For quite a while, Milk & Honey (M&H) had been my favorite place to go after lunches or dinners to just chillax and catch up with friends. I have to say that it didn't take long before Lonsdale Street Roasters (LSR) attained an equal standing in my heart. But since LSR doesn't open at night, M&H is still the place to go after dinners =)
There isn't much of a wow factor when you look from the outside of LSR (although i found the coffee-sack-cushions-on-empty-milk-crate seats quite cute) but when you step into that place, you feel like you are in a funky art gallery. Bright colours, striking patterned wallpapers, bicycles hanging off the walls and random 'hazard signs' stuck to the ceiling all come together surprisingly harmonious with the plain solid wooden tables in the cafe. I also quite liked the fact that they took the time to pick out interesting cushions to adorn the wall seatings, check them out!
We were there around lunch time and we decided to order a couple of things to try out the food at LSR. Mind you that none of us is a coffee drinker (no coffee reviews, sorry!) but i heard pretty good things about its coffee! LSR's menu is mainly consisted of sweet breakfast items and toasted paninis. They all sound like your pretty average next-door-cafe food but let me tell you that it isn't. You will be pleasantly delighted to find LSR's own twist in it!
We happily ordered the Devonshire Tea (or Coffee) + Scones with Jam & Vanilla Cream Set and it was delicious! The scone was warm and fluffy (not to mention its size) and went perfectly with the jam and oh-so-delicious vanilla cream. I think i need to emphasize on the vanilla cream here just to reflect on the amount times i was mentioning about it at the cafe. The cream was perfectly whipped and unlike in a lot of cafes, it was super light and fluffy. It melted as soon as you put it into your mouth and for once, guilt didn't prevent me from finishing the cream off. For the choice of tea we chose a Granny's Garden and an English Breakfast and let me tell you that one teapot contains plenty of tea that is sufficient for two people. Granny's Garden had a pleasant fruity (berries) aroma and the English Breakfast was traditionally robust and rich, lovely with milk.
English Breakfast Tea
Delicious Scone with Jam and Vanilla Cream
Next, was moving to something savoury and we decided to get a Whole Chorizo, Fresh Mozzarella, Basil Pistou and Tomato Sugo Panini to share since we've noticed that the serving was quite generous. It arrived not long after the chorizo scent had overtaken the whole cafe and our eyes were joyfully set on the hot panini filled with succulent chorizo and melting mozzarella. We had to attack it before we drooled everywhere; it was really good and i enjoyed the subtle spicyness from the chorizo.
After having our 'main', we moved on to 'desserts' which we ordered the Waffles with Butter and Honey, Toasted Banana Bread with Ricotta and Honey (unfortunately no photos for this!) and a Homemade Yoghurt with Fruits and Vanilla Bean Syrup. Oh, and i also got a cup of hot chocolate which was alright. I would have liked it better if they used real chocolate instead of Dutch cocoa powder - nice and simple presentation though.
The waffles were lovely and according to J, they tasted pretty authentic in comparison to the ones she had in Belgium. If you don't like all the honey drizzled over your waffles, you can ask the friendly staff to serve it separately (like we did). Unfortunately, there is no photo for the banana bread but i was really delighted with the yummy combination of ricotta and honey with banana bread *thumbs up.
We decided to finish our meal on the lighter side with the homemade yoghurt. This came with a little bottle of vanilla bean syrup on the side so that you can adjust the sweetness of the yoghurt to your liking. The fruits were fresh, the yoghurt was light and smooth and everything came together nicely after adding the vanilla bean syrup. Nom!
This is a cafe that i will definitely come back to! The food is superb, the staff is friendly and the whole place is very welcoming and artsy. As i was writing this post, i couldn't help but to think of what to order on my next visit there...slow roasted pork panini? Portobello mushroom with truffle oil panini? Some homemade muesli will be nice too...
7 snowdrop meringues:
nice - haven't seen a barista with coffee pattern making skills for a long time.
Maybe I'm just having coffee in the wrong places :p
Out of all that I've tried I loved the scones most - mainly because all the components were so well done! Scones were light and fluffy, jam was not overly sweet (ohh and I love jams where I can spot the fruit seeds in them) and the cream was a beauty! That being said, I find myself craving the banana bread that was topped with ricotta cheese and honey from time to time too!! The waffles were authentic in terms of their shape and flavor by itself..in Belgium when waffles that were bought of the streets they don't come with honey or butter. It's either plain or topped with a very generous amount of chocolate and whipped cream and/or fruits that makes your tummy growls at the sight of it.
Hmm one day I have to try everything on LSR's menu, one day!
@hao: yes, i agree with you :P
@Hao: Perhaps??? u should go to YArralumla and the coffee from Farmer's Daughter!
@Jane: you should definitely start a food blog ;P
ooooh those photos are wonderful!
Oh my! That chorizo panani looks to die for! I'm an avowed chorizo lover and to get so much in one sandwich would be like heaven :)
@Lisa: the food is awesome, you should try it after one of your bike rides (if possible)
@Lorraine: you should definitely visit it next time you are in Canberra. Very close to Italian & Sons =)
The food looks nice and the cafe looks like it has a sense of fun too.
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