The Mends Street Cafe always seems to be busy when I go next door to La Patisserie. I even saw Manu Feildel in there once when the Good Food show was on at the Convention Centre. Today I went to La Patisserie for a last coffee and almond croissant before the New Year diet starts and was disappointed to find it closed. I decided to go next door to Mends Street cafe for something brekkie-ish.
The area around Mends Street is very nice – it’s a little bit of a cafe strip with a quaint nearby arcade, and the South Perth foreshore at the bottom of the street, and the Transperth ferry jetty close by. It is usually a very good photo opportunity and today was no exception – a lovely sunny New Years Day.
I chose a soy chai latte and a plate of blueberry pancakes. My companion chose a full brekkie and a flat white.
The waitress brought the wrong drinks to the table, and when we said that we had not ordered cappuccinos, she looked at us as if we must be in the wrong. Eventually the correct drinks were served.
The coffee was a little bitter (which usually means that the beans are not fresh), but I was pleased to see my chai latte served in a glass with a handle. Nothing annoys me more than hot coffee served in a glass with no handle. You then have to wrestle with the glass and a napkin to avoid burned fingers – in my opinion glasses are for cold drinks (unless they have a handle).
I did have to send the chai latte back though – it was incredibly weak and tasted like hot milk. I didn’t get any kind of apology – the waitress just said that the chai they use is a very weak one…. hmm…. why not use more of it then ? or use a stronger version?
Blueberry pancakes were nice – I could have had cream, but as I am minimising my dairy intake, I chose syrup alone. Nice, but not wow. I know when food is delicious when I already start planning my next trip to the restaurant, whereas today, I was just reinforcing my disappointment that next door’s cafe was closed.
My companion’s full brekkie was underwhelming too – the eggs were nice, but one was a bit hard, the fried potatoes were a nice touch, but the bacon and sausages were average and the whole dish underseasoned.
Will I rush back to Mends Street cafe ? Not really – there are way better cafes in Perth – it’s time that Mends Street picked up their game.
Visit Date – September 2011
Truly Scrumptious 
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