Fleetwood Macchiato, Erskineville – Rating: 20/25

Fleetwood Macchiato

What was The Kick Inside has now become Fleetwood Macchiato and what a great discovery this café has turned out to be.  We both (April and Dane) paid them a visit earlier this week and Dane liked it so much that he returned a few days later to share the experience with some family members.

The interior contains a handful of tables with a steady turnover of guests.  The vibe and music is uplifting, the barrista is talkative and the chefs are absolute artists.

Orange, mango and raspberry juice

One of the fresh juices ($5) on the specials board is orange, mango and raspberry.  We could taste and savour every one of the promised fruits in this superb combination.  Also currently available are pink grapefruit and orange (separately).

Housemade mandarin soda

As with a lot of the other foods at FM, they make their own soda ($5).  Current offerings are lemonade, pink grapefruit, mandarin, pomegranate or pink lemonade.  The mandarin is not as sweet as we would have imagined.  A delicate but purposeful flavour.  Perfect for summer.

Cappuccino

El Borbollen espresso

Soy cappuccino

‘Coffee experts’ is all we can say.  Golden cobra beans are used and the blends vary depending on the day/week/month.  We tried two espressos: debut de siecle (60% Plan Del Guayabo from Guatamala and 40% Chelba Mill from Ethiopia) and el Borbollen from el Salvador.  The former was a lot less acidic and both were superb.

Jersey milk ricotta

One of two dishes we shared was the jersey milk ricotta ($11) which is served on rye toast and topped with macadamias and burnt honey.  The ricotta is made on the premises and was just the right consistency – not too dry or wet.  The cluster of sticky macadamias was heavenly with strings of honey trailing off as we pulled  the nuts away.  Highly recommended.

Nectarine, rose, rhubarb, lychee and fresh almonds

Nectarine, rose, rhubarb, lychee and fresh almonds ($10)… When a café serves a fruit salad with these ingredients, you know you have found something unique.  And it worked so well!  The rose water adds the slightest delicate flavour to the fresh fruit.  There was nothing not to enjoy.  And they used one of Dane’s favourite fruits: lychees!

Smashed egg breakfast roll

The smashed breakfast roll ($12.50, $14.50 with ham) is an artistic variation of the standard bacon and egg roll.  The combination of crunchy pickles, avocado, soft oozy eggs and moist mushrooms add variety in texture and colour.  Pickles, mustard aioli and a decent dash of Srirach (a red sauce with a kick) thrown into the mix bring really do make this roll something special.  It was very generous and we struggled to eat it all.

Herb and olive rolled poached eggs

Herb and olive rolled poached eggs (visit 2)

More than just a pretty plate, the herb and olive rolled poached eggs ($16.50) brought with it flavours that we savoured (twice because it was ordered on the second visit as well).  The eggs are well hidden beneath edible leaves and flowers, with an orange hollandaise poured over.  The hollandaise itself is a triumph and on the second visit Dane became extremely excited as he watched the chef grating the zest into the sauce behind the counter.  The small cups of saffron pickled eschallots harbour yet more unique delicate flavours, they were a great accompaniment.

Braised white beans

The braised white beans ($10.50) are served with sourdough, multigrain or gluten free tapioca toast.  The beans themselves  were gorgeous, flavoured with oregano, house preserved lemon and smoked onion relish.  This is a perfect small dish for any bean lover; light and very flavoursome.

House smoked salmon

Poached eggs with toast

Sure you can order the poached eggs ($9) which comes with your choice of some fantastic sourdough or multigrain toast.  Or you can spice it up with some sides such as shaved leg ham, Rodriguez Bros chorizo or fennel, shiso & purslane salad ($5 each) amongst others.  Dane added avocado for $4.

We had heard fantastic things about the salmon house smoked in lemon myrtle and pepperberry ($5).  It certainly delivered thanks to the high quality of the salmon and subtle flavours.  We can recommend the above combination – spread the avo on the toast, layer on the salmon and break the egg over the top!

We and all of our guests were thoroughly impressed by the food and drink served at Fleetwood Macchiato.  If you’re driving you may need to hunt for parking in the residential area nearby but the train station is a very short stroll down Erskineville Road.  We found the service to be more reactive than proactive ie we sometimes had to prompt the waitstaff that we wanted to order.  Once we had their attention though, we had all of it.  The staff are accommodating and extremely friendly.

If you are around in June, be sure to visit Erskineville for the Tiny Stadiums festival.  It includes endurance meditation, ‘sober dance’ and Vietnamese market stalls.  See it to believe it!