Brunching at Blacksmith Surry Hills

It had been a little while for the girls and I to catch up and what better way than to catch up over brunch; a serious lifestyle pastime that we all enjoy. This time we decided to go try out Blacksmith located in Surry Hills. I've walked past this funky cafe many times and had it on my 'brunching' list so this was perfect!

The menu layout has been thought about with leather and denim 

When I first walked into the cafe my first impression was 'wow'; the styling was unique and funky and very hipster like and I didn't realise how big it was inside. Not only have they thought about the type of food and drinks they are to have on the menu but also the styling of the cafe which includes the little things like the saucers, spoons, tea pots and water bottles. The cafe is also great for those with children as it's big enough to fit prams and right across the road is Albert Park.

The spacious interior 

I ordered by usual skim piccolo to start with as I studied the menu; everything sounded amazing and I was pretty hungry. One of the girls decided to check out their Instagram to help with deciding on what to get; it just made me want to order every breakfast item!

The unique Blacksmith spoon and saucer

I had finally settled on the 'Rough-forked Avo' which consisted of smashed avocado, goats cheese, black quinoa on sourdough toast with a side portion of bacon (~$14 + $3.50 for the bacon) and the 'Energiser' juice (~$5) which consisted of apple, pineapple, ginger and mint - this seriously filled me up that I didn't even need lunch.

My tasty Rough-Forked Avo

One of the girls ordered the brioche french toast with fruit and maple syrup and me with my sweet tooth just couldn't resist tasting it. OH.EMMM.GEEEEE - next time I'll be ordering this for sure!

I really liked this cafe and thought that the food was well presented and very tasty; I will be back here for sure. One thing to note though, which is a drag for them, is that they don't spilt bills so either come prepared with cash or note that someone in the group with be paying on their card and collecting from everyone else. 

To Blacksmith, thanks for the experience and the tasty dishes. 

Jo x


Blacksmith Surry Hills
116 Chalmer Street, 
Surry Hills NSW 2010
Ph: 02) 9690 0103

Kepos & Co.

Last Sunday my cousin and I went to check out the Senasian event at Mojo by Luke Mangan. But before going to indulge in some sweet sweet desserts by Black Star Pastry, Katherine Sabbath and N2, we decided to have brunch at the new Kepos & Co. It's the new restaurant opened by Michael Rantissi who also owns Kepos St Kitchen located in Redfern. 

Kepos & Co. is located in Waterloo inside a little hideaway. The styling keeps to its traditional middle eastern theme with the inside beautifully decorated with stunning tiles and exposed bricks and amazing lighting. The menu is completely different to what is offered at Kepos St Kitchen which makes it hard to decide which of the restaurants you will want to go to as both are amazing and unique in its own way. 

Exploring the menu with our coffee

The stunning lighting

You can see the chefs cooking through the exposed brick wall

Sunday serves brunch between the hours of 9am - 3pm. We started of with a coffee whilst we explored the brunch menu trying to decide what we wanted; it was hard as everything sounded so tasty. Looking around at dishes coming out to other tables also gave us food envy which also made it hard for us to choose. 

We settled on ordering a couple of dishes and sharing. We had ordered the Pide stuffed with sujuk, picked chilies, kashkaval cheese and kalamata olives ($19) and the Potato tortellini with goat's curd, za'atar and asparagus ($24). Both dishes were amazing and so tasty with the potato tortellini being my favourite of the two dishes.

Our dishes for brunch; looks so good

The sizing of the dishes were just right, not too much to be in a food coma and not too little to still be hungry. Then as a little surprise, we were treated to a slice of their own chocolate and hazelnut brownie; wow, so moist and tasty!

The delicious brownie surprise

Kepos St Kitchen was and still is a favourite of mine and now their new Kepos & Co. has become another favourite. If you haven't gone to try either restaurants, I totally recommend that you do and let me know what you think. 

Jo x

Kepos & Co.
Shop 5, Casba
18 Danks St,
Waterloo NSW 2017
Tel. 02) 9690 0931

Suzie Q Coffee & Records

Yesterday I finally caught up with a dear friend of mine for brunch. Life get's so busy at times but it's comforting to know that when you catch up with dear friends it's like time has never passed. 

We went to try out Suzie Q in Surry Hills for brunch this time. The reason why I decided on road testing Suzie Q was because I have been following them on Instagram for a little while now and have envied their food and secondly, which would have to be a main point, is that my friend is a huge huge huge lover of music, especially old school music and music that were made on records. So, it was a win win for everyone!

Photo Credit

I had arrived first and was seated very quickly as there were a couple of tables available and by the time I had sat down and taken my scarf off, my friend had arrived. We were presented with our menus which were smartly inside old music record covers.

Coffee with Jeff Beck

The menu isn't overly extensive but offers something for everyone and they had a couple of specials on the menu in which they talk you through before leaving you to mull over the menu for a little bit while getting your coffee and juice.

We both ended having the same brunch menu item of "Its Right Place" which consisted of poached eggs on sourdough with our relish ($11) and with your added choice of house smoked ocean trout, avocado salsa and lime (+$8). This dish was amazing and very light so it didn't leave you feeling overdone! You'll notice that all their menu items are named after a song which is fun. 

Totally recommend this dish

Their coffee is delicious and I had my usual, skim piccolo. My friend had their "The Cure" juice which was made up of carrot, apple, tumeric, lemon and ginger ($5.50) and hipsterly (new word to add to the dictionary) served in a glass jar.  

The service was top-notch there and if you know me, it's something I regard highly on. My friend and I spent a couple of hours there just talking, laughing and catching up and not once did we feel rushed to leave. The staff just came around every so often to see if we wanted anything else and just left us to enjoy out time.

It was such a lovely catch up and Suzie Q is a fabulous place to have brunch at; so if you're around Surry Hills, I highly recommend. I may have found another regular spot for myself. 

If you have been, please let me know what you like there or what I should try next.

Suzie Q - Coffee & Records
1/18 Hutchinson Street
Surry Hills 2010
Tel: 02) 9332 2739

Jo x

St. Jude's Cafe

Back into the grind of Sydney weekends with the sun shining and my morning Saturday routine of attending Eveleigh Farmers Market for my weekly "small shop", I met my friend for a morning walk and a lovely brunch. We made our way towards Reuben Hills in Surry Hills to have a morning coffee (since I hadn't had anything to eat or drink yet) and wow, there was a massive line for a table! So, we decided to grab an ice latte to take away and continue our walk through Surry Hills along Bourke Street towards Redfern.

Along Bourke Street in Redfern we came across St. Jude's Cafe (Corner Thurlow & Bourke Streets) and managed to acquire a table straight away. Instantly, the friendliness of the staff made me feel so welcome and confident that I made a good choice to come in. I've walked and driven pass St. Jude's many times but hadn't had an opportunity to try them out until today.

From the moment we sat down all the staff members were quick to ensure that we were comfortable, taken care of, water provided and made sure that the specials of the day were told to us. The cafe is a quirky decor with vintage dolls and framed photos of saints and all around the walls are orange butterflies. They then gave us some time to have a look through the menu and decide on what we wanted. Oh, boy, did everything look good on the menu; it was a hard decision. The only thing that we both knew was that we definitely wanted brunch, so breakfast style food - but WHAT? 

After looking around at other people's food like food stalkers we finally decided on both ordering the pumpkin and sweet corn fritters with a soft poached egg and a side of salad. Absolutely amazing! The sweetness of the corn mixed with the puree of the pumpkin and various spices made my taste buds dance around. To be honest, I haven't had fritters for a while so, to have it again and for it to be soooooo tasty, it sure made my morning brunch well worth it and the walk there sweet. It was a very decent serving size and filling and at the same time I just couldn't stop and wanted more. 

I will definitely be coming back to try other items from the menu as stalking the other customer's dishes, sure made me want more and gave me food envy. I totally recommend going there for brunch and even lunch (the menu looked good) and to top it off, the customer service is top-notch.

Have you been to St. Jude's? If so, let me know what your thoughts of the cafe are and what did you have? Also, any recommendations of what I should try next?

Jo xo

Shenkin Eatery

Another top weekend we had! After a much needed sleep-in on Sunday morning I met my beautiful girlfriend for what I was hoping to be brunch but according to my iPhone clock it was lunch time already! It's Sunday, so time doesn't matter and if there is a cafe serving brunch items all day then it's a winner in my book! 

Due to our intensive starvation situation we went to have brunch/lunch at the Shenkin Eatery that is located on Crown Street, Surry Hills. A lovely little local cafe for me and I absolutely adore them. 

The Shenkin family has always been in the inner west so to have them located in Surry Hills is a special bonus for us living in the inner city of Sydney (although it still didn't stop me going inner west as I do love it there). The family consists of Shenkin in Erskinville, Shenkin Esspresso in Newtown and Shenkin Kitchen on Enmore Road. 

The food focuses on Australian and, their heritage, Israeli palate and I must say, that's the part I like the most. Anyone can do bacon and eggs but bacon and eggs with a twist is what gets my taste buds excited and dancing for more. 

The menu is decent and provides a good size of options without having too many items or too little. The coffee there is tasty as well and the service is top notch with staff constantly making sure you're happy and comfortable. The atmosphere is casual and the design on the cafe is very cool rustic with wooden tables and steel stools. 

To start, I ordered an ice coffee and my friend had a bottled orange juice. I'd love for them to do fresh juices especially with summer coming (*cheeky hint*) but being a coffee girl I'm satisfied! I then ordered the "The Bite" and my friend ordered the "Sliders".

My dish was devine and consisted of pan-fried mushrooms, poached egg & avocado falafel served with sourdough bread, mixed lettuce and Allenby sauce. Oh, that "Allenby" sauce is to die for! I wanted to bottle it and take it home. 

The Bite with the amazing Allenby sauce drizzled all over

The Sliders

A very decent serve of food by Shenkin; you seriously don't walk out of there feeling hungry or disappointed and the flavours are delicious and go together very well. 

To the Shenkin family ~ thank you for opening up in Surry Hills and sharing your talents with us inner city peeps. I love your food and customer service and will be frequenting more often! 

Jo xo