The Little Kitchen, Coogee – Rating: 22/25

The Little Kitchen

So today it was hot and sticky. The drive was long, the quest for parking was almost as long and the walk down the hill to The Little Kitchen was punishing… but I’d do it all again!

Despite the small waiting list that builds up on weekends due to the petite size of this café, I was determined that this was the place to review especially after our trek to get here!

And I have to say that my party didn’t make it easy on the waitstaff as we transferred from takeaway drinks to an indoor table and finally to an outdoor one. They were accommodating throughout though and always friendly. If that smile in the main photo isn’t welcoming enough, then I don’t know what is!

The local beachside crowd is a young and super-friendly one so as with most coastal cafés, breakfast here is a perfect way to start your morning.

Affogato

Flat white

After a few weeks of average coffees, we’re finally back on track! And it’s a good week to have had a quality bean because when you have a shot in an affogato ($5.50), you can really taste all of the flavours on offer. My flat white also shone. Hats off to Double Roasters and the barista.

Real berry lemonade

House juice ($7.50) is available on weekends only. They offer some great freshly squeezed juice combinations but by 10:30am today it was all sold out!

The real berry lemonade ($6) is a superb choice if you’re after something thirst quenching though with very subtle but well matched flavours.

Other drinks on offer include tomato juice, cloudy apple ($4.50 each), iced coffee, iced chocolate and iced strawberry ($6.50 each).

Kedgeree

I don’t think I’ve seen kedgeree ($19) on a Sydney breakfast menu yet! This Indian dish is rice based with spices, curry powder and fish (in this case smoked cod). The poached egg on top seems like a token “it’s a breakfast now” addition but overall, I loved the textures and savoury flavours. Maybe not the best choice for a super hot day but I would order this again.

Full English breakfast

A very comprehensive full English breakfast ($20). My guest made it less English by removing the black pudding but he relished everything that remained including pork sausage, crispy bacon, fried eggs and house baked beans. The mushrooms weren’t on the menu so I can only assume were substituted in after he removed the black pudding. Some love was given to these beans as they were full of flavour and included a few pieces of chorizo as a bonus. Highly recommended.

Grilled chorizo with fire roasted peppers

Yes, yes, I’ve recommended both dishes so far and I’ll do it again for my grilled chorizo ($18, add eggs for $3). One of my most enjoyable breakfasts in recent weeks, this was an unusual combination that I will definitely have again the next time I visit. At the base you’ll find hummus and labneh with fresh tomatoes and peppers (all in all one of the best mix of savoury flavours). The chorizo itself was a fantastic example; slightly spicy with a great snap and a morish flavour that I couldn’t get enough of. The eggs were poached perfectly.

When we arrived, TLK was already sold out of the buckwheat & ricotta pancake, berry compote, pistachio praline and maple syrup ($17) so that’s definitely on the list for next time! For that matter so is the house granola with summer berries, passion fruit, yoghurt and honey ($13), bacon & egg bap with our BBQ sauce ($10) and the avocado on toast with roast tomatoes, wild rocket and basil oil ($18).

The Little Kitchen also offers a very capable lunch and dinner menu. But as far as their breakfast goes, I have no issue with propelling them to one of the top places on the SoS list.

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