Pinto

I’ve been wanting to come here for a while since I saw their mont blanc cake dressed like a Christmas. Came here for breakfast even though their selection for brekkie isn’t really amazing, and most of the stuff was just toast. Wanted to try some stuff which is only available during lunch time, so may be back. However, there were so many flies during our meal, had to cover the dishes with some extra plates. At one point a fly flew into the soup, normally I won’t drink it but I still love trying stuff  so had a small sip. Half the time we were there trying to swat flies away. 

food spread

The ice purple potato latte ($9) could have had a stronger sweet potato flavour. The colour was vibrant but the flavour wasn't, and it was more on the watery side. Would have liked it a bit thicker/milkier. The hojicha latte ($6.50) had a nice bitterness to it, but I felt like the roasted flavour of the tea could have come out a bit more.

Japanese breakfast set: steamed rice, pork belly, miso soup, small size dishes (tofu), soft boiled egg

tofu

The Japanese set is cute with it’s individual dishes, just like how they would do it in Japan. Whenever something like this comes up, I always think of how many plates they have to wash after just one meal. Guess that’s why they have industrial dishwashers…The food wasn’t amazing (maybe I’ve been too spoilt with so much authentic and delicious food from Tokyo last year). The pork belly was moist and flavourful which went well with the plain rice. 

cakes

 

mont blanc -$9

Mont blanc was average, and I don't think it's worth the $9. Didn't really have much chestnut flavour, and had a bit too much cream for my liking, which is ok if it had flavour but it didn't. It was just lacking in general compared to other mont blancs I have (Angelina mont blancs are still my fav).

strawberry shortcake-$8

This cake wasn't that amazing either, if I tried this without knowing the price, I would've just pair $4 for it. The sponge is light, but at the bottom the moisture from the cream already made the sponge slightly wet and not light. The cream was average as well, not too sweet but could be lighter in texture.

beef onigiri-$5

inside

This onigiri is pretty much average compared to other onigiris I've had from takeaway sushi shops. Sometimes you see stuff online and people are paid to advertise them, but on this blog is just honest opinions, and this was pretty average. Could have more beef, or beef with something extra inside to not make it so monotone. 

The Rabbit Hole Take 2

Walking past and decided to share a snack with BW. Also they are using the Rewards app, so because I checked in, ended up getting a free tea without intending to. Free things are so good when you're least expecting it.

afternoon tea

Tumeric chai latter-$5.50 (got for free)

love the cuteness of this cup

Good hit of tumeric and milk was frothed well, wish the chai was a bit stronger, since there was mainly just the cinnamon on the side.

Apricot tart-~$6

Can't really remember the price, but I liked how this tart wasn't too sweet even though it used dried fruits. The filling sort of had a cake texture. Pastry was nice and thin and not too crumbly.

Two Sis & Co

I have to admit, I love it when friends let me pick where to eat, since I can also 'tick' off more places on my place to eat (which has long turned to a mental list of place, since if I write them down, I know I'll never be able to complete it then feel sad the list will never be finished). These days I just go to places at the top of my head. This cafe wasn't too busy around lunch time so managed to get a seat quite easily.

food spread

Blue matcha latte-$5

Rose latte-$5

Love the colours and edible flowers on the latte

The blue matcha latte was pretty flavourless and tasted just like milk with fragrant edible flowers. They used butterfly pea powder, which apparently is some sort of superfood plant. The rose latte was super fragrant and smelt like roses, but the flavour was quite subtle as well. Compared the the blue matcha, it was a tad bit more flavourful.

these days, just get random wall paper to make your cafe more 'Instagramable'

French toast: crunchy brioche, fresh berries, nuts, chocolate pearls, mascarpone salted caramel and Persian pashmak-$18.50

I wasn’t really in the mood for french toast, but when it looks pretty and it’s a recommended dish, I gave in and decided to order it. The french toast here is more bready and less fried, so it did taste more like bread, but it was quite soft. I loved the fairy floss on top as it made the dish so pretty, also wasn't too sweet like normal fairly floss. Liked the texture from the nuts and chocolate pearls. It wasn’t overly sweet, since although I like sweet things, for this stuff I do have a tolerance. Couldn’t really taste the salted caramel though.  

Our famous Dukkah eggs: smashed avo, bacon, poached eggs, lemon sukkah and balsamic glaze-$17

Normally I don't order avo toast since I can make it at home, but they recommended this dish, and it also had the word 'famous' in it so I gave in. Didn't really feel like a sandwich or a burger, which is pretty much the majority of the menu, The dukkah could have had more herbs and spices. Bacon wasn't too fatty and eggs cooked well with a runny yolk. The balsamic glaze was more on the sweet side, would have liked a bit more vinegar to cut through the bacon flavour. Adding edible flowers just takes any food presentation a step up.

#yolkporn

Lox, Stock & Barrel

Rare trip out to this side of Sydney for the Bondi Beach Markets, so decided to make the most of the trip with a stop at a cafe. I remember Dandelion coming here for some lattes, and so decided to try stuff here. Came here around lunch time around on a weekend but didn't have to wait for a table. The music here can get a bit loud at times. 

food spread

Mushroom latte: blend of chaga & lion's mane, lucuma, macadamia, espresso, almond & cashew milk (sugar free, dairy free)-$6.50

Large flat white-$4.50

The mushroom latte is definitely an acquired taste, more so than tumeric imo. It sort of tastes like coke without the sugar or fizz but with milk. It has some nutty flavour in it but doesn't really taste like mushrooms. Sort of like how truffle is a type of mushroom but has its own flavour. The coffee has a good hit of flavour to it.

Smoked lox w/ onion, caper, rocket and cream cheese-$15

It's not a cheap or amazing bagel, but wanted to try the smoked lox, which is just smoked salmon. It wasn't very smoky, but it's a decent bagel with cream cheese, capers and rocket. Does remind me of bagels from NYC...

Fattoush: raw vegetable and herb salad, spices, nuts, za'atar, dressing: lemon, olive oil, tahini-$18

Most of the time I try not to order salads outside home since technically I can make them myself, but I just don't have time to chop and prep everything. Chose this since it has za'atar. It's a really filling salad, and also loved the crunchiness from the croutons. It does have slight acidity from the lemon which helps keep it fresh.

The Clean Treats Factory

Decided to go here coming back from an airport drop off. Parking here is hard to find, since I think all the street parking is pretty much taken by the people who work in the warehouses in the area. This place is so spacious since it was an old warehouse, but they redecorated it and loved the sort of open feel and relaxed decor. It’s a plant based cafe with heaps of vegetarian and vegan options.

food spread

 

Blue dream latte-$4

Gypsy rose beetroot latte-$4

I decided to go with the butterfly pea latte with macadamia milk mainly to have more colour on the table, even though I know the powder is pretty much tasteless. Paired it with macadamia milk, which I think is the first time for me having it. It has a slight milky/nutty flavour, but I feel like the taste isn’t as prominent compared to almond milk. The rose latte was super fragrant, but the taste is pretty subtle.

Tumeric cinnamon pancakes, walnuts, mixed berries-$17.90

I feel like these days I’ve had one too many pancakes, but when the pancakes are one of the more popular dishes on the menu, I can’t help to order it. The pancakes here I feel like lacked both cinnamon and numeric flavour. Texture could be more fluffy and a bit more moist. I feel like it’s something I could make it home if I tried, or at least just chuck in more cinnamon and numeric in it. The pancakes here weren’t too sweet and the yoghurt helped not make the pancakes too dry.

Zucchini linguine with cashew sauce, spinach, tomato-$17.90

The linguine sounded nice on paper but tasted too healthy/bland in my opinion. I feel like the creamyish dressing was just missing some herb or spice flavour. The bottom was quite oily which doesn’t help since at the end you feel like you’re just eating olive oil at the end. Even like pesto or something would have helped elevate the dish. I’ve had vegan pasta before, and I remember the pesto dressing really made that dish really flavourful.

Didn’t get any desserts to take home even though they all looked good. Didn’t feel like the food here was amazing so opted against their vegan treats. 

LABLD.

Love exploring new places and cafes, and was in the area so decided to check out this cafe. It's pronounced as 'labelled' but like most things these days, dropping some letters and adding a full stop seams to be the new trend when naming stuff. This place used to be some old convenience store, and they still have the old signage and old school red tiling outside (which I'm sure they'll eventually change once they get things up and running). Loved how they have copper coloured cutlery. 

food spread

Capp-$3.50

They originally gave me a flat white even though we ordered a capp. They were nice and remade the coffee. The coffee was a good drinking temp and had a decent body to it. The foam did start sinking after most photos were taken.

The tumeric latte-$5, had a really good amount of tumeric in it. It's different sort of spice and definitely an acquired taste, but I may have a higher tolerance for tumeric. Quite like the flavour in it.

Pandan pancakes w/ caramelised banana, honeycomb cream, meringue, cherry-$17

Couldn't really taste the pandan in these pancakes, it's more of an after taste, but the maple syrup really drowned out the subtle flavour in it. I've had pandan pancakes before where the flavour is a lot more prominent in comparison. Do have to give them credit for having pancakes with a bit of height. It's not as fluffy and high as the ones I had in Jap, but for Sydney standards, it's taller than your average pancake. The honeycomb with a bit chewy/sticky and on the sweet side, I prefer the bitter, crunchy sort of honeycomb. Love how there are edible flavours there, I feel like you can't really have a cafe or dish without edible flowers these days. The meringue bits could have had a bit more of a crunch.

Birds nest: poached egg wrapped in potato spaghetti, avocado puree, fried leek, pea tendrils, sil-gochu

#yolkporn

Still can't figure out how they managed to wrap the strands of potato around a perfectly poached egg. The potatoes had a soft texture even though they've been fried. Interesting concept with the eggs on top of some greens and avo puree. The garnish on top apparently is a Korean garnish made from chilli peppers, but it doesn't really taste like anything.

Brekky momo: wine infused bacon, egg, tomato, shallots w/ roast tomato puree and green mojo-$12

Chicken momo: chicken mince, garlic, onion, herbs w/ roast tomato puree and green mojo-$12

 

inside: brekky and chicken

The menu described these as Himalayan dumplings, but momo is more from a Nepal origin. First time having non Chinese/Japanese/Korean dumplings. I feel like the skin of these dumplings are firmer but thin at the same time. The brekky momo had wine infused bacon which I couldn't really tell, but it had a really nice kick from the curry spice. The chicken one was a bit more plain, but tasted healthy and the mince was quite lean. The sauce for both wasn't too overly tomatoey/acidic, and also had a nice chilli kick which I could appreciate (I think my chilli tolerance is slowly increasing). The chef accidentally made the chicken ones even though we ordered the brekky momo, so got a plate of dumplings for free!

they also served sparkling/carbonated water on tap for free

inside

they also sell some specialty food items