Harvest Espresso

Nothing beats waking up early on a Saturday and being uber productive. It's particularly productive when you get sort out some "business" related things while enjoying good company, along with good food at a rather quaint cafe.

Nothing beats Harvest Espresso in East Victoria Park than being seated by the window overlooking the busy Albany Hwy, while sipping superb coffee or a green juice and digging into their spring/summer menu.

I had the crab meat, avocado, asparagus and perfectly poached eggs. All I can say is, it's a great start to the day. 

My counterpart, friend, and talented designer started her day roughly by attempting Jacob's ladder (good to know one of us is keeping fit!) so she dug into some fluffy egg omelette, grilled half tomato and toast. 

I love this place, because they provide an interesting breakfast/brunch menu and has an array of teas/coffees/shakes/juices etc. They also do some pretty delicious cakes and patisseries. It's tiny and can get really busy so opt in for an early breakfast or just for something quick. Either way, it's cosy, warm, friendly and just great for watching the world whizz by, while enjoying some cake and coffee (or brunch!).

West End Deli

I love having brunch on weekends (when I haven't got work). It's just nice to sit at a cafe somewhere with good company, gossip, eat good food and drink coffee. It's extremely important with a brunch place that it has a nice ambiance and the coffee has to be good. I decided to go to West End Deli. It's an old favourite of mine and I haven't been there for a while, and can you believe it? my other half haven't been there at all.

The interior hasn't changed much and the little corner shop turned cafe was as packed as it always was. We were lucky and got a seat near the door before an influx of hungry patrons walked through the day. The rustic, bare walls, old type writers in the corner and floating chairs always takes my fancy. 

We decided to order from their lunch menu as it was closer to lunch than it was breakfast. Coffee was in order. Flat white to boost my mood. I don't think there was enough coffee in it (and yes I realise it is a flat white, but you should still be able to taste the coffee).. what a bummer.

 Bf wanted the pork belly that was on the menu, but he was disappointed when the waiter came back to say that it was unavailable, causing bf to grumble "why put it on the menu when you don't even have it.." So he settled for the open steak sandwich. The steak was cooked well and flavoursome. It was enough to fill the belly but not stop bf from grumbling about the lack of pork belly.

I craved for good pan-fried homemade gnocchi, so when West End Deli presented it on their menu I jumped at the chance. I was disappointed though. The gnocchi wasn't cooked through properly. It was still doughy on the inside. It also lacked any sort of flavours. I was not happy with my meal. The gnoochi was very photogenic though, and looked so good to eat, but, alas it was a big let down.

There is something nice about sitting at West End Deli. The hustling and bustling of the open kitchen and the chattering of nearby tables makes it seem very homely. In terms of food quality, I feel as though they have slipped a bit, either that or they were having a bad day. I like to think its the latter.

The Old Crow

Oh Northbridge how you have grown! From a pesty teenager rampant on god knows what to one where you've started to clean up your act and have a sprinkle of sophistication, a dash of culture and sparkle of arts and quirkiness. I've loved seeing you come of age.

Amongst all that, there will still be patches of not so niceness, but the recently revamped Newcastle street have seen increased restaurants and cafes, along with increased traffic and congestion. One of the latest addition, which JJ and I have happened to stumble on a few weeks ago (before the release of Rob Broadfield's review might I add!) is The Old Crow. 

An old heritage house refurbished and renovated to add a very modern-esque glasshouse at the front (resembling very much a greenhouse) and a rather traditional of eras gone by decor inside. Having said that I love the touches of old oil lanterns hanging on the glasshouse area and the succulents in teapots decoration.

We were here for a late lunch, but from what is written on their doors, they should also be opened for dinner. The lunch menu list isn't too large but it's big enough to make it hard to chose what we wanted. 

In the end we both settled for the slow roasted brisket sandwich, thousand island, pickled cabbage and fries. I would have preferred that JJ and I had two different meals to make this review a little more interesting, alas it was not to be and either of us was going to forgo our choices. 

Let me tell you, the sandwich is huge. We had to cut it into thirds to eat it without it going everywhere. I can most definitely share it with someone, because I didn't even get to finish mine. The brisket was slowly roasted to be tender, it was slightly sweet and the toasted bread was buttered to perfection. It was more than a sandwich it was a satisfying meal. The fries wasn't even needed but it was there and it's hot crispy crunchy chips. The homemade thousand island was a delicious creamy dip for the fries.

This meal was paired with the most satisfying long macchiato. But for those more inclined to start the day with EtOH then there is an extensive list of cocktails, wines and beers available at the Old Crow as well.

The only thing I wasn't too sure about was the black high-waisted pants with black suspenders and white shirts. It really minded me of Twiddle-dee and Twiddle-dum of Alice in Wonderland. Apart from the fashion choices of the waitstaff, they were attentive, patient and friendly. 

The Old Crow is intriguing, the menu is different from other places around Perth and I wouldn't mind checking more of it out, perhaps for dinner. I predict their dinner menu would be filled with good surprises. 

Brunch Date - No.4 Blake Street

The thing I love about weekends is the fact that I get to go on brunch dates! I love brunch. After an appointment with the travel agent (YAY for HOLIDAYS!) and booking our flights, bf and I decided that we need to eat, as neither of us have had a bite since the night before and we were getting a little hypoglycaemic and our stomachs were starting to eat itself!

After much thought, and as I'm not a fan of Mrs. S (which was two doors down) we decided to head to No.4 Blake street, as their dinner menu was delicious and something different so their breakfast/lunch would be just as creative (and from what was on their website it sounded amazing).

We arrived at No.4 without a booking and was lucky enough to get one of the last unreserved seats at the place. There was a buzz about the place with the waiters ensuring everyone was enjoying their meals, to the chatter of tables and the sleek interiors that adds charm and sophistication to the place (something so nice and grown-up, a nice and lovely change from that "artsy, hipster" overdone recycled look (that every Charles, Dick and Harry have been doing for ages!).

It was lovely to see that Romain recognised us from the media event night earlier in the year and treated us to a lovely glass of sparkling (bubbly, sweet and rather delicious drink!) and Majdouline rushed over in between her duties to give us quick kisses and hellos. How sweet! It's a pity bf and I couldn't visit earlier due to our never ending lists of places to eat. Although, I still maintain that I will do a high tea at No.4 (the menu look unbelievably appetizing and refreshingly left of centre!).

Anyway, the bubbles went straight to my head after drinking half the glass with no food in my stomach and I was rather happy sipping bubbles before I got my lovely glass of long macchiato and bf's chocolate milkshake in a rather cute milk bottle. 

A very happy kid indeed with his chocolate milkshake!

Me and my long mac topped up and with chocolate topping.. coffee happy ^_^

We had such a hard time deciding what to eat. The menu sounded wonderful and appetizing. I couldn't choose between a chicken sandwich, lamb burger, (the burger weren't really buns but amazing quality bread!), lamb tagine, the duck or the waffle with fresh blue berries, marsapone, maple syrup and bacon!! While the boy couldn't decide between the lamb burger, bangers and beans or the waffle.

In the end, I settled for the duck confit. Slow cooked duck with potato cake, house slaw and beetroot dressing. The potato cake was this crunchy outer exterior with this delicious soft mashy goodness. The duck was nicely cooked, although, perhaps a little too oily in some bits. But then it is a confit. The slaw, I thought, just didn't go with the whole thing. And I'm so not a coleslaw fan. The dish, I thought was cheapened by the slaw. But then biased here.

Duck Confit

Bf ended up having the lamb burger. It wasn't in your usual burger bun, but rather a very nice slices of bread (which I thought is a lot better, because then it's not too heavy). The pattie was a lamb and oats pattie and you can see the oats through the pattie and it gave it this nice crunchy dimension to it. It had goats curd, eggplant and hummus in the burger, all of which complimented each other nicely. The goats curd wasn't that strong or overpowering either. It came with a side of chips in a really cute little deep frying basket and homemade tomato sauce. I had a taste of the "burger" and I preferred it to my duck (and the bf loved my duck over his lunch.. we probably should have swapped). 

 Lamb burger

From our previous experience, we knew No.4 Blake street made amazing desserts, and if bf had his way (and if there wasn't any in the nuts) he would have gone for the flower pot dessert, alas it has nuts. The entrance of the restaurant had this lovely display of desserts and the lunch "sweet" things enticed us to ordering desserts to share. 

Homemade churros was in order with dark chocolate and creme analgise dipping sauces. The churros were plenty - about 6-7 churros and were slightly crispy on the outside and doughy goodness on the inside. It was warm too. So when soaked in the dark chocolate.... *drool* Nothing beats quality homemade churros. Simple dessert, and yet so effective in creating smiles. 

Churros

If you also get a chance, pop out to the back of No.4 and they have a lovely and very cute micro-herb garden happening. Just the sweetest of things. So you know the ingredients they use in their kitchen is the freshest it can be!

I enjoy No.4. Their service and food is just impeccable (not just to me, but to many of their restaurant visitors from observations). Well informed staff, welcoming, professional and with just a touch of class. Romain and Maj also always goes to great lengths to ensure that you have an experience. Romain was fiddling around with table settings and menus tied with bows for a set of tables behind us the whole time, ensuring everything was perfect for the guests that were to come in (I'm assuming, may have been high tea?). It's little things like that that makes it a dining experience.

If you haven't been to No.4, you really should try it. 

Lunch at Gordon st Garage Coffee/Bar/Kitchen

My very last RDO was a few weeks ago, and it will be the last for a long while. This meant it's time to enjoy it the only way possible - organising for my epic holiday and of course catching up for a very late lunch with a good friend.

After practically running across the city (very fast walking pace from one end of Hay street to another - east to west) to get to Gordon St. Garage. An old warehouse turned breakfast, lunch, dinner, late night dining area. Exposed lights, air-conditioning units with lots of different areas for dining - upstairs, outside, main area. A little canteen like, for some reason reminded me of school/university and of course very much like Little Creatures in Fremantle.

Jojo and I were served by a lovely French waiter who has only been in Perth for a few months and will be travelling around Australia and New Zealand in another few months time. Sounds rather bliss. I don't think my travel bug will ever be extinguish. Anyway, he recommended us the soup of the day, but we both weren't in the mood and it just wasn't cold enough at the time. It was sunny and warm, despite it being close to the start of winter.

We started off the afternoon with a flat white for Jojo and a Zenzero, ginger beer with ginseng and apple (warning it is alcoholic) for me. Zenzero was refreshing and did not taste alcoholic at all, but the taste of ginseng, ginger and apple was all there. Delicious in a drink.

Our mains followed a while later. 

Jojo opted for the open pork sandwich with a side of coleslaw.It was served on a wooden slab, which at the moment is all the rage for serving dishes. It was most definitely open sandwich and the bread (not sure what kind because I didn't get a chance to have a proper look) was definitely well toasted and possibly grilled too. I was lucky to have a taste of the chutney and the pork. The chutney was flavoursome and so was the pork but nothing that was outstandingly amazing.

I got myself a quinoa and lamb kofta on a bed of pita bread. The lamb kofta was delicious and the quinoa (one of the super foods prounced "Keen-Wah" NOT "qui-no-a") added that bit of dimension to the chickpeas/hummus and vegetables. I felt rather healthy eating it too! However, the downside was the pita bread was a little tough and definitely was left in the oven a little too long. Like the open sandwich it was served on a wooden slab, which is all very cute, if not a little small for my dish, as I keep getting quinoa rolling out around everywhere, and didn't help that I couldn't cut into the pita bread. Nevermind, it was great lunch, just ate it like 2-year-old. 

Of course an RDO lunch is never complete without dessert. We decided to share a piece and after having a look at their cake selection and their little dessert cabinet consisting of pannacotta, mousse etc. After much deliberation, we settled for the peanut butter gateau/wafer cake thing and was also recommended by one of the waitresses.

It was most definitely peanut buttery and the wafer/biscuit thing at the bottom was chewy and crunchy all at the same time, a nice textural difference to the creamy peanut buttery taste and the dark chocolate. It was a little bit hard to crack through though and again a little messy, but hey at least it tastes great.

Gordan st. Garage is your little casual chilled place to catch up. The female toilets also have an awesome mirror to freshen up from head to toe. The service is a little slow, even at 3pm and there was hardly anyone there, or it is because it was 3pm and there was hardly anyone that caused the slow in service? The one thing I love about this place though is the desserts and you can usually get the full and fresh range in the mornings. They also open late Monday to Sunday meaning you can get your coffee and dessert fix at any time! BONUS.

The food? I don't rate it as amazing and it isn't bad. It's decent and the dessert selection is what is probably going to be bringing me back.

Moana Coffee - Yelp Elite Event

As part of the Yelp Elite I was graciously invited by Laura D (the head guru of Perth Yelp) to meet other Elite Yelpers at Moana Coffee in the city.

Moana Coffee is a balcony cafe located in the Moana Chambers building; a beautiful building, showcasing the glamour and glistening era of the 1920s. Andy, one of owners (there are three of them) of the cafe explains to us, Yelpers, that the space has been recently refurbished by architects Nic Burnsdon and Beth George to turn an empty, running down space into offices, an art gallery and of course the cafe itself.

Old architecture, cozy cute details for decoration, quiet space and nice simple fresh homemade foods is the perfect mix of the spirit of Colonial-European with modern day cafe. It's in the heart of the city on Hay street Hall, above Valley girl, but it is an oasis of peace and quiet, away from the hustle and bustle of the city. It is relaxed and calm. The perfect place to have a meal (might I add the menu looks delicious and reasonably priced too!), have good coffee and watch the world and the passerbys below at the balcony.

I'm not sure what their usual menu taste like but from the canapes, and the platter of dips that we consumed at the Yelp Elite event it's bound to be good. Andy told us that majority of the menu is homemade and they will be focusing on ensuring that good coffee is also provided and want to be the place for people to come for a coffee, relax, chat and take in the world.

We were a little late to the Yelp event and because of that the choice of food we had wasn't very large. This probably meant that the food was rather yum and was quickly consumed by all. We missed out on the chicken skewers but we had a platter of carrot, celery, turkish bread and dip and the dip was rather delicious. I'm not sure what it is, but I'm sure it had chives in it. 

The official yelp photographer however took many of the photos from this point onwards (the ones above were taken by my trusty and overused iphone camera). It show cased a handful of the canapes at the function.

Although we missed out on a lot of the food we didn't miss out on the desserts, which were these beautiful homemade lamingtons with cream and jam and some chocolate mini mudcakes. The lamingtons were satisfying, but I think the mudcake needed more chocolate.

It was a lovely, casual, cozy event and the venue was a great choice. To have been privy to this hidden gem in the heart of the city it's great. I'm now excited for my next RDO so I can drag a few friends here for a lunch meeting and catch up. Cozy, friendly people and the perfect location for people watching.  

And  if that wasn't enough it was just lovely to meet the organisers of Yelp Perth. A great community that promotes all the businesses (restaurants, venues, shops, pharmacies etc.) as well as events in Perth. It was also nice to see and meet other Yelpers.

Perth manager Laura D with one of the owners of Moana Cafe, Andy and Yelp Intern Abbey (seated)

If you aren't already a member check out Yelp here and sign up. It costs nothing but you get to discover more hidden gems of Perth, so why not? I especially recommend it to those that think there is nothing to do here. So why not discover Perth?

Please note that Moana Coffee opens from 7am to 3pm Monday to Friday.