Organism

August 11, 2019

We've just had a long weekend in Sydney and we based ourselves in Darlinghurst, a neighbourhood that Michael and I are now quite familiar with. Even so, we didn't recognise the cafe Organism just next door to Shenkin. It's got a cute, rambling vibe and a promise of waffles, so I gently steered Michael and his mum there for a small Sunday breakfast.

The menu is centred primarily around toast, rolls, bagels and waffles and there's a gorgeous display case of croissants, pies and muffins. Vegetarian options are plentiful; vegan and gluten-free options are less common but well-marked, including a lunch-time bibimbap that hits both marks.

After initially being drawn to the tofu l'ancienne roll, Michael settled on the Crush'n on Avo ($14) - a modest portion of sourdough toast and smashed avocado, topped here with tomato, feta, parsley and black sesame seeds.

There's a mini waffle menu with four different options, and I was in the mood to skip by the ostentatious ice-cream-laden ones and just get the simple ricotta version ($8). This really brought out the best in the waffle! It was lightly crisp with caramelised spots on the outside, concealing a thick seam of lemony house ricotta through the middle. A topping of maple syrup and cinnamon sugar supplied ample sweetness, and I enjoyed a rare honey yuzu tea ($6) on the side.  

I was utterly charmed by Organism, with its slightly cluttered nooks and understated meals. I'll definitely check in on them again, hopefully for a slice of pie next time, whenever I find myself in Darlinghurst again.

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Organism
288 Crown St, Darlinghurst
(02) 7901 2509
menu
facebook page

Accessibility: Pretty limited! There's a steep, curling staircase with handrails to enter. Furniture is densely packed and a little rickety, a mixture of heights and back supports. We ordered at our table and paid at a high counter. We didn't visit the toilets.

Bills

February 20, 2015

In a single week we had the rare pleasure of sharing two meals in two cities with Another Outspoken Female, and on this second occasion with her Significant Eater too. AOF nominated bills for our Friday lunch in Sydney. Curiously we found an entire cricket team queued up ahead of us in Surry Hills, so we ducked over to the Darlinghurst branch; here we were seated within 10 minutes.

Brunch at bills is a very Sydney thing to do - though I only remember Bill Granger vaguely as that guy in the toothpaste ad he's a chef of twenty years with many restaurants, cookbooks and TV series to his name. And actually - as AOF had in mind - brunch at bills is also a fairly veg-friendly thing to do. Though there aren't any guiding markers on the menu, we were spoiled for choice with muesli, granola and fruit bowls, pastries and cakes, eggs and toast and choose-your-own sides, plus pancakes and fritters. Vegan options are a little more scarce, though there's avo on toast and a more novel brown rice and sweet miso porridge served with coconut yoghurt, mango and lime.

Michael was impressed by his plate of broken eggs, ricotta, spinach, pine nuts and chilli with grilled sourdough ($20) - it held at least as much flavour as it did colour.

I felt obliged (and, let's be honest, keen) to order the famous ricotta hotcakes ($20; turns out I do know one other thing about Bill Granger). I'm generally ambivalent about ricotta hotcakes but these fellas were great! Thick and fluffy with the flavour of fresh curds. It was the embellishments that let me down - the generous honeycomb butter discs didn't taste of much and the banana was fresh and just blandly sweet as bananas are. Amidst all that yellow I would've loved some tangy red fruit as a contrast.

While the bills restaurant prices and pull come from its long reputation and not its current innovation, they didn't come off as awfully complacent. The corn fritters and gravlax of a decade ago compete for space alongside ingredients like kale and coconut yoghurt, and everything we ate was well executed. Whether it's worth a weekend queue and the tick on your Sydney to-do list is up to you.

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There are myriad bills blog posts online. The Darlinghurst breakfast menu is beloved by Life of a Travel Czar, The Gluttonous Gourmand, Spice, Sugar and Soda, Wintour & Guinness, Babygourmand, The Hedonist Life, delicioux, scenes from my lunch hour, Dining with a Stud, ManMen's Journey, Iron Chef Shellie, brekkie quest, Eats Food, Hates You and Sydney Indulgence. Reviews are more mixed on The Present Is. and 8ites, and decidedly negative on The Jolly Belly and Richard Elliot.

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bills
433 Liverpool St, Darlinghurst
(02) 9360 9631
menu
http://www.bills.com.au/

Accessibility: There are a couple of steps up on entry. Tables are moderately well spaced across two levels divided by a couple of steps. We ordered and paid at our table. Toilets were located outside and down a courtyard. 

Mad Hatter Cupcakery

Update 31/12/2014: Mad Hatter Cupcakery has closed down.

February 27-28, 2014

I had a work jaunt to Sydney and found myself staying within walking distance of the Mad Hatter Cupcakery, a newly opened vegan bakery in Darlinghurst. I'm not a huge connoisseur of cupcakes, but Rosalie's post had got me excited to sample the vegan pastry offerings on my walk to work.

It's a cute little shop with a couple of tables and a few stools at a high counter - I imagine most of the business is in takeaways. I think the menu gradually expands through the day as owner Jessica keeps baking - on the first morning I arrived before the croissants were ready and had to make do with a scroll ($4).

It was very sweet and quite cakey -not quite the crumbly pastry I was hoping for, but still warm and delicious, with the cinnamon and sugar working their magic. I went back the next day to try my luck again and managed to turn up at the right moment to grab a freshly baked croissant ($4).

This was a bit more pastry-ish, but still heavier and more cake-like than I want from a croissant - it's clearly a challenge to reproduce flaky pastry without butter and Mad Hatter is doing an okay job of it, but it won't fool a non-vegan. Mad Hatter is a lovely addition to Sydney's veg scene, providing a similar service to Crumbs or Mr Nice Guy in Melbourne. Some of the stuff on their Facebook page looks incredible, so you're probably better off turning up a bit later in the day when the full range is available.

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The rave review on quinces and kale alerted me to this place's existence, while Little Vegan Bear, gemsandplains and Vegan in Sydney have all enjoyed the previous incarnations of Mad Hatter at the Glebe Markets or Broadway shopping centre.

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Mad Hatter Cupcakery

24 Flinders St, Darlinghurst

0403 314 690

basic pastries $4, cupcakes $3

http://www.madhattercupcakery.com/

Accessibility: There's a very small step on entry into a reasonably spacious interior. You order and pay at a high counter and have the option of low tables or high benches to sit at. I didn't visit the toilets.