The Sydney Morning Herald logo
Advertisement

Meet Gerard: Aspirational breakfasting at its best

Myffy Rigby
Myffy Rigby

Breakfast story: 'Milk and honey' panna cotta.
Breakfast story: 'Milk and honey' panna cotta.Daniel Munoz

Cafe

Meet Gerard – a newish cafe around the corner from one the of the most beautiful streets in central Sydney.

Little wooden benches peek out of lavender bushes, lush greens, lilacs and gnarly, climbing tea roses. It's like taking a stroll through Kenneth Grahame's head. Disgustingly picturesque.

Back in the cafe, meet a menu devised and executed by head chef Sarah McWilliam (ex-West Juliett). An earthy, floral, brunch-friendly mix of stepped-up Sydney breakfast classics, with a twist.

Advertisement
The bacon and egg roll.
The bacon and egg roll.Daniel Munoz

Smashed avo on toast is Mexified with the addition of pickled chilli and lime, lifted with a scattering of decidedly un-Mexican yuzu flavoured sesame seeds. If you're feeling jazzy, add a poached egg.

The cutlery-averse should seriously consider the bacon and egg roll – it's one of the better non-greasy spoon (and by all rights these will always reign supreme, along with a cup of tea you can stand a spoon up in) versions making its way around town at the moment. Here, a soft, dark and floury roll holds a fried egg, its frills slightly burnished, crisp bacon and aioli with blackened tomato relish.

Spelt banana bread – aka breakfast cake of champions – is taken to a whole new level, covered in a thick layer of espresso-charged butter.

Mexified smashed avo with poached egg.
Mexified smashed avo with poached egg.Daniel Munoz
Advertisement

Just as an aside, it's probably worth mentioning the fact that a chance of ever owning in the area will probably require leaving a horse head in someone's bed. Which is vaguely hilarious when you think this used to be one big industrial area where workers' cottages were populated by actual warehouse workers, and the only thing being converted in many of those warehouses was rubber into tyres.

There gets to be a point in many a young professional Sydneysiders' lives life when they visit an industrial wasteland and realise: "I can't afford to live here." This was mine.

Anyway, enough of that. This is some gold-class, mid-morning snacking right here. So only a slice of us can afford to buy (well, anything, ever). You can still pretend and eat a delicious breakfast while you're doing it.

Restaurant reviews, news and the hottest openings served to your inbox.

Sign up
Myffy RigbyMyffy Rigby is the former editor of the Good Food Guide.

From our partners

Advertisement
Advertisement