Cafe review: Buttermelt

​From the pictures people share online, you would think Buttermelt was a cafe dedicated to pancakes. While the impressive towering stacks are enticing, it's the rest of the menu you're likely to return for.

The modest new cafe in Strathfield is trying to be many things and succeeding at most of them.

Its offerings are eclectic, traversing the usual cafe stalwarts – eggs benedict, burger and fries – plus Korean dishes and a bunch of pancakes.

This wide choice is at first somewhat confusing and disconcerting, especially with such a small kitchen, but it's hard to complain when the taste is largely on the money.

The young owner Henry Lee has worked as a barista for five years, previously at Dachshund Coffee in Hunters Hill and Cafe Centro in Eastwood, and wanted to try venturing out on his own.

He chose Strathfield for the large Korean market, which he says is increasingly embracing specialty coffee. He also wanted a vast menu to reflect the diverse community the cafe serves. To stay afloat in the competitive market, he knew he needed something to get people talking, which is where the pancakes come in.

The signature Buttermelt pancakes are not exactly daring. Using a classic batter, they are nicely cooked, served with fresh berries, pistachio nuts and Canadian maple syrup. More importantly, they look quite majestic, about four centimetres thick and triple-stacked. Diners at the table beside us spend more time photographing their food than eating it.

The standard pancakes are available from opening to 10pm, as is the brioche French toast, which is fluffy and croissant-like, served with mascarpone and berries.

However, the full pancake menu, which also includes coconut blueberry and banana pecan versions, starts at 4pm. It also features the Waffleland, a guaranteed blood-sugar spike. The lavish spread of four Belgian waffles, scoops of various ice-creams and an assortment of toppings is enough to feed a family.

Buttermelt's long opening hours also explain its varied dishes, serving breakfast, lunch, dinner, dessert and everything in between.

The well-priced breakfast offerings (8am to 3pm) include traditional cafe favourites such as bacon and eggs, bircher and mushroom bruschetta.

Korean dishes are introduced for lunch and dinner (11am to 9pm). Lee's family is Korean, so it is no surprise this is where the food shines.

The bulgogi kimchi pullover wraps moist marinated wagyu beef in a toasted tortilla, the sweet meat balanced nicely with a kimchi slaw.

The vegetarian bibimbap, which mixes rice, sauteed carrots, green beans and mushrooms under a poached egg, is our favourite savoury dish. We expect it to be quite spicy, as bibimbap usually is, but the chilli sauce is toned down with grated pear and apple, an interesting and flattering twist.

Among the most ordered items is the burger, a thick beef patty, onions, pickles, asiago cheese and mustard aioli on a brioche bun. Except that the patty was slightly overcooked, it would have been a knock out.

Decent food, Lee knows, is essential to survival, but as a barista, coffee is his first love. The Steadfast house blend comes up every week from Sensory Lab in Melbourne, a full-bodied and buttery brew that leans to the sweeter end of the coffee spectrum. The cafe also sells chai, green tea and taro-flavoured lattes.

With seats for about 30, Buttermelt fills up quickly when busy. At the rate people are sharing photos of the decadent sweets, it is set to be busy often.

THE LOW-DOWN
THE PICKS Pancakes, bibimbap, bulgogi kimchi pullover
THE COFFEE Sensory Lab
THE LOOK Industrial design with exposed pipes and wiring
THE SERVICE Friendly and eager

THE VALUE Very decent. Breakfast $8-$16.50, lunch $14-$19.50

Shop 1, 7-9 Churchill Avenue, Strathfield

Mon-Fri, 7am-10pm; Sat-Sun, 8am-10pm

facebook.com/buttermeltcafe