Uliveto, Kings Cross – Rating: 22.5/25 (re-review)

It has been far too long since we last visited Uliveto.  On that and all other occasions, they have excelled in the areas we are critical of.  Once again, the hosts literally welcome us with open arms to a table in the already-bustling courtyard.  The crowd is a mix of all walks of life yet they all bare large smiles and interactions are common.  We have a sense of belonging here that we have yet to feel elsewhere.  And without reading our previous review before deciding the rating, they have managed to claw another half-star to reach the heights of 22.5!

Currently holding the Good Food Guide award for best coffee art, Uliveto’s brews are more than meet the eye – they taste superb too.  Unfortunately the artistic barrista was away this morning but the smooth flavours make up for it.  Out skim cappuccinos ($3) taste fantastic.

Despite promising to try more flavours when we returned, we had to have the strawberry smoothie ($7) again.  Made with buttermilk, the fruit smoothies are available with banana, passionfruit, mango, raspberry, strawberry or blueberry.  Fresh fruit is used whenever possible.  These are some of the best smoothies Dane has tried (and you’ll notice he tries a lot!).

Freshly squeezed juices are available for $7 and include orange, apple, pineapple, watermelon, celery, carrot, beetroot or ginger.  Something chilled?  Frappes ($7) come with mango, raspberry, blueberry, strawberry or fruit salad.

The breakfast sandwich ($12)… boring name, outstanding breakfast!  Enveloped in crunchy Turkish toast came multiple layers of bacon, spinach, grilled tomato and slightly runny egg.  The tomato actually provides a lot of flavour and everything works together beautifully.  Nice price too.

You could paint a picture of this dish.  The fresh fruit bruschetta ($12) is our host’s favourite dish when he comes here to eat on his day off.  The seasonal fruit is on a layer of ricotta, baked and then drizzled with maple syrup.  The result is outstanding and works even better when shared so that you can enjoy something savoury with your sweet dish.  Perhaps something like the…

Welsh rarebit ($10).  Again, we found the prices outstanding.  Oozing with cheese just how we like it and with the right amount of kick from the mustard, the rarebit was mouth-wateringly good.  The salad is there to make it look as though you’re having something healthier than cheese on toast!  We ordered bacon on the side ($3).

On the specials menu, we discovered the self-describing dish of panfried potatoes, mushroom, onion, bacon and egg ($15).  Our guest thoroughly enjoyed his meal.  So much so that he wolfed it down before we managed to sneak a taste.

We have a rule when visiting Uliveto… leave room for dessert.  The cake and pastries counter is always bulging with art-like sweets and we couldn’t resist ordering one.  The apple and redcurrant tartine unbelievably tasted even better than it looked.  The redcurrants packed a sweet tartness and contrasted well with the glazed apple.  Top it with cream and we were bowled over.

Well they managed to do it again.  We find Uliveto to be a huge crowd pleaser that goes from strength to strength.  All of our dishes and beverages are of fantastically high quality and the prices for food of this quality and size are exceptionally reasonable.  Do we even have to say that we will be back?

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