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Newtown cafe launches Sydney bacon festival

Megan Johnston
Megan Johnston

'Bacon all the rules ' from Cuckoo Callay in Newtown.
'Bacon all the rules ' from Cuckoo Callay in Newtown.Supplied

Mark this one in your diary, Sydney bacon buffs. A cafe in the inner west is bringing home the bacon with a three-month-long celebration of all things pork-related.

From Monday, February 9, Newtown's Cuckoo Callay cafe will launch a special menu featuring bacon-heavy dishes and drinks.

From sweet to savoury, the creative list from cafe owners Ibrahim Moubadder and Eleanor Harris will include options for bacon lovers of all persuasions.

A burger with, well, bacon, at Cuckoo Callay in Newtown.
A burger with, well, bacon, at Cuckoo Callay in Newtown.Supplied
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Dude-food dishes include the beer-candied bacon and popcorn chicken burger while more refined options include the pork belly with sticky sweet chilli sauce with bacon, caper and coriander salad.

Want to go the whole hog? Brace yourself for "bacon all the rules", a mighty serve of five types of bacon including maple bacon, bourbon bacon, bacon steak, bacon sausage and bacon-crumbed poached eggs.

For sweet tooths, there's the buttermilk waffles with three types of bacon (one covered in chocolate), caramel and cinnamon ice-cream and maple syrup.

If that doesn't satisfy your bacon cravings, you can wash it all down with a bacon shake or bacon cocktail.

Richard Deignan of Black Forest Smokehouse in Marrickville has supplied the cafe with his all-Australian range since the venue opened more than a year ago.

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His maple-cured streaky bacon (also available cured in bourbon) will feature on the festival menu alongside specially designed products such as bacon sausage and bacon "steak" (pork loin cooked and smoked like bacon but sliced more thickly).

Deignan, who has sampled the new menu, says while some of the flavour combinations may seem unusual, the menu is more than a gimmick.

"[The cafe staff] just take it to the next level when they try to do something special," he says.

Deignan recommends pork punters try the opening dish of bacon, basil and cheddar croquettes and a cocktail from the drinks list.

"The other stunning dish was the bacon dipped in chocolate on a waffle …" he says.

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"That was a great combination. I wouldn't have thought of it but it works."

The cafe's special bacon menu will run alongside its regular options for 12 weeks.

The bacon festival commences on February 9, Cuckoo Callay, 324A King Street, Newtown Railway Station, Newtown, (02) 9557 7006, cuckoo-callay.com.au

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Megan JohnstonMegan Johnston is a producer and writer for Good Food.

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