Saturday 28 May 2011

Restaurant Review: Brasserie Bread, Botany

Last Sunday I ran down to Botany for breakfast at Brasserie Bread. I'm not sure if that demonstrates a commitment to running,  a commitment to breakfast or shows that I'm just plain mad.

Running up Oxford St and through Taylor Square first thing in the morning is often an experience. However, this was the first time that I picked up a running partner. An Irish guy who had clearly been out all night suddenly appeared beside me and ran all the way down Flinders St to Moore Park on my shoulder. I was getting a bit concerned as we approached Moore Park as I was going pretty quick and hadn't been able to shake him!

After I'd lost my shadow it was actually a lovely run through Centennial Park and along some wide tree lined streets. It got a bit grim once I hit the industrial estates of Botany, but you can't have everything.


The café is located in the Brasserie Bread bakery which explains it's industrial location. The breakfast menu isn't particularly extensive and is predictably centered around bread. However, it was still drawing in the crowds and we were lucky to get a table without waiting.

After quite a lot of indecision I went for the Sourdough pancakes. How could I not when project sourdough is on the go? I often find pancakes a bit hit and miss. In US diners they are often dry and heavy. I also find that they can be pretty bland.

I really liked these pancakes. They were light and fluffy, and the sourdough gave them a nice flavour.  The berries were cold which I found a bit odd. They would have been better if they were lightly warmed to match the temperature of the pancakes.


The service was a bit hit and miss (aka not very good).

When I went to the bathrooms I was able to get a glimpse into the main section of the factory. I was pleased to see that they were using the same large bags of the Manildra flour I bought for my sourdough. Which isn't going very well, but more of that in another post soon.....

Brasserie Bread on Urbanspoon

5 comments:

  1. 'plane mad' or 'plain mad'? :-) the pancakes look pretty good with a decent amount of fruit compote it seems. gee you're a keen runner. you must be pretty darn fit now.

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  2. oh no! What's happened to the starter??
    Brasserie bread has some great breads happening. The cakes are delicious too, but I haven't tried any of the breakfasts.
    (The bread course is quite good as well- they book out early!)

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  3. Those pancakes are goo I agree. Next time you should try the poached eggs with smoked ocean trout and persian feta (my favourite)
    Glad to find another tweep writing about food!
    Cheers
    Tony

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  4. @Simon - thank you for pointing that one out before my mum did! I've corrected the post. ;-)

    @Tony - thanks for the comment.

    @CHFG - the first five days of the started was great. It was growing and bubbling. I'm not really sure what to expect but I was really happy.

    In the last six days it has become less and less active. When I did a divide two days ago it felt like flour paste. I think it might be too cold?

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  5. yum - i think ill make pancakes this weekend!

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