lasagna. Thick with meaty sauce and gooey cheese the lasagna connoisseur gave it the big thumbs up.  We both vowed to return when both the kitchen and the coffee machine were switched on and see what these guys could do.

"Beef lasagne" "pasta" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "travel blog" "Breakfast" "brunch" "coffee" "Food For Me, Victoria Park" "Food For Me" "Victoria Park" "Vic Park" "Vic Park Cafe" "Albany Highway" "organic"

Beef lasagne

A few weeks later I attended Rob Broadfield‘s sold out seminar on food writing at the Hyatt with Foodie Cravings and Perth Munchkin. Rob gave us some useful tips on how to write captivating restaurant reviews worthy enough to publish in the well-known West Australian Good Food Guide. The day also served to give him an opportunity to scope for new reviewers as each delegate had to submit an 80 word café or bar review. I found it amusing that basically we were all paying for the chance to have an interview!

It started off a stunning morning with clear blue skies and a crisp breeze so I chose to walk into the city.  Halfway through the four-hour seminar I began to regret this decision as my stomach let out some clearly audible grumblings and my head started to spin.  Talking about food wasn’t helping my situation much either. As soon as the seminar was over I met up with the Boy and headed straight to Food For Me, Victoria Park for lunch.

"coffee" "essenza" "short macchiato" "espresso" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "travel blog" "Breakfast" "brunch" "coffee" "Food For Me, Victoria Park" "Food For Me" "Victoria Park" "Vic Park" "Vic Park Cafe" "Albany Highway" "organic" "vegetarian"

A bit more milk than I usually prefer but still delightful

Serving locally roasted Essenza coffee, the beans are ground on demand and you can smell the aroma as soon as you walk into the café. The coffee is quite sweet and creamy without any strong bitterness or bite.

"Zucchini and corn fritters" "corn fritters" "zucchini fritters" "avocado" "mixed greens" "poached free range egg" "egg" "preserved lemon" "dill and chilli dressing" "egg porn" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "travel blog" "Breakfast" "brunch" "coffee" "Food For Me, Victoria Park" "Food For Me" "Victoria Park" "Vic Park" "Vic Park Cafe" "Albany Highway" "organic" "vegetarian"

Zucchini and corn fritters

Although they do serve gluten free toast I wasn’t in the mood for bread and chose the zucchini and corn fritters.  I didn’t expect such a huge meal and with half a brilliant green avocado, tossed salad and two poached eggs I was thankful I did walk earlier in the morning.  All that bridal weight loss was returning back to my hips in a very fast fashion. The fritters were filled brim full of corn, each ear popping with freshness in my mouth.

"Zucchini and corn fritters" "corn fritters" "zucchini fritters" "avocado" "mixed greens" "poached free range egg" "egg" "preserved lemon" "dill and chilli dressing" "egg porn" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "travel blog" "Breakfast" "brunch" "coffee" "Food For Me, Victoria Park" "Food For Me" "Victoria Park" "Vic Park" "Vic Park Cafe" "Albany Highway" "organic" "vegetarian"

The proof is in the heart of the egg

My poached eggs were satisfyingly gloopy and I couldn’t stop myself from grabbing a quick yolk-porn shot.  Heavenly. The preserved lemon, chilli and dill dressing had a sweet almost maple syrupy flavour to it and I had to resist licking the last of it off my empty plate before they were taken away.

"Chicken burger" "chicken tenderloin" "mayonnaise" "relish" "bacon" "cheese" "burger" "dude food" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "travel blog" "Breakfast" "brunch" "coffee" "Food For Me, Victoria Park" "Food For Me" "Victoria Park" "Vic Park" "Vic Park Cafe" "Albany Highway" "organic"

Chicken burger

The Boy nearly ordered himself a steak sandwich before he stopped himself and changed to a chicken burger instead. Juicy tenderloins were buried in the burger among some bacon, cheese and lettuce. Their breads are sourced from Barrett’s Bakery in Nedlands where they hand make all their bread without adding any additives. The burger bun was soft but resilient and despite the constant drip of mayonnaise and relish it retained its shape and body until the very end.

"Chocolate brownie" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "travel blog" "Breakfast" "brunch" "coffee" "Food For Me, Victoria Park" "Food For Me" "Victoria Park" "Vic Park" "Vic Park Cafe" "Albany Highway" "organic" "vegetarian"

Chocolate brownie (gluten free)

When we were up at the counter ordering our meals, our waiter talked up their gluten free brownies claiming them to be outrageously good.  After finishing off the last of my fritters my curiosity got the better of me and I sidled back up to the counter to order one to share.  Rich and moist, the brownie lived up to his hype and was laced with some tart raspberries to balance out the sweetness. There was no crumbliness common to gluten free slices and our spoons fought over the last mouthful.

Breakfast in Vic Park can often be a bit of hit and miss.  Having visited Food For Me on a number of occasions now I can safely say they are on my list of hits. Loads of gluten free options, fresh mostly organic produce and friendly staff they really have got their recipe right.  We will be returning for sure.

Food For Me
877 Albany Highway, East Victoria Park, 6101 | (08) 9472 0333 | http://www.foodforme.com.au/
 
Price:                     $$
Food:                    4/5 (loads of GF options, make sure you try their brownie!)
Service:                4/5 (super positive friendly vibe)
Ambience:          3/5 (try and nail a table outside in the sun) 
Drinks:                  3.5/5 (creamy luscious coffee) 
Total:                     15.5/20
 Food For Me on Urbanspoon

Breakfast at No 4 Blake Street, North Perth

Posted by  | Categories: Bistro, Breakfast/Brunch, Coffee, Featured, French, Perth, Restaurants

The downside of having a destination wedding is that you have to prepare yourself that there will be some of your friends and family that you really want to be there but for whatever reason they will be unable to attend.  The Boy and I understood this fact from the outset and were so incredibly grateful for all that were able to join us whilst remaining totally sympathetic to those who could not.  One of my dearest friends Fran whom I have known since my early University days was one of those guests who unfortunately were unable to come.  She only recently bought her own business and as a result of her dedication, hard work, blood, sweat and tears it was growing steadily at a rewarding rate.  Upon our return to Perth, we were both keen to tally up a lunch date to share our stories and fill her in on my wedding details.

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "North Perth" "Breakfast" "brunch" "coffee" "No 4 Blake Street" "No 4 Blake Street, North Perth" "Degustation" "tom's kitchen" "modern Australian" "french"

A delicious display but alas not for me.

I recently read a mouth-watering review on Foodie Cravings on a new restaurant opened up in North Perth called No 4 Blake Street. As Fran lived north of the River and was pushed for time; I thought it was the perfect half way point to meet up.  Located on a quiet road off Fitzgerald Street this recently opened venue is open for breakfast and lunch all week and dinner from Tuesday through to Saturday. They have a decent range of gluten free options including gluten free bread and are happy to alter dishes to suit food allergies. They have even recently started offering evening degustation.

"Croque Madame" "ham and cheese" "Emmental cheese" "bechamel" "sandwich" "toastie" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "North Perth" "Breakfast" "brunch" "coffee" "No 4 Blake Street" "No 4 Blake Street, North Perth" "Degustation" "tom's kitchen" "modern Australian" "french"

Croque Madame

Fran ordered the Croque-Madame; a classic French snack of a toasted ham and cheese sandwich with a fried egg on top.  Using Emmental Cheese and their house ham with a little béchamel sauce smeared in there these simple but delicious ingredients were made for each other.

"gluten free bread" "gluten free toast" "sautéed mushrooms" "mushrooms" "baby spinach" "feta" "Pedro vinegar" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "North Perth" "Breakfast" "brunch" "coffee" "No 4 Blake Street" "No 4 Blake Street, North Perth" "Degustation" "tom's kitchen" "modern Australian" "french"

Mushrooms on GF toast

I realise that I tend to be a bit of a mushroom addict and do have a bad habit of over ordering them for my breakfast but this time I simply couldn’t resist. Medallions of juicy sautéed mushrooms were piled generously high with baby spinach, feta and Pedro vinegar on no less than three slices of fresh toasted grainy gluten free bread. Now that I’m off the bridal diet I found it so liberating to eat every last morsel on my enormous plate without any guilt that my dress wouldn’t fit me! The mushrooms oozed with flavour and the spinach salad was carefully dressed to maximise taste without being overbearing.

"Chocolate" "Cointreau" "Elderberry" "pear" "truffle" "earl grey" "high tea" "tea" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "North Perth" "Breakfast" "brunch" "coffee" "No 4 Blake Street" "No 4 Blake Street, North Perth" "Degustation" "tom's kitchen" "modern Australian" "french"

Three little dickey birds all in a row…

Despite being quite full, I really wanted to check out more of their food and enquired which of the desserts were gluten free.  Unfortunately I was informed there were none suitable! What a shame, I was so impressed with their ability to cater for me up until this point. Us gluten free peeps love sweet too.  The waiter did feel bad for me and said he would head to the kitchen as see what they could find.  He returned fairly promptly with a selection of three chocolates: Cointreau, Elderberry and Pear.  If this didn’t happen to be my second breakfast for the day I would feel left a little sad on missing out but thankfully these luxurious bites were about all my stomach had room for.

No 4 Blake Street is definitely a place I have to come back and check out again, hopefully next time round there will even be some desserts so we can do their dego!

No 4 Blake Street
4 Blake St North Perth, 6006 WA | (08) 9444 6678 | http://www.no4blakestreet.com.au/
 
Price:                     $$ (Breakfast/Lunch $7-26, Dinner $70: 3 courses, $90: 5 courses, High Tea $42-62)
Food:                    3.5/5 (only had one dish so hard to assess plus there were no GF desserts)
Service:                4.5/5 (friendly, warm and welcoming)
Ambience:          4/5 (surprisingly funky and suave for a suburban joint)
Drinks:                  3.5/5 (I didn’t end up ordering a coffee as I had already had three that morning; another excuse to return)
Total:                     15.5/20
 
 No 4 Blake Street on Urbanspoon

Halo Espresso, South Perth

Posted by  | Categories: Breakfast/Brunch, Coffee, Featured, Perth, Restaurants

After such a magical time away in Thailand for our wedding, coming back to the humdrum reality of house work, cooking and cleaning felt like a kick in the face.  To make matters worse, our maxed out cards and empty bank accounts meant we both had to return promptly back to work and start earning some cash. After a week of living like millionaires at Andara with a maid and a personal chef, the idea of returning to boring home cooked food sounded as tempting as eating my own arm.

The day before we both went back to work we begrudgingly headed off to our local greengrocer Scutti’s for our weekly food shop. It was the first time in nearly three weeks that we had to do such a chore and as we parked the car we were both looked longingly at each other for a solution. The idea of a temporary escape by delaying the shopping and heading over the road to a café for lunch sounded promising.  Shoving my shopping list deep into my handbag we strolled over to Halo Espresso.

"Spinach salad with chicken" "chicken" "pinenuts" "toast" "spinach" "salad" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "South Perth" "angelo Street" "Breakfast" "brunch" "coffee" "Halo Espresso, South Perth" "halo espresso"

Spinach salad with chicken

After all the rich food we ate on our stopover in Singapore my stomach was in dire need of something healthy and light. With this in mind I opted for a spinach salad with chicken served with avocado, sun-dried tomatoes, pine nuts and gluten free bread and the Boy ordered a steak sandwich.  As I handed over a fifty dollar note for our two meals and one coffee I was surprised that it wasn’t enough and rummaged in my bag for some extra change.  I hoped the meals would be worth the reasonably high prices.

"Spinach salad with chicken" "chicken" "pinenuts" "toast" "spinach" "salad" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "South Perth" "angelo Street" "Breakfast" "brunch" "coffee" "Halo Espresso, South Perth" "halo espresso"

Spinach salad with chicken

As we took our seats near the front window I noticed a big A-frame sign out the front saying “Best Coffee in WA”. I have to be honest as there is no way that I have tried every place in WA worth trying to know if this is actually is the best coffee however I can agree that it is extremely good and injected a much needed boost into my downer of a day. Unfortunately Halo’s food does not match up to their wonderful coffee. My spinach salad was dripping in copious amounts of dressing, oil coating each and every glistening spinach leaf and to add to the unctuous burden, my toast tasted like it had been laden thick with butter before it was toasted. The additional of some dry chicken in no way improved the dish either as it was flavourless. My only consolation was all the oil made the overcooked chicken more palatable.

"Steak sandwich" "steak" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "South Perth" "angelo Street" "Breakfast" "brunch" "coffee" "Halo Espresso, South Perth" "halo espresso"

Steak sandwich

The Boy’s steak sandwich was a bit better than my choice however in no way impressed him considering the price. The cheese was half melted and half hard, the steak very thin and dry and his side salad had no dressing at all! Instead of giving us one last hurrah before heading back to work, we were left somewhat unsatisfied and with a lighter wallet than expected. I would probably only go back there again for the coffee.

Halo Espresso
82 Angelo Street, South Perth 6151 WA | (08) 9367 4444 
 
Price:                     $$
Food:                    2/5 (disappointing considering the calibre of the coffee)
Service:                2.5/5 (quick but not very welcoming or friendly)
Ambience:          2/5 (very noisy dining room, we could barely hear each other and it was half full)
Drinks:                  4.5/5 (great coffee)
Total:                     11/20
Halo Espresso on Urbanspoon

Four Brunch Hot Spots in Melbourne

Posted by  | Categories: Breakfast/Brunch, Coffee, Desserts, Featured, Melbourne, Restaurants

I am always a little torn having my homes in a number of places around our vast country. Having lived in Perth for most of my adult life it is obvious that this is the main place I love to call my home. However to add to this, my Mum lives in Adelaide and returning back there to the house I grew up in I get that familiar sensation like I am returning home.  To complicate things further, my Dad has lived in Melbourne with my Step mum for nearly twenty years and in many ways staying with them also feels very homely! I often wonder when we eventually return back to London where the Boy and I lived for several years, would this feel like another home to me? How many places can one call home before it starts to get a bit over the top?

Over the past six months, I have been fortunate enough to have the need to return my “home” in Melbourne several times for my wedding dress fittings at Luci Di Bella. A bride needs sustenance for such endeavours and here are my recent top four Brunch Hot Spots in Melbourne.

Cooper & Milla’s

"Raspberry meringue" "dessert" "desserts" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "travel blog" "Melbourne food blog" "melbourne restaurant reviews" "Melbourne brunch" "Melbourne breakfast" "Melbourne gluten free" "breakfast" "brunch" "cake" "Brunch Hot Spots in Melbourne" "Armadale" "High Street" "Cooper and Milla's" "Cooper & Milla's" "alfresco dining"

Raspberry meringue

After a bit of an emotional experience at the first wedding dress fitting, Mum and I wandered down High Street in Armadale in search of some gluten free friendly fare.  We stumbled upon Cooper and Milla’s and were drawn in by their spectacular window display of treats and salads.

 "Passionfruit creme brulee" "desserts" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "travel blog" "Melbourne food blog" "melbourne restaurant reviews" "Melbourne brunch" "Melbourne breakfast" "Melbourne gluten free" "breakfast" "brunch" "cake" "Armadale" "High Street" "Cooper and Milla's" "Cooper & Milla's" "alfresco dining"

Shop counter deliciousnesses

Like children in a candy store we wandered in all wide-eyed and totally distracted by all the adorable cakes and tarts on the counter. I had to consciously remind myself that I had a wedding waistline to watch and physically forced my eyes away from the many delicious desserts. I shall make sure to return here again to sample some of their dulcet delights.

"Blueberry & lemon cake" "desserts" "carrot cake" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "travel blog" "Melbourne food blog" "melbourne restaurant reviews" "Melbourne brunch" "Melbourne breakfast" "Melbourne gluten free" "breakfast" "brunch" "cake" "Brunch Hot Spots in Melbourne" "Armadale" "High Street" "Cooper and Milla's" "Cooper & Milla's" "alfresco dining"

Blueberry & lemon cakes and more

Thankfully not all their fare is sugar laden and piled high in the window was a stunning looking seared tuna Nicoise salad and once noticing it my attention was easily dragged away from the cakes and onto this seemingly healthy yet vibrantly coloured snack.

"Brunch Hot Spots in Melbourne" "Tuna Nicoise" "salad" "healthy" "seafood" "tuna" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "travel blog" "Melbourne food blog" "melbourne restaurant reviews" "Melbourne brunch" "Melbourne breakfast" "Melbourne gluten free" "breakfast" "brunch" "cake" "Armadale" "High Street" "Cooper and Milla's" "Cooper & Milla's" "alfresco dining"

Tuna Nicoise

My Mum didn’t take much convincing and before long we were both enjoying the sunshine sitting outside at their alfresco dining area feeling proud of ourselves for our dietary choices.

Riverland

The following day on Christmas Eve there was a lot of market shopping to do in preparation for our big day of feasting. Getting up bright and early the Boy and I walked down to the river with my Dad & Stepmum for some hearty breakfast.  Right on the banks of the Yarra River near Federation Square is a gorgeous little spot Riverland.

"Brunch Hot Spots in Melbourne" "dogs" "pooches" "Cocker Spaniel" "American Cocker Spaniel" "cute dogs" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "travel blog" "Melbourne food blog" "melbourne restaurant reviews" "Melbourne brunch" "Melbourne breakfast" "Melbourne gluten free" "breakfast" "brunch" "cake" "Riverland Bar" "Riverland" "federation Wharf" "Federation square" "Melbourne CBD"

The Pooches

My parents are regular locals there and the staff all know their three Cocker Spaniels by name.  As we arrive one of the waitresses brings over a bowl of water for the pooches as Dad places our order to include toast for the dogs.  (I might add that this is not something his diligent veterinarian daughter advocates as good nutrition for his dogs!)

"Brunch Hot Spots in Melbourne" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "travel blog" "Melbourne food blog" "melbourne restaurant reviews" "Melbourne brunch" "Melbourne breakfast" "Melbourne gluten free" "breakfast" "brunch" "cake" "gluten free bread" "poached eggs" "roasted mushrooms" "feta""Riverland Bar" "Riverland" "federation Wharf" "Federation square" "Melbourne CBD"

BYO gluten free bread with poached eggs, roasted mushrooms, feta

Unfortunately they do not stock any gluten free bread so I always come prepared and bring a couple of slices of my own. They have always been happy to toast this for me.  I love their poached eggs with roasted mushrooms topped with a big glob of feta. The mushrooms can be a little oily sometimes however and I occasionally need to blot the oil off with a serviette!

Lindt Chocolate Café

After a full day of last-minute Christmas shopping the Boy and I headed back home which took us up Collins Street and past the Lindt Café.  Now before any of you say anything,  I understand that this café cannot really be classified as a brunch spot but being a ridiculously obsessed Lindt chocolate addict I felt it would be negligent for me to pass this café by.  The interior of the café is initially quite impressive with high ceilings and everything seemingly glittering in gold.  We made our way through to the back of the store into the café and were shown to our seats.  After this we appeared to become invisible for quite some time despite the appearance of adequate staff and minimal customers. I hate that feeling when you try to catch a waiter’s eye and they look right through you like you are not even there.

"Brunch Hot Spots in Melbourne" "Christmas Delice" "macaron" "macarons" "chocolate" "Lindt chocolate cafe" "hot chocolate" "dessert" "Almond cake" "mousse cake" "St Moritz" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "travel blog" "Melbourne food blog" "melbourne restaurant reviews" "Melbourne brunch" "Melbourne breakfast" "Melbourne gluten free" "breakfast" "brunch" "cake" "Lindt chocolate" "melbourne cafes" "melbourne chocolate" "Collins Street" "Melbourne CBD"

THE hot chocolate

As this place is well known for its hot chocolate the Boy simply couldn’t resist.  Piping hot milk served with molten Lindt chocolate on the side; this decadent treat filled the hungry hole in his belly satisfactorily.  Not wanting to eat too much dairy as I tend to get eczema outbreaks, I avoided the milk and satisfied myself by licking the remaining chocolate from his little jug with my finger! Such bad manners!

"Brunch Hot Spots in Melbourne" "Christmas Delice" "macaron" "macarons" "chocolate" "Lindt chocolate cafe" "hot chocolate" "dessert" "Almond cake" "mousse cake" "St Moritz" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "travel blog" "Melbourne food blog" "melbourne restaurant reviews" "Melbourne brunch" "Melbourne breakfast" "Melbourne gluten free" "breakfast" "brunch" "cake" "Lindt chocolate" "melbourne cafes" "melbourne chocolate" "Collins Street" "Melbourne CBD"

St Moritz

After the hot chocolate the Boy protested that he really did not need the St Moritz cake I had strongly encouraged him to order.  Hey, if I can’t enjoy any of the cakes (as they are not gluten free) at least I can live vicariously through his gastronomic experiences! Despite his complaints he still managed to eat his way through the silky layers of alternate dark, milk and white chocolate mousse each separated by a thin layer of almond cake. The cake was topped with ultra-thin squares of Lindt dark chocolate with a generous dusting with cocoa powder.

"Brunch Hot Spots in Melbourne" "Christmas Delice" "macaron" "macarons" "chocolate" "Lindt chocolate cafe" "hot chocolate" "dessert" "Almond cake" "mousse cake" "St Moritz" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "travel blog" "Melbourne food blog" "melbourne restaurant reviews" "Melbourne brunch" "Melbourne breakfast" "Melbourne gluten free" "breakfast" "brunch" "cake" "Lindt chocolate" "melbourne cafes" "melbourne chocolate" "Collins Street" "Melbourne CBD"

Christmas Delice

Now don’t be fooled into thinking I sat there empty handed watching the Boy indulge.  Other than buying some chocolate for the road, my main reason for entering the café was to stop for a “Mac attack”.  The Christmas Delice macaron is seasonally exclusive and is filled with Christmas spices and a white chocolate filling. Although it had a good layering of flavours it was a little lost on texture and lacked the thin outer crisp sensation. It also was an unusually shaped with one side half the size of the other!

"Brunch Hot Spots in Melbourne" "Christmas Delice" "macaron" "macarons" "chocolate" "Lindt chocolate cafe" "hot chocolate" "dessert" "Almond cake" "mousse cake" "St Moritz" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "travel blog" "Melbourne food blog" "melbourne restaurant reviews" "Melbourne brunch" "Melbourne breakfast" "Melbourne gluten free" "breakfast" "brunch" "cake" "Lindt chocolate" "melbourne cafes" "melbourne chocolate" "Collins Street" "Melbourne CBD"

Christmas Delice

The European

After a memorable time on Christmas Day with my family eating and drinking all the excesses imaginable, Boxing Day quickly followed and I realised it was soon time for the Boy and I to jump on a jet plane and head home.  I was torn between the emotions of being sad it was all over whilst excited that the next family celebration would be our wedding day! Despite feeling very hung over and sluggish, we managed to squeeze in a last minute brunch catch up with Mum at The European on Spring Street.

"Brunch Hot Spots in Melbourne" "spanish eggs" "Madrid eggs" "Huevos madrileños" "baked eggs" "black pudding" "chorizo" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "travel blog" "Melbourne food blog" "melbourne restaurant reviews" "Melbourne brunch" "Melbourne breakfast" "Melbourne gluten free" "breakfast" "brunch" "cake" "The European" "Short Macchiato" "coffee" "short macchiato" "Melbourne CBD" "Spring Street" "The European Restaurant"

Short Macchiato

The European is one of my favourite regulars in the Melbourne CBD and this French-Spanish-Italian hybrid is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner seven days a week making it easy to slip in a visit each Melbourne trip. Although they do not have gluten free bread, there are a number of gluten free breakfast options and their menu goes well beyond the standard choices. Their coffee is particularly moreish and after drinking the A to Z of booze the day before I quickly ordered a second macchiato while we waited for our meals.

   "Brunch Hot Spots in Melbourne" "Goat’s cheese omelette" "cheese" "goat cheese" "eggs" "vegetarian" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "travel blog" "Melbourne food blog" "melbourne restaurant reviews" "Melbourne brunch" "Melbourne breakfast" "Melbourne gluten free" "breakfast" "brunch" "cake" "The European" "Short Macchiato" "coffee" "short macchiato" "Melbourne CBD" "Spring Street" "The European Restaurant"

Goat’s cheese omelette

As the three of us sat in the sun in silence I started to the caffeine course through my veins and push my sleepy brain kick into gear and wake up. We hadn’t seen Mum on Christmas Day as she had spent the day with my sister so we had much to catch up on; what we ate, what presents did we received and what memorable good times we all had. I was feeling a little on the queasy side so I ordered the goat’s cheese omelette which had all the light fluffiness my delicate stomach lining needed and helped make me feel human again.

"Brunch Hot Spots in Melbourne" "spanish eggs" "Madrid eggs" "Huevos madrileños" "baked eggs" "black pudding" "chorizo" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "travel blog" "Melbourne food blog" "melbourne restaurant reviews" "Melbourne brunch" "Melbourne breakfast" "Melbourne gluten free" "breakfast" "brunch" "cake" "The European" "Short Macchiato" "coffee" "short macchiato" "Melbourne CBD" "Spring Street" "The European Restaurant"

Huevos madrileños: baked eggs, black pudding, chorizo

The Boy wanted something a little more substantial and enjoyed his “Huevos madrileños”; baked eggs with black pudding and chorizo served with toasted ciabatta. I wish I had room for his choice as it looked amazing. I am in love with Spanish style baked eggs and his oozy gooey eggs didn’t disappoint. True food envy plagued me for most of the day and my only consolation was thanks to my gorging efforts the day before, I doubt I had any room in my tummy for them anyway!

Cooper & Milla’s
1094 High Street, Armadale VIC 3143 | (03) 9500 8127
 
Price:                     $$ ($10-16.50 breakfast)
Food:                    4/5 (I need to get back and try some sweets!)
Service:                3.5/5 (casual, no table service)
Ambience:          3/5 (hive of activity, funky)
Drinks:                  3/5
Total:                     14/20
Cooper & Milla's on Urbanspoon
 
Riverland
Vaults 1-9, Federation Wharf, Melbourne VIC 3000 | (03) 9662 1771 | www.riverlandbar.com
 
Price:                     $$ ($7-20 breakfast)
Food:                    3/5 (not bad, a little heavy on the grease, BYO gluten free bread)
Service:                3.5/5 (relaxed and friendly)
Ambience:          4/5 (sitting by the river watching boats go by…)
Drinks:                  3.5/5
Total:                     14/20
Riverland on Urbanspoon
 
Lindt Chocolat Café
271 Collins Street, Melbourne CBD VIC 3000 | (03) 9667 0900 | www.lindt.com.au
 
Price:                     $$
Food:                    3/5 (it’s Lindt chocolate, it was always going to be amazing, pity about the macaron)
Service:                2/5 (get better service at McDonald’s)
Ambience:          2/5 (surprisingly poor)
Drinks:                  4/5 (get the hot chocolate)
Total:                     11/20
Lindt Chocolat Café on Urbanspoon
 
The European
161 Spring Street, Melbourne CBD VIC 3000 | (03) 9654 0811| www.theeuropean.com.au
 
Price:                     $$ ($8-19 breakfast)
Food:                    4/5 (interesting breakfast options, no gluten free bread)
Service:                4/5 (quick and efficient)
Ambience:          3.5/5 (sit outside for breaky, a bit too dark inside)
Drinks:                  4.5/5 (coffee is the bomb!)
Total:                     15.5/20
The European on Urbanspoon

Gusto Food, South Perth

Posted by  | Categories: Breakfast/Brunch, Coffee, Featured, Perth, Restaurants

With only a few days to go before we fly out for our wedding in Thailand, I was feeling stressed and under the pump.  I had taken the last week off work to finish of all the last-minute things however the more I got done the more I found I still had to do.  Despite being so time-poor I needed some time out and openly welcomed a proposal for a quick catch up over breakfast from a close friend Tracy.  She was soon to be joining us in Thailand and wanted to meet up before we left.

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "South Perth" "Gusto Food, South Perth" "Gusto Food" "angelo Street" "Breakfast" "brunch" "coffee" "caffe Saccaria"

Our usual coffee order!

Last time we saw each other was during another breakfast date at Sayers Sister. Hustling for a car park in Northbridge was such a pain but our meals we enjoyed there were worth it.  This time round to save time I chose somewhere more local that I had heard good things about on Foodie Craving’s blog; Gusto Food, South Perth.

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "South Perth" "Gusto Food, South Perth" "Gusto Food" "angelo Street" "Breakfast" "brunch" "coffee" "caffe Saccaria"

Just the way I like it!

Our coffees were literally being prepared as we were ordering our food and so no sooner had we sat down than they were brought over to our table.  My macchiato was made just how I like it, with just a dash of milk and no more. Gusto uses an imported brand of premium Italian coffee Caffé Saccaria.

Our first ten minutes of conversation centred on my recent wedding planning endeavours and all the enjoyment and stress that come with it. Tracy and I don’t get to catch up very often so it was great fun to share what details I could without spoiling anything for her.

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "South Perth" "Gusto Food, South Perth" "Gusto Food" "angelo Street" "Breakfast" "brunch" "coffee" "caffe Saccaria" "French toast" "bacon" "caramelised bananas" "honeycomb" "dessert" "sweet"

French toast with bacon and caramelised bananas

Being so short of time I was thankful our meals arrived quickly.  I ordered some poached eggs on gluten free toast and Tracy ordered the French toast. To our surprise out came the most massive serve of thick cut French toast piled high with bacon, berries and caramelised bananas.  There were even chunks of honeycomb perched on top.  What incredible value. There was no way I could see Trace getting through it all. She informed me the only complaint she had with her dish was the bacon was too fatty, but otherwise worth the indulgence!

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "South Perth" "Gusto Food, South Perth" "Gusto Food" "angelo Street" "Breakfast" "brunch" "coffee" "caffe Saccaria" "Poached eggs" "gluten free toast" "spinach" "roasted tomato"

Poached eggs on gluten free toast with spinach and roasted tomato

I had already been up for a several hours and had my first breakfast, so I figured being a bride I had best limit the size of my second breakfast of the day! In my hurry and fluster I forgot to get the all-important egg goo shot for those fans out there but suffice to say one of my eggs got the tick of approval, my other egg was soft but goo-less.

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "South Perth" "Gusto Food, South Perth" "Gusto Food" "angelo Street" "Breakfast" "brunch" "coffee" "caffe Saccaria" "Poached eggs" "gluten free toast" "spinach" "roasted tomato"

The juiciest tomato

My side serve of roasted tomato and spinach really stole the show with this meal.  The spinach was slippery soft and immersed in very naughty amounts of melted butter. The tomato had been roasted with balsamic sweetness and served with the cutest little skewer.  If both my eggs were poached to heavenly I would be tempted to say this was one of the better breakfasts I have had in a long time. I will have to return again before making my final judgement.

Gusto Food
86 Angelo Street, South Perth WA 6151 | (08) 9367 3512 | Facebook
 
Price:                     $$ ($15-20 per meal)
Food:                    3.5/5 (lost marks for the fatty bacon and firm egg)
Service:                4.5/5 (so quick and attentive despite being reasonably busy)
Ambience:          3.5/5 (cute café vibe)
Drinks:                  4/5 (creamy, not too bitter and just the right temperature)
Total:                     15.5/20

 Gusto Food on Urbanspoon

Brunch with Ma at The Store, North Adelaide

Posted by  | Categories: Adelaide, Breakfast/Brunch, Coffee, Featured, Restaurants, Travel

Adelaide holds a close place to my heart.  I spent much of my impressionable teenage years there and much of that helped to culture the type of person I am today.  The real joy of returning to Adelaide however is largely because it is the home town of my dearest Mother.  I am a fiercely independent person much to the annoyance of those close to me; but I cannot deny that it would make my life so much better if I was able to spend more time with my Ma.  She is my best friend, my confidant, my comforter and my inspiration.  She is one of the best cooks, has a gifted touch in the garden and can always make me laugh until I cry.  I love her so much!

"kitchen" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "breakfast" "brunch" "adelaide restaurant reviews" "brunch adelaide" "breakfast adelaide" "gluten free adelaide" "melbourne street" "North Adelaide" "Adeladie food blog"

Kitchen side at The Store

During my whirlwind trip over to Adelaide in November for Eat Drink Blog 3 Mum and I managed to squeeze in a quick catch up for breakfast at The Store on Melbourne Street, North Adelaide. She already checked that this place had a number of gluten free options available and was keen to revel in some wedding chit-chat.  She was still on the hunt for her outfit for the big day and wanted to check out a cute boutique a few doors down from The Store meaning we could kill two birds with one stone.

"Poached free range eggs" "eggs" "gluten free toast" "mushrooms" "roasted tomato" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "breakfast" "brunch" "adelaide restaurant reviews" "brunch adelaide" "breakfast adelaide" "gluten free adelaide" "melbourne street" "North Adelaide" "Adelaide food blog"

Poached free range eggs on gluten free toast

Theoretically with the grotesque amount of food I had eaten at the Eat Drink Blog, one would think I would no longer be hungry.  But I always find overindulgence has a way of stretching my stomach capacity thus allowing me to continue spiralling into the depths of excess. I was craving some poached egg action and ordered myself some along with their gluten free toast, roasted tomato and mushrooms.

"Poached free range eggs" "eggs" "gluten free toast" "mushrooms" "roasted tomato" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "breakfast" "brunch" "adelaide restaurant reviews" "brunch adelaide" "breakfast adelaide" "gluten free adelaide" "melbourne street" "North Adelaide" "Adelaide food blog"

Poached free range eggs on gluten free toast

A big pile of rich earthy mushrooms tumbled across my plate next to some herbed roasted tomatoes and two softly poached eggs.  A quick pierce with a knife into my egg’s internals confirmed success as their yellow innards billowed out onto my gluten free toast.

Having also eaten a big meal the night before Mum opted for something very light ordering the fruit salad with the vanilla yoghurt on the side. Being used to the small serves and high prices of Perth I thought this was good value but having not eaten out much in Adelaide recently I have nothing but my hometown to compare with.  The fruit was as fresh as summer leaving Mum with a small amount of room to fit in some sweets to share!

"fruit salad" "salad" "vegetarian" "raw" "grapes" "watermelon" "rockmelon" "strawberry" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "breakfast" "brunch" "adelaide restaurant reviews" "brunch adelaide" "breakfast adelaide" "gluten free adelaide" "melbourne street" "North Adelaide" "Adelaide food blog"

Fruit salad

I skipped over to the counter to find out what gluten free cakes were available.  My choices included an orange almond cake (the bog standard) and a heavy-looking chocolate mud cake.  I am growing quite weary of the orange almond option and knew my Mum would never turn down chocolate.  I definitely inherited my chocolate addiction gene from her.

"Flourless chocolate mud cake" "chocolate cake" "gluten free cake" "mud cake" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "breakfast" "brunch" "adelaide restaurant reviews" "brunch adelaide" "breakfast adelaide" "gluten free adelaide" "melbourne street" "North Adelaide" "Adelaide food blog"

Flourless chocolate mud cake

Within minutes the two of us devoured our succulent treat and hand in hand headed off down Melbourne Street in search of an outfit worthy of the mother-of-the-bride. Alas we were in no luck this time but at least I got to share one of those precious moments with my Mum that many take for granted.

The Store
157 Melbourne Street, North Adelaide SA 5006 | (08) 8361 6999 | www.thestore.com.au
 
Price:                     $$ ($7-18 Breakfast, $7-18 Entrée, $19-29 Mains)
Food:                    3/5 (simple, fresh food using local ingredients sourced from Adelaide Central markets)
Service:                4/5 (unable to not notice beaming smiles and happy vibe amongst staff)
Ambience:          3/5 (reminds me of the décor in Dome cafes in Perth)
Drinks:                  3/5 (their own blend of coffee from a local South Australian company called Coffee World, it was creamy and light in flavour)
Total:                     13/20
 

The Store on Urbanspoon

The Beaufort Street Merchant, Highgate

Posted by  | Categories: Breakfast/Brunch, Coffee, European, Featured, Perth, Restaurants

A wonderful part of being a food blogger is discovering and connecting with other food blogs.  The downside of this is that it is a time consuming business and on top of running a business, working full-time and maintaining my own blog; it is sometimes an uphill battle finding the time to read all posts from those I have grown to love and enjoy. Consequently I find myself grouping favourite blogs into the “must reads”, “read when you have time” and “visit occasionally” categories.

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Brunch" "breakfast" "beaufort street" "highgate" "Beaufort Street Merchant, Highgate" "Beaufort Street Merchant" "mt Lawley" "mount lawley" "Chew town" "eggs"

Persian Delight Jelly by Chew Town (photo courtesy of Chew Town)

Chew Town is definitely in the first category for me.  Not being excessively prolific in her posts, she posts often enough to support my interest without making it impossible for me to stay up to date. Her photography is breathtaking and she deservedly won 2nd prize for the photography awards at the Eat Drink Blog conference last year. But it’s not just her blog that is awesome.  In sharing a number of common interests we created a foundation for the pen-pal styled friendship common to the blogging community which was finally made a reality thanks to the magic that was Eat Drink Blog 2012.

"Chorizo" "spanish omelette" "cheese" "onion" "gluten free toast" "eggs" "rocket" "Manchego" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Brunch" "breakfast" "beaufort street" "highgate" "Beaufort Street Merchant, Highgate" "Beaufort Street Merchant" "mt Lawley" "mount lawley" "Chew town" "eggs"

Chorizo & Manchego

Originally from Perth, Amanda returned to the West for the silly season and thus we were determined to catch up despite my insane roster placing me on a run of 11 out of 12 days straight.  The only time we could tally up was the morning of New Year’s Eve and we met at The Beaufort Street Merchant for some brunch. The Boy was sweet enough to drop me off and so bidding him farewell I said I’d meet him back at the same spot in an hour and a half.

"Chorizo" "spanish omelette" "cheese" "onion" "gluten free toast" "eggs" "rocket" "Manchego" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Brunch" "breakfast" "beaufort street" "highgate" "Beaufort Street Merchant, Highgate" "Beaufort Street Merchant" "mt Lawley" "mount lawley" "Chew town" "eggs"

Chorizo & Manchego

I ordered the Chorizo and Manchego Spanish omelette. Foolish me, in my excitement and chatter I forgot to request no onion and it was a predominate ingredient. I still managed to successful pick the onion out and enjoy my meal. My serving size was absolutely enormous and would have easily fed two people even without the onions! Topped with a fresh crisp rocket salad and thick syrupy balsamic dressing this dish was quite an impressive sight. The toasted gluten free bread was spongy and light, with that springy resilience normal toast eaters take for granted.

"bagel" "scrambled eggs" "smoked trout" "seafood" "fish" buttered leeks" "leeks" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Brunch" "breakfast" "beaufort street" "highgate" "Beaufort Street Merchant, Highgate" "Beaufort Street Merchant" "mt Lawley" "mount lawley" "Chew town" "eggs"

Toasted bagel

Amanda ordered the toasted bagel which was served with hot smoked trout, slippery scrambled eggs and buttered leeks. Again the serving size was huge and all my hopes for getting her to help finish my own giant sized meal were squashed as she had trouble finishing her own.

Now those that know me well can appreciate that I can talk. Well, suffice to say Amanda gives me a run for my money. In what felt like half an hour, no less than two and half hours passed us by during which I had failed to observe 5 missed calls from the Boy who meanwhile was waiting in the heat out in the car for me. Eeeek. Am I the worst fiancé ever? After a number of failed attempts at contacting me, he decided to abandon ship and strolled up to the Queens where I found him enjoying a pint of beer under the water misters. Sheepishly guilty I hurried off to the bar to order the poor hungry man some food and more beer. I didn’t get a chance to stroll through the store at the back of The Beaufort Street Merchant and will be sure to return with an empty stomach and more time in the near future.

The Beaufort Street Merchant
 
488 Beaufort Street, Highgate WA 6003 | (08) 9328 6299 | http://www.beaufortmerchant.com/
 
Price:                     $$                           (Breakfast $15-22)
Food:                    4/5 (interesting options for breaky, large serves, fresh produce)
Service:                2.5/5 (slow with taking drinks orders and with delivery of food)
Ambience:          3.5/5 (great vibe, noisy)
Drinks:                  4/5 (coffee strong and not too bitter)
Total:                     14/20

 The Beaufort Street Merchant on Urbanspoon

A last minute bestie binge at Harvest Espresso Victoria Park

Posted by  | Categories: Breakfast/Brunch, Coffee, Featured, Perth, Restaurants

I am quite an unconventional bride.  At the time we got engaged; the Boy and I had already been together for over ten years and bought both a house and a business. It’s not that either of us is against marriage, it just wasn’t a priority for us at the time.  After getting engaged I have found the whole process of planning for a wedding very gradual as I am not one of those girls that have all the details of their big day planned out in their heads before their respective other has even popped the question.

It was the day my Bestie was to fly out to Vietnam for three weeks to finish her yoga teacher training course and we were both feeling the guilt of neglecting our friendship.  Not because either of us meant to avoid each other by any means, we just had so much going on individually in our own lives that time got the better of us and before we knew it; her departure day had arrived.

"Coffee" "5 senses coffee" "short macchiato" "cafe latte" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Harvest Espresso Victoria Park" "Victoria Park" "cafe" "brunch" "breakfast" "organic" "Vic Park" "albany Highway" "food sponge"

Creamy deliciousness. I didn’t like the wooden spoons though.

Luck was on our side as I had the morning off work and she didn’t fly out until the afternoon. I arrived at her house bright and early with the aim to take her out for breakfast as a farewell present, a Christmas present and a belated birthday present all rolled into one.  To minimize our travel time and thus maximize our time together I headed to the new café Harvest Espresso opened up on Albany Highway only a short walk from our house.

"Bakery" "cakes" "desserts" "muffins" "tarts" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Harvest Espresso Victoria Park" "Victoria Park" "cafe" "brunch" "breakfast" "organic" "Vic Park" "albany Highway" "food sponge"

The morning’s freshly baked treats

The small café has a very welcoming feel to it and you almost feel like you are entering someone’s rustic country kitchen with lots of natural light flooding in.  We could feel the energy and excitement from the staff that often accompanies a new business venture.

"Coffee" "5 senses coffee" "short macchiato" "cafe latte" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Harvest Espresso Victoria Park" "Victoria Park" "cafe" "brunch" "breakfast" "organic" "Vic Park" "albany Highway" "food sponge"

My mac was gone a in few seconds flat!

The coffee served is Five Senses and the barista knows how to brew.  Both our short macchiato and soy latte were served at the perfect temperature and if I hadn’t already had a double shot of my Nespresso at home I could have easily had another.  My Bestie on the other hand didn’t hold back on seconds.

"Poached eggs" "mushrooms" "wilted spinach" "gluten free bread" "zehnder bread" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Harvest Espresso Victoria Park" "Victoria Park" "cafe" "brunch" "breakfast" "organic" "Vic Park" "albany Highway" "food sponge"

Poached eggs, mushrooms and wilted spinach

I ordered the poached eggs on gluten free toast paired with some wilted spinach and mushrooms.  A little unimaginative I guess but I was really in the mood for some poached egg molten goo action. I truly tend to find myself defining a good breakfast by the chef’s ability to poach an egg having failed at this miserably a number of times at home myself.

"Poached eggs" "mushrooms" "wilted spinach" "gluten free bread" "zehnder bread" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Harvest Espresso Victoria Park" "Victoria Park" "cafe" "brunch" "breakfast" "organic" "Vic Park" "albany Highway" "food sponge"

The proof is in the goo. Tell me when you get sick of these shots!

My eggs did not disappoint.  As I gently sliced into the soft egg white, out ruptured the yolk like a burst of golden sunshine. In a flurry I grabbed for Gordon, my SLR camera to capture that lovely moment that never fails to excite me.   I cannot help but fall in love with the obligatory goo shot (sorry for those that tire of my poached egg obsession).

"baked eggs" "Harvest Spanish Baked egg" "chorizo" "cabbage" "tomato" "cannellini beans" "paprika" "Zehnder bread" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Harvest Espresso Victoria Park" "Victoria Park" "cafe" "brunch" "breakfast" "organic" "Vic Park" "albany Highway" "food sponge"

Harvest Spanish Baked egg

After seeing some mouth-watering photos of the Harvest Spanish baked egg on their Facebook page; I persuaded the Bestie to give them a try. Served in a ceramic baking dish with chorizo, cabbage, tomatoes, cannellini beans and a sprinkling of paprika we were told this was their most popular dish.  We order an extra egg to be cracked in there for good measure.  After initially casting envious eye on the state of my eggs to her delight she was met with a similar experience of her own.  She happily mopped up all the flavoursome sauce mixed with runny egg with a big grin of satisfaction on her face.

We were determined to “push the boat out” and make this breakfast last for a long as we possibly could so ordering a second course was a must.  Although we have spent months apart before, the idea of spending three weeks separated from each other this close to my wedding wasn’t exactly best case scenario but unfortunately unavoidable.

"Pistachio friand" "desserts" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Harvest Espresso Victoria Park" "Victoria Park" "cafe" "brunch" "breakfast" "organic" "Vic Park" "albany Highway" "food sponge"

Pistachio friand

There was a lovely collection of home baked single serve tarts and muffins beautifully displayed near the counter.  My only option for a gluten free choice was the cutest and nearly pointlessly small sized pistachio friand.  If I wasn’t so stuffed with everything I had eaten so far I may have been a little disappointed. Or maybe I would have just had two.  But for this occasion the single mouthful was just right. Perhaps in the future they plan to have some more adult sized gluten free desserts?

"Lemon curd tart" "desserts" "tart" "lemon curd" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Harvest Espresso Victoria Park" "Victoria Park" "cafe" "brunch" "breakfast" "organic" "Vic Park" "albany Highway" "food sponge"

Lemon curd tart

Not entirely bound by the restrictions of gluten free diet the Bestie was easily coerced into ordering a lemon curd tart. She initially planned on just scooping out the curd and leaving the pastry base but after a couple of zesty mouthfuls she realised that the pasty was an essential part.  She agonised over the right words to describe her dish and ended on the conclusion that it was a hit regardless of how you described it.

Adequately fuelled for her long trip, we drove to the International Airport singing and laughing the whole way.  She has some exciting times ahead and I am so happy for her.

A bientôt ma chérie! Good luck! xxxxx

Harvest Espresso
629 Albany Highway, Victoria Park 6100 | 0416 397 088 | Facebook
 
Price:                     $$ ($9-20/meal, Cash only)
Food:                    4.5/5 (eggs are amazing, need more GF sweet treats!)
Service:                4.5/5 (super friendly positive vibe, proud of their café and the food)
Ambience:           4/5 (light, airy and homely)
Drinks:                  5/5 (5 Senses coffee. What can I say!?)
Total:                     18/20
 

Harvest Espresso on Urbanspoon

Sayers Sister, Northbridge

Posted by  | Categories: Breakfast/Brunch, Coffee, Featured, Modern Australian, Perth, Restaurants

I have worked at the same practice for nearly ten years. It has been both an unavoidable yet enjoyable experience to form strong bonds with some of my team members over this period of time. Despite wishing that all my good staff would stay with me forever, I respect that people’s lives change and they move on.  When a true friendship is formed in addition to a professional relationship it actually ceases to become that important that you remain working together as you will always stay in touch with each other.

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Sayers sister" "sayers" "leederville" "northbridge" "cafe" "brunch" "breakfast" "organic"

Bright, airy with communal tables

It was sad to lose Tracy from our highly talented team of vet nurses, but dealing with other people’s naughty animals can be emotionally trying work and like many others she eventually got fed up with her career choice. Tracy and I share a lot in common: we love our food and wine, have similar alternative music tastes and appreciate the finer things in life. After a few months of settling into her new job we realised we must make more effort to catch up socially and organised a brunch outing sans children and men.

"frittata" "egg" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Sayers sister" "sayers" "leederville" "northbridge" "cafe" "brunch" "breakfast" "organic"

Frittata freshly made

Sayers Sister is the new venture by Mark and Steph Sayers in the leafy suburban part of Northbridge.  The original café Sayers Food in Leederville has been open since 2006 and continues to fill up with hordes of hungry people every morning.  It appears that Sayers Sister is following in her footsteps and similarly shares in such popularity. To my relief Tracy managed to score us table only minutes before the morning rush began.  As we sat and sipped our coffees, we watched people eagerly queuing out the door and down the street desperate for a table.

"Scrambled eggs" "citrus salmon gravlax" "Persian feta" "smoked salmon" "fish" "gluten free toast" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Sayers sister" "sayers" "leederville" "northbridge" "cafe" "brunch" "breakfast" "organic"

Scrambled eggs, citrus salmon gravlax, Persian feta & gluten free toast

As many of my dear readers may know, I have an infatuation with poached eggs. I truly believe one of the simplest and most satisfying things in life is that burst of molten sunshine when you gently cut into them.  So to prove to myself I’m not entirely predictable, I decided to order the scrambled eggs.  Folds of foamy eggs flopped over the plump gluten free toast and were draped generously with citrus salmon gravlax.  I gasped at the size of my dish; this was one serious looking breakfast! The eggs literally dissolved in my mouth however I didn’t enjoy my gluten free toast as much as last time.  It was slightly under-toasted leaving a slight doughy aftertaste.

"Buttermilk pancakes" "blueberry compote" "dessert" "lemon posset" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Sayers sister" "sayers" "leederville" "northbridge" "cafe" "brunch" "breakfast" "organic"

Buttermilk pancakes, blueberry compote & lemon posset

Tracy chose the buttermilk pancakes with blueberry compote and lemon posset.  Her serving size was not for the light hearted either and you can be rest assured that the men in your life will not walk away from this place hungry.  The lemon posset was set like custard and so delicately fragrant.  With Tracy’s encouragement, I couldn’t resist a little taste.  Imagine creamy lemon butter crossed with a soft gooey pudding. It was totally divine.

Sayers Sister sure does give her sibling a run for her money.  The ambiance is much brighter, lighter and has more energy and as seen by the lengthening queue as we left it is hitting the spot for many punters.  I thought the execution of the food could have been slightly improved; toast is not a hard thing to make however this was made up for by the use of extremely fresh ingredients, an interesting menu and very good coffee.

Sayers Sister
236 Lake St, Northbridge WA 6000 | (08) 9227 7506 | Facebook
 
Price:                     $ ($11-22 for breakfast meals)   
Food:                    4/5 (great menu choices, huge meals)
Service:                4/5 (similar vibrancy and warmth as at Sayers)
Ambience:           4/5 (fresh flowers, communal tables, bright, clean open kitchen)
Drinks:                  4.5/5 (5 senses coffee…winning)
Total:                     16.5/20

Sayers Sister  on Urbanspoon

Sayers Food, Leederville

Posted by  | Categories: Breakfast/Brunch, Coffee, Perth, Restaurants

Dispersed throughout my eleven year friendship with my Bestie there has been prolonged times of separation where we have lived in different cities, states and even on different continents.  In true testament to our strong connection to each other, distance has only ever served to make the heart grow fonder.  In the past when our times together were limited, our catch ups would often tend toward the excesses and we both have a number of scars and hilarious but foggy memories to remind us.

In more recent times, we are lucky enough to finally both be settled down in the same city.  No longer do we have to schedule our fun times to those infrequent occasions when our paths cross as we only live a short drive away from each other. Impromptu brunches and sleep overs can now be a regular occurrence. After an exciting morning a few weeks ago at Elixir Coffee, we made last minute plans to meet up for brunch before work.

I have had a bit of an emotional week where I have had to make some firm decisions on where I am going to draw my line in the sand with recent family issues.  These things always seem to raise their head at weddings. What they say is right: weddings really do bring out the best AND worst in people! My thoughts progressed to a little nostalgia for my Mum’s last visit to Perth where we ate and drank our way around this wonderful city.  One of our many eating stops was Sayers in Leederville, so I figured returning there may help re-live some of those happier times. Better still I would be accompanied by the one person in my life that is always guaranteed to make me laugh.

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Sayers Food, Leederville" "Sayers Food" "Leederville" "Breakfast" "Brunch" "Five Senses coffee" "Newcastle Street"

Five Senses special Sayers brew

I arrived about ten minutes prior to my Bestie so I ordered a short macchiato and sat back to soak in the atmosphere.  I became increasingly overwhelmed with indecision on the menu because everything sounded so delicious! Sayers serve their own special blend of Five Senses coffee.  It contains a mix of Brazilian and Balinese beans both sourced from fair trade plantations.  The coffee has a very smooth and creamy flavour yet still retained enough kick to wake me up out of my hazy thoughts just in time for the Bestie’s arrival.

"Slow roasted mushrooms" "crumbled feta" "poached egg" "truffle rocket" "gluten free toast" "vegetarian" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Sayers Food, Leederville" "Sayers Food" "Leederville" "Breakfast" "Brunch" "Five Senses coffee" "Newcastle Street"

Slow roasted mushrooms, crumbled feta, poached egg, truffle rocket, toasted GF bread

I ended up deciding on the slow roasted mushrooms with crumbled feta, truffled rocket and a poached egg on gluten free toast. For those who must endure the rollercoaster ride of hits and misses with gluten free bread, you will understand how exciting it is to firstly discover a venue actually has gluten free bread, but then even better still that it is good!

"Slow roasted mushrooms" "crumbled feta" "poached egg" "truffle rocket" "gluten free toast" "vegetarian" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Sayers Food, Leederville" "Sayers Food" "Leederville" "Breakfast" "Brunch" "Five Senses coffee" "Newcastle Street"

The essential goo shot!

This bread had texture resembling a freshly baked crumpet and was fluffy, light and slightly sweet.  Confronted with a mound of food, I initially decided it wise not to eat it all, especially not all the bread. However once again my stomach won the battle; good gluten free bread doesn’t come around often and I have to make the most of such moments!

"Porridge" "poached pear" "oats" "fruit" "blackberry compote" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Sayers Food, Leederville" "Sayers Food" "Leederville" "Breakfast" "Brunch" "Five Senses coffee" "Newcastle Street"

Porridge with poached pear and blackberry compote

The Bestie has been a long-time fan of her oats so it was certainly no surprise as she ordered the porridge with poached pear and blackberry compote.  It was served with a dainty little pint size milk bottle filled with fresh locally sourced milk. The small little spoon of honey gave her meal just the right level of sweetness she wanted.  She commented that the pear was poached just to the point of melting in the mouth and not a moment prior.

"Flourless chocolate cake" "chocolate" "ganache" "cream" "dessert" "cake" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Sayers Food, Leederville" "Sayers Food" "Leederville" "Breakfast" "Brunch" "Five Senses coffee" "Newcastle Street"

Flourless chocolate cake

We honestly had no room for sweets but we both just wanted to remain in our blissful states for a little longer so we ordered a piece of flourless chocolate cake to share.  We certainly were not prepared for the enormous wedge of nutty rich goodness that appeared in front of us only moments later.  It had been warmed allowing the decadent ganache to drizzle randomly down the sides onto the plate.  It was absolute heaven.  Exploding at the seams this was a day that our eyes really were bigger than our stomachs. We were unable to finish it not because it wasn’t good, but because we were too insanely full.  Better luck next time I say!

Sayers
224 Carr Place, Leederville 6007 | (08) 9227 0429 | www.sayersfood.com.au
 
Price:                     $$ (Breakfast $13-22, Lunch $17-27)
Food:                    4.5/5 (excellent gluten free bread, more than the usual breakfast items on offer)
Service:                4/5 (funky, friendly and fast)
Ambience:            3.5/5 (buzzing and busy, would have been cosier with a table inside)
Drinks:                  4.5/5 (Five Senses sure to please coffee connoisseurs)
Total:                     16.5/20

Sayers on Urbanspoon

Planning our Wedding Invitations at Elixir Coffee, Nedlands

Posted by  | Categories: Breakfast/Brunch, Coffee, Perth, Restaurants, Wedding

I like to be organised.  Being surrounded by a world of order gives me a great feeling of peace and tranquillity.  To avoid any confusion or lack of clarity for our wedding guests I ensured to keep them well-informed. Save the Date Cards were mailed out a year in advance and the Boy and I designed a detailed wedding website that is packed full of information about Phuket, Kamala and our chosen resort Andara.

This is not to say that a formal wedding invitation will be overlooked. In a similar vein to my early wedding dress shopping days, I found out that I know very little about such matters and was relieved to be invited to a Wedding Upmarket Expo by my friend Tara.  Tara is an expert in all things wedding and quickly steered me on the right track helping me obtain the beginning of a vision of what I would like. We came upon a stall for Annie P Paperie. I have driven past their store in Nedlands numerous times and was always curious as to their individual style.  We flipped through a few of their portfolios and my curiosity heightened to keen interest.

I made plans to meet the Bestie out at Elixir Coffee one Monday morning to fuel our creativity with caffeine before heading to Annie P’s to start the exciting process of invitation design. Elixir Coffee call themselves coffee specialists and they certainly do take their coffee very seriously.  They source single origin unroasted beans direct from traders to promote fair trade and to ensure they only buy beans that are in season and fresh. All beans are roasted on site at Elixir.

"El Salvador coffee" "Finca La Fany" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Elixir Coffee, Nedlands" "Elixir Coffee Specialists" "Elixir Coffee" "Nedlands" "fair trade coffee" "Annie P Paperie" "wedding invitation" "wedding" "breakfast" "cake"

El Salvador coffee “Finca La Fany” (left) and the house blend

I chose the El Salvador coffee “Finca La Fany” served as my usual short macchiato; it was quite sweet and nearly honey-like in flavour with hints of citrus.  The Bestie chose one of the house blends which consisted of three beans:  El Salvador “Talapo”, El Salvador “Miravalle” and Guatemala “Santa Clara Antigua” which she had served as her usual latte.  We ended up both going back for seconds.  And thirds. No wonder I felt so hyped for the rest of the day!

"Pollastrami sardines" "gluten free toast" "Abhi" "fennel" "caper" "fish" "sardines" "seafood" "fried egg" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Elixir Coffee, Nedlands" "Elixir Coffee Specialists" "Elixir Coffee" "Nedlands" "fair trade coffee" "Annie P Paperie" "wedding invitation" "wedding" "breakfast" "cake"

Pollastrini sardines on gluten free toast with added fried egg

For a bite to eat I ordered the Pollastrini sardines on toast. It was served with some fresh fennel, capers, tomato and parsley.  I requested a fried egg on top which I was told I could have “only this once”.  I figured they must get very busy and don’t do any menu alterations normally. Pollastrini sardines are not like your standard supermarket variety.  They may cost $7 a can at Scutti our local green grocers, but you definitely get what you pay for.  There is no overpowering fishy odour and the meat is chunky.  Cantina 663 often has them on their menu. The thinly sliced fennel was wonderfully crunchy and the addition of the egg gave some gooeyness to tie it all together.

"Granola clusters" "berries" "yoghurt" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Elixir Coffee, Nedlands" "Elixir Coffee Specialists" "Elixir Coffee" "Nedlands" "fair trade coffee" "Annie P Paperie" "wedding invitation" "wedding" "breakfast" "cake"

Granola clusters

The Bestie chose the house made granola clusters with berries and yoghurt.  Initially she was a little disappointed in the small number of clusters however once she started eating she could not stop raving about how fabulous it was.  She was amazed at the juicy bursts of tart flavour and was thankful the only sweetness was natural.

"Soursop tea" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Elixir Coffee, Nedlands" "Elixir Coffee Specialists" "Elixir Coffee" "Nedlands" "fair trade coffee" "Annie P Paperie" "wedding invitation" "wedding" "breakfast" "cake"

Soursop tea and cake

At this point we had overdosed on coffee and needed something a little more refreshing to the palate before we headed over to Annie P’s.  The Bestie chose a pot of soursop tea for us to share with a slice of flourless orange cake.  The tea wasn’t sour at all and had a tropical fruit flavour a bit like a combination of pineapple and pear. It was immensely revitalising and just what we needed.  The flourless orange cake was fairly standard; reliably delicious but certainly nothing out of the ordinary.

"Flourless orange cake" "dessert" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Elixir Coffee, Nedlands" "Elixir Coffee Specialists" "Elixir Coffee" "Nedlands" "fair trade coffee" "Annie P Paperie" "wedding invitation" "wedding" "breakfast" "cake"

Flourless orange cake

Excited albeit a tad jittery we left with full tummies guided by Google maps in the direction of the Paperie.  It was a gorgeously balmy day and so we both decided to walk but after about 15 minutes of walking I started to get the feeling we were heading in the wrong direction.  I couldn’t understand how Google could be wrong.  Google couldn’t be wrong could they?!

After a few more minutes as we walked past each landmark my feeling grew much stronger until we eventually agreed we were on the wrong track.  By this point in time we were running extremely late for our appointment with the graphic designer so we turned around and sprinted for the car! No more walking in the sunshine! Hot and sweaty we both piled into our cars and I plugged the address into my Tom Tom which confirmed my suspicions that Google was totally wrong! A quick few minutes hurtling through the back streets of Nedlands and we arrived all flustered but pumped for action!

Elixir Coffee
45a/145 Stirling Highway, Nedlands 6009 | (08) 9389 9333 | www.elixircoffeespecialists.com
 
Price:                     $ Under $15 /meal, cash only, free WIFI               
Food:                    3/5 (small selection of dishes, gluten free bread available)
Service:                3/5 (quick and efficient but don’t ask for alterations!)
Ambience:           3/5 (alfresco, café or living room style areas to choose from)
Drinks:                   5/5 (the coffee is out of this world – I will be back if anything just for the coffee)
Total:                     14/20

Elixir Coffee on Urbanspoon

Mrs S Cafe, Maylands

Posted by  | Categories: Breakfast/Brunch, Coffee, Featured, Perth, Restaurants

The first of September marked the last six months leading up to our wedding.  Although I realise I am not fat by any stretch of the imagination, just like most women I want to maximise my slim sexy hotness for my wedding day!  My problem is that one of my biggest weaknesses is gluttony. As a consequence I have made a promise to myself that once I hit this six month marker, I am genuinely going to try to be more contained in my eating habits. Well … at least save the binges for days that I have managed to pelt out significant amounts of sweaty exercise. After all, isn’t weight loss just a mathematic equation of calories?

"Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Mrs S Cafe, Maylands" "Maylands" "Whatley Crescent" "Mrs S Cafe" "Mrs S" "breakfast" "Brunch" "Coffee" "crema coffee" "blackboard" "menu"

So cute

So after running five kilometres to get to the gym followed by a workout, I felt like I had earned the right to go out for breakfast.  After previously missing out on my Mrs S fix due to their temporary closure last month, it was logical they would be our choice.  I can’t complain about them taking a little break because if they hadn’t we would have never stumbled upon Sherbet Bake Shop which has now been added to my favourite breakfast stops!

"Golden books" "menu" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Mrs S Cafe, Maylands" "Maylands" "Whatley Crescent" "Mrs S Cafe" "Mrs S" "breakfast" "Brunch" "Coffee" "crema coffee"

Remember Little Golden Books? The menus are inside original copies!

Mrs S’s eclectic décor is almost a bit Freo-esque in nature. With a big communal table running down the centre of the dining room, it feels more like someone’s homely kitchen than a cafe. There is even some oven mitts and other kitchen essentials hanging off the walls.

"short macchiato" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Mrs S Cafe, Maylands" "Maylands" "Whatley Crescent" "Mrs S Cafe" "Mrs S" "breakfast" "Brunch" "Coffee" "crema coffee"

Love in a cup

Although I was really in the mood for some eggs, we had arrived just a touch too late and they have moved onto serving their lunch menu. I didn’t waste any time and ordered my short mac; Mrs S serve Crema coffee.  It is very smooth with a satiny sweet taste. I love the adorable little heart signature the barista makes flawlessly each time we visit.

"Charred fennel" "white anchovy salad" "buffalo mozzarella" "blood orange" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Mrs S Cafe, Maylands" "Maylands" "Whatley Crescent" "Mrs S Cafe" "Mrs S" "breakfast" "Brunch" "Coffee" "crema coffee"

Charred fennel and white anchovy salad

Their menu changes regularly and always includes a few gluten free options.  I chose the charred fennel and white anchovy salad with buffalo mozzarella and blood orange.  This was such an interesting salad with unusual but very well matched combinations of flavours and textures.  The acidity of the sweet blood orange, the subtlety of the buffalo mozzarella and the salty anchovies alone were an absolute taste sensation.  Add to this some crunchy fennel and a real wow factor remained.  I would love to replicate this dish at home.

"Open steak sandwich" "green mayo" "aioli" "roasted capsicum" "gruyere" "onion jam" "beef" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Mrs S Cafe, Maylands" "Maylands" "Whatley Crescent" "Mrs S Cafe" "Mrs S" "breakfast" "Brunch" "Coffee" "crema coffee"

Open steak sandwich with green mayo, aioli, roasted capsicum, gruyere + onion jam

The Boy chose to have a break from our vegetarian stint and treat himself to some juicy beef.  Although the open steak sandwich was a little difficult to eat he also thought his choice was out of this world.  The meat was tender and had a lovely dark pink colour in the centre.

"Salted caramel macaron" "macarons" "Alexandre's macarons" "desserts" "salted caramel" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Mrs S Cafe, Maylands" "Maylands" "Whatley Crescent" "Mrs S Cafe" "Mrs S" "breakfast" "Brunch" "Coffee" "crema coffee"

Salted caramel macaron – so lonely!

Mrs S sells fresh macarons purchased from Chef Alexandre Lui-Van Sheng. After initial humble beginnings selling his delightful macarons at local markets around Perth including the Stirling, Claremont and Manning markets, Alexandre has taken his macarons to the next level and in February this year opened his store Maison Saint-Honoré in Fremantle with fellow chef Jacque Saint-Alme.   They now have a second store in Whitfords. I have yet to get myself to one of these stores so in the meantime I can still enjoy his perfectly textured mouthfuls when we visit Mrs S. The salted caramel is my favourite!

"Flourless Orange and passionfruit cake" "desserts" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Mrs S Cafe, Maylands" "Maylands" "Whatley Crescent" "Mrs S Cafe" "Mrs S" "breakfast" "Brunch" "Coffee" "crema coffee"

Flourless Orange and passionfruit cake

For dessert, I had every intention of just getting us some macarons, but the piglet inside me briefly reared her snout and “accidently” also ordered a slice of the gluten free orange and passionfruit cake.  What a wonderful surprise this was! It was so moist and the added passionfruit gave it a tang to set it apart from your usual flourless orange cake suspects.

"Poached eggs" "gluten free toast" "herby mushrooms" "roasted tomatoes" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Mrs S Cafe, Maylands" "Maylands" "Whatley Crescent" "Mrs S Cafe" "Mrs S" "breakfast" "Brunch" "Coffee" "crema coffee"

Poached eggs on gluten free with herby mushrooms and roasted tomatoes

On our subsequent visit to Mrs S a few weeks later we were both much more organised and arrived early enough to catch the breakfast menu. After missing out on eggs last time I was champing at the bit for a decent gooey poached egg.  I was not to be disappointed, thank you Mrs S! The gluten free toast was thickly sliced, springy and held it’s shape despite all the egg yolk goo soaking into it.

"Poached eggs" "gluten free toast" "herby mushrooms" "roasted tomatoes" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Mrs S Cafe, Maylands" "Maylands" "Whatley Crescent" "Mrs S Cafe" "Mrs S" "breakfast" "Brunch" "Coffee" "crema coffee"

Oooh yeah…gimme that shiz!

It had been a long while since the Boy had ordered his old time favourite of the big breakfast. It used to be his staple in pre-Chompchomp days, but since then he has been keen to order more interesting dishes that can help showcase a restaurant better. Such a thoughtful lad.  He loved all of his meal except for the beans which were a tad cold and lacked flavour.

"Big breakfast" "eggs" "bacon" "herby mushrooms" "chipolatas" "spicy beans" "ciabatta" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Mrs S Cafe, Maylands" "Maylands" "Whatley Crescent" "Mrs S Cafe" "Mrs S" "breakfast" "Brunch" "Coffee" "crema coffee"

Big breakfast: eggs, bacon, herby mushrooms, chipolatas and spicy beans on ciabatta

Of course no visit to Mrs S is complete without any macarons; this time we took a few extra to go.  The bestie was popping in for an afternoon visit later that day and I didn’t want her to miss out!

"Salted caramel macaron" "macarons" "Alexandre's macarons" "desserts" "violet macaron" "pistacio macaron" "Perth Restaurant Reviews" "food photos" "Perth food blog" "food blog" "Chompchomp" "Gluten free" "Fructose malabsorption" "Mrs S Cafe, Maylands" "Maylands" "Whatley Crescent" "Mrs S Cafe" "Mrs S" "breakfast" "Brunch" "Coffee" "crema coffee"

Macarons: Lower left pistachio, upper right violet, remaining are two salted caramel of course!

Mrs S
178 Whatley Crescent, Maylands | (08) 9271 6690 | Follow on Twitter @mrsscafe
 
Price:                     $$ ($15-25 per meal)
Food:                    4/5 (a number of interesting options beyond your eggs on toast)
Service:                5/5 (vibrant, friendly and uber cool)
Ambience:           4/5 (think country kitchen meets Fremantle)
Drinks:                  4/5 (good coffee, great barista)
Total:                     17/20

 Mrs. S on Urbanspoon