One Six Nine Café, Randwick – Rating: 16.5/25

One Six Nine Café

One Six Nine is a bright and airy counter service café. It has more hot takeaway options than a lot of other spots I’ve visited but there’s also a comprehensive dine-in menu.

Service was quite lax during my visit. No water, menus or seating offered so I grabbed all of them myself. This is such an easy category in which a café can earn some quick stars in my reviews yet it can reduce a score dramatically. While my interactions with staff weren’t terrible, there was very little friendliness or anything beyond just getting the job done. Dishes were plonked on the table fairly haphazardly.

That being said, I’m happy to report that on the food, drink and presentation side of things, the scores get better.

Flat white

English breakfast tea

My coffee ($3.50) was prepared with care, with a pronounced flavour from the beans. Great presentation too.

Mixed berry smoothie

The smoothies available are mixed berry or banana ($6). Mine was very thick especially when it arrived due to some crushed ice. The flavour was on the artificial side thanks to the abundance of yoghurt but I enjoyed it overall. There were plenty of berries packed in so that made up for it.

Breakfast burrito

One of the takeaway menu items (which is also available to have dining in) is the breakfast Burrito ($8). An absolute bargain for the price, this is one filling snack that savoury lovers will enjoy. It’s comprised of scrambled egg, spiced beans and rocket with sour cream on the side. While there was no flavour explosion (some more chilli would have been great), the burrito held its structural integrity and the ingredients were cooked well.

Basil and goats cheese omelette

I don’t normally order omelettes but the basil and goats cheese omelette ($14) sounded too good to pass on. I’m glad that I chose this dish as the ingredients were plentiful enough not to be dominated by the egg. Mushrooms, pumpkin, tomato or shaved ham can be added for $1 each so I added mushroom and ham. The basil and goats cheese combination was a winner and all of the ingredients were spread evenly throughout the omelette. I added a side of bacon ($3.50) which was crispy and especially good.

The breakfast menu here is substantial and there’s a children’s section as well. Other items on the menu include the best bacon & egg roll ever with tomato relish and baby rocket ($10), eggs Benedict with chive hollandaise ($16), breakfast trifle (organic berry granola, mixed berries, Ruby and Roy’s yoghurt, $8), brioche French toast with black forest cherries, cinnamon ricotta and maple bacon, $15) and chipotle spiced house beans ($15).

Coeliacs rejoice because most items can be prepared gluten free. The dishes that we sampled during our visit definitely showed promise and I’d be happy to revisit One Six Nine. If you’re looking for a relaxing spot with both inside and outdoor seating, it’s well worth a try.

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