Cooh Cafe

Don't be misled by the coastal address. While Cooh is an easy stroll from two beaches - North Curly down the hill, Dee Why up and over the hill - there are no waves in sight. The cafe is on a side street, part of a small suburban shopping strip, but the lack of scenery hasn't affected its popularity. I've already been here for breakfast with a friend, now I'm here for lunch with another friend.

Though it's 2pm, we could still order from the longer breakfast menu, which is served all day - I can recommend the generous plate of zucchini buckwheat fritters, with avocado, roast tomato and smoked salmon. The more succinct lunch menu has a choice of chicken or beef burger, bruschetta, falafel platter, fish of the day and Moroccan lamb tagine, plus sides of chips or salad and a few sandwiches left in the deli counter.

The food takes a while to arrive after we order and pay at the counter, but we're happy chatting like everyone else here. We admire the tables, custom-made from recycled fence palings, as are the bench seats and front counter. The atmosphere is breezy and relaxed, splicing beachy casual with inner city cool.

Cooh is the joint venture of two 25-year-old best friends, Rachel Trevarton and Scarlett Forward. After cooking together for years for fun, they decided to do it for a living. Unimpressed with most ''health food'' cafes, where the food wasn't very tasty, the friends wanted do better. The name Cooh comes from carboxylic acid, or CO2H, found in organic food. Organic ingredients are used wherever possible, and the menu has lots of gluten-free and vegetarian options.

The tagine is definitely tasty and top notch comfort food: tender, slow-cooked lamb studded with apricots and raisins on a bed of well-cooked quinoa, with sweet potato and labne. The beef burger is a teetering stack of free-range beef patty, bacon, cheese, egg, onion, beetroot, tomato and spinach sandwiched by a brown sourdough bun. Does that make it healthy?

Despite the architectural challenges of eating it with a knife and fork, it all disappears. The hand-cut chips are a bit soggy, but they go, too, with a little help from my friend.

We are seated next to the coffee roaster, which is fired up several afternoons a week by Cooh's resident barista, who makes the house blend with beans from Papua New Guinea, India and Ethiopia. It's deliberately smooth, a little too much so for my tastes. Customers looking for more kick can try the single origin coffees. Tea is also treated with care. Lemongrass and ginger tea comes in a squat, cast-iron pot, with proper leaves and a chunky rustic teacup.

As they often are by late afternoon, the cakes baked inhouse each day have sold out. Trevarton reels off some examples: mini pavlovas, gluten-free orange cake, cheese cake, muffins, brownies and a ''superfood'' slice. All good reasons to get here earlier next time.

Menu Wholesome cafe food
Value Good
Recommended dishes Beef burger with the lot, Moroccan lamb tagine, zucchini buckwheat fritters