Gusto Deli Café, Paddington – Rating: 20/25

Gusto Deli Cafe

There are numerous choices of cafés at Paddington’s Five Way intersection.  The locals however seem to flock towards Gusto in droves and it looked to be one of the more welcoming establishments.  There is limited window counter seating inside but lots of space outside.  As seems to be customary at Sydney cafés nowadays, pets are welome with bowls of water available at the entrance.

Breakfast rolls, quiches, cakes, fruit salad, beef wraps and more...

A lot of food is available fast as it is premade but extremely fresh.  The beef wraps (roast beef, lettuce, tomato, carrot, chutney, cucumber, beetroot $9) and breakfast rolls (poached egg, leg ham, tomato, cheese and hollandaise sauce on a toasted onion roll $9) looked very good.  The bowls of seasonal fruit salad with passion fruit ($10.50) are made daily.  There were also many more cakes, pastries and cookies.

Patrons order and pay at the counter then take a number for their table.

Berry Smoothie (strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries & low fat yoghurt)

Being a slave to the berry smoothie I couldn’t resist when I looked at the drinks menu and saw the berry smoothie (strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries & low fat yoghurt).  It was thick and very yoghurty but full of fresh berries – I’m all berried out but loving it!

The other two members of our table could not stop raving about the skim cappuccinos.  “One of the best coffees I’ve had in a long time”… enough said!

Eggs Benedict with bacon

Barely five minutes passed after ordering before our food arrived.  The eggs benedict (served on a toasted muffin with Hollandaise Sauce) and bacon ($12) as opposed to the options of ham or salmon arrived first.  All ingredients bar the eggs (with a little too much water spilling out on cutting) were cooked well.  The Hollandaise was good but there was nothing extraordinary about this benedict compared to that of every other café in Sydney.

B.L.A.T. (bacon, lettuce, avocado, tomato, aioli on Turkish bread)

I chose the affectionately named BLAT.  I wasn’t expecting anything very exciting but like to see how various cafés try to add some flash to classic dishes.  From the first bite I regretted that there wasn’t more of this sandwich on my plate!  The powerful garlic of the aioli was astounding.  Thankfully the cooks had been liberal with its use as it worked so well with all of the ingredients.  The Turkish bread was delightfully soft.  All in all a finger-licking dish.

Goats cheese & tomato quiche

It seems to be rare in our reviews that there is more than one standout dish.  Gusto changes all that with the goats cheese & tomato quiche ($8). I was not expecting much when my sister ordered a quiche.  This however was a dish to go back for!  The flavour combination was fantastic.  If you’re a fan of goats cheese, order this and if you’re not a fan of goats cheese… change your thinking and order this!  The salad was topped with a reduced balsamic dressing.  Altogether a light but winning experience.

Chocolate brownie

Unfortunately the lure of this chocolate brownie ($?) was too much for one companion to resist and a bite was stolen before it was allowed to pose for the camera.  Dense and full of chocolate chunks, another high recommendation.  Can Gusto do anything wrong?

The uplifting beats of the music inside aren’t overpowering and don’t reach outside.  Instead you’re left to enjoy the chatter of the patrons – a mix of all types and ages.  The surrounding residential streets are thankfully quiet and make this café stand out at Five Ways.

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Overall Rating: 20/25

Phone: 9361 5640
Address: Broughton St (cnr Heeley St), Paddington, NSW, 2021

Payment Options: CC, EFTPOS, cash