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Lunch @ The Cupping Room (Canberra, Australia)

February 19, 2020 in European (cafe)

My last review from my Canberra trip! So in my (short) 4 days trip to Canberra in October ’19, the cafe that I visited (numerous times) was The Cupping Room. The Cupping Room was a friend’s recommendation. And it fitted perfectly into my iterinary as it was a 10 to 12 minutes walk from my accommodation.

My friend also shared he didn’t manage to dine at the cafe during his last trip to Canberra because the queue was too long. So with that tip in mind, I decided to pop by The Cupping Room on my first day to Canberra which was a weekday (Friday). You know… Since weekday should be less busy? Hee. And I was indeed lucky. I got myself an alfresco seat.

I was equally lucky for my subsequent 2 visits (which were over the weekend) too. I was seated almost immediately despite the snaking queue. But that’s because I was dining solo. And I didn’t mind counter seat.

And from the menu (pages 1, 2, 3, 4), I ordered:-

  

1) Bacon & egg roll, AUD15 (above) – Fried egg, bacon, guacamole, spicy BBQ sauce, bun.


2) Fritters, AUD22 (above) – Ham hock, corn, pecorino & potato fritters, poached eggs, szechuan mayo, pickles & leaves.


3) French toast, AUD18 (above) – Oreo crumb, berries, banana, milk icing, mascapone. This was seriously so good!

4) Latte (above) – The coffee menu at The Cupping Room was extensive with many types of beans to choose from. There were even different flavours of milk to choose from! Unfortunately for me, I ordered my first cup of coffee at The Cupping Room without studying reading the coffee menu. So yah, I still ain’t too sure what coffee bean was used for my latte. Although I think I heard the staff briefly mentioned “Black Betty”. I guess that must be the default choice of milk for customers like me who didn’t read the coffee menu. Keke.


5) Filter coffee, AUD7 (above) – So when I returned to The Cupping Room, I was smarter. I took time to read the coffee menu. Haha. And for my filter coffee, I went with ‘Colombia finca jerico’ coffee beans.

6) Raspberry & lychee shake, AUD9.90 (above)

I’m going to be really frank. I didn’t do much research on the cafe scene in Canberra. And the fact that I only visited only 1 cafe, I am definitely not in the position to say if The Cupping Room is the number 1 cafe in Canberra although a few friends had since told me The Cupping Room is.

However, I certainly enjoyed the food and drinks at The Cupping Room. That french toast! But if one is planning to come by on the weekends, be prepared to wait. The queue could get really long. And with a busy cafe, don’t expect much from the service. Not that it was bad, but there was nothing exceptional which was also understandable since they were really busy.

THE CUPPING ROOM
1/1-13 University Ave, Canberra, ACT, Australia
Website
Overall: 6.5
Opening hours:-
Food/Beverage: 7
Mon – Fri : 07:00 – 16:00
Ambience: 6
Sat – Sun : 08:00 – 15:00
Value: 7
Service: 6

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Breakfast @ Bourke Street Bakery (Sydney, Australia)

July 6, 2017 in European (cafe)

My colleague, who has been to Sydney a few times, raved about the pies in Australia. “You must try the pies,” she said. Unfortunately, the good ones she had were beef. I can’t eat beef due to religious reason. Thus, the hunt for good (non-beef) pie began.

While researching on-the-go, we got to learn about Bourke Street Bakery. With a few outlets in Sydney, my colleague and I decided on Surry Hill’s because it was within walking distance from our AirBNB apartment. Just perfect for us to drop by for breakfast before we went on with our travel itinerary. And because we had a long day planned ahead of us, my colleague and I reached the cafe at 8.35am. We initially planned to reach at 8am. Gasp.

However, the staff informed the pies were only ready at 9am. Since it was another 25 minutes, my colleague and I decided to wait it out. In fact, after our first visit and a more detailed research on Bourke Street Bakery, I went back again for breakfast on the last day of my trip to try the other items which they were famous for. Keke.

And from the menu and display shelf, we ordered:-

1) Ginger brulee tart, AUD5.50 (above) – So good! It’s interesting how they infused the ginger into the caramelised layer.

2) Lemon curd tart, AUD5.50 (above) – My favourite of the tarts! Be careful when one bite into the thick but crispy buttery crust as the curd within was flowy. I loved how tangy it was too. Just perfect.

3) Passionfruit curd Italian meringue tart, AUD5.50 (above) – And if I didn’t taste wrongly, there was coconut in the meringue. Pretty good!


  

4) Chocolate almond croissant, AUD5 (above)


5) Chicken, sweet potato, pea & lime pickle pie, $6 (above)


6) Pork & fennel sausage roll, AUD5.50 (above) – We made the mistake of not ordering the tomato sauce (AUD0.20) to go with it. I wouldn’t say the fillings within was dry. Rather, it lacked that bouncy texture because the filling was minced. And because it was a little bland, the tomato sauce would have brought out the taste better. As though I’m using their tomato sauce as seasoning instead of salt. Ha.


7) Carrot & walnut cake, AUD5 (above) – This was a such delight! It’s no wonder why this was a favourite among customers too.


8) Bacon & egg frittata sandwich, $6.50 (above) – Frittata, bacon, caramelised onion and homemade BBQ sauce.

9) Latte, $4.50 (regular) (above)

I definitely recommend Bourke Street Bakery! Must tries include the carrot & walnut cake and the tarts. Having tried 3 of their 4 tarts, I probably should have ordered the chocolate ganache tart too then. Keke. I didn’t expect all the 3 tarts to be so good. And I liked that the curd used for the 3 tarts won’t the same.

And if it wasn’t because I was on a short trip to Sydney, I probably would have returned for the other yummy goodies which include the lemon-vanilla ricotta cake, flourless Belgian chocolate cake, croissant, wholemeal sourdough bread… Oh wait, I can go on and on and on. Keke.

BOURKE STREET BAKERY
633 Bourke Street, Sydney, NSW, Australia
+61 2 9699 1011, Website, Facebook
Overall: 6.5
Opening hours:-
Food/Beverage: 7
Mon – Fri : 07:00 – 18:00
Ambience: 6
Sat – Sun : 07:00 – 17:00
Value: 7
Service: 6

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Lunch @ Chur Burger (Sydney, Australia)

June 29, 2017 in American, Australian

1 of the items that I really wanted to eat in Australia was burger. I imagined sinking my teeth into greasy burger that’s too big for my mouth. Keke. And a few names came up when I did my research. But I finally decided on Chur Burger due to its close proximity to our AirBNB apartment.

Located in Surry Hills, it’s a 8 to 10 minutes walk from Central Metro Station. It’s a casual burger joint where one order at the counter (near the entrance), grab a number and wait for food to be served at the table. We chose the high tables. Just felt like it. Keke.

And from the menu (pages 1, 2, 3), we ordered:-

1) Chips with chicken salt, AUD6 (above)

2) Ol’ blue, AUD14 (above) – Grilled beef, blue cheese, hot smoky BBQ sauce, onion rings, aged cheddar sauce.


3) Spicy “AF” chicken, AUD16 (above) – Double crumbed chicken breast, double cheese, lettuce, lemon mayo, fresh tomato, spicy AF sauce. I purposely chose the ‘double’ because I wanted my burger to be huge. And huge it was. Two thick slab of chicken breast! And now, I didn’t know AF meant ‘As F*ck’. Had I knew earlier, I definitely would have requested for less spicy sauce. It was super spicy! But I managed to finish the burger cause it was so good. We loved the buttermilk bun. Yum.

4) Coffee vanilla milkshake, AUD8 (above)

5) Strawberry milkshake, AUD8 (above) – Don’t underestimate the portion. Served in a tall cup, milkshake was thick. Just as how I imagined a good milkshake should be.

I could happily say I satisfied my craving at Chur Burger. With a few outlets, one need not necessary head down to Surry Hills. I actually planned to make a second trip for lunch before I flew back to try the non-chicken burgers but the Surry Hills outlet was closed on Sundays. Sob. And for carbs-wary diners, they offer buns-free option too! Although I wouldn’t recommend doing that cause the bun was one of the key! And that’s coming from an equally carbs-wary eater; me. Keke.

CHUR BURGER
48 Albion Street, Surry Hills, Sydney, NSW, Australia
+61 2 9212 3602, Website
Overall: 7
Opening hours:-
Food/Beverage: 5
Mon : 11:30 – 21:00
Ambience: 6
Tues – Sat : 11:30 – 22:00
Value: 8
Service: 6
* Closed on Sun

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