L’Americano Espresso Bar, Alexandria – Rating: 17.5/25

L’Americano Espresso Bar

You’re greeted at L’Americano Espresso Bar by a brand new, colourful and quite splendid entrance. Stepping inside, you’re greeted by the smell of fresh coffee, pastries in the counter and friendly, professional staff.

The service, I came to find, is as polished as the varnish on the model boats that line the establishment. My guest and I were served by a number of the staff members and they all knew what they were doing. From the golden cutlery to the smiles as we paid out bill, this was a great experience.

Interior

L’Americano shares its premises with (and is owned by) Coco Republic. So if you’re a people-watcher you’ll love to grab a seat and gawk at the well-heeled shoppers.

The menu is quite short and I’ll be perfectly honest: it may not suit all tastes. It’s split into two sections: primi colazione (breakfast) and secondi colazione (brunch). Both are available all day.

Flat white

Vittoria coffee ($3.50) is available here and it went down quite well. Sure, it didn’t have the depth of flavour as some of my preferred brands, but it did hit the spot. All styles are available including doppio ($3.50), ristretto ($3), iced cofee ($5) etc.

Organic hot chocolate, Ovvio organic herbal teas and organic chai high spice latte ($5 each) round off the hot beverages.

Avocado mash

Smoked ocean trout

My guest and I both chose egg dishes from the brunch menu. The common factors are that they are all served with two soft boiled eggs & organic toast and cost $22. My guest’s avocado mash also came with farro, baby heirloom tomatoes, shallots and hazelnuts. The glaze over the top lifted the dish but our only issue was the paltry amount of food; it all looked quite lonely in the middle of the plate!

My smoked ocean trout was served with shaved Spanish onions, cucumber, herbs, lemon yoghurt dressing and barley. A fine selection of ingredients but once again I just would have preferred a slightly larger serving and more tang to the yoghurt. The soft boiled eggs were cooked as I had hoped.

The one other brunch dish comes with smoked pork, spring peas & feta crush, asparagus and radish and you can add sides of crisp pancetta, smoked salmon, prosciutto, feta, avocado, heirloom tomatoes, a gluten free biscuit (all $4 each) or an egg ($2).

The breakfast end of the menu has offerings such as the L’Americano granola bowl (fresh seasonal fruits, toasted nuts and sheep milk yoghurt served with a side of milk ($10.50) and prosciutto and avocado toast ($12).

There’s something quite subdued and classical about L’Americano Espresso bar. If a tranquil surrounding is your cup of tea, then you’ll feel quite at home here. The staff treat you like royalty and the dishes, while small and on the more expensive side, show some interesting and delicious flavour combinations with some traditionally Italian ingredients.

Taste:
Presentation
Service:
Atmosphere:
Value: