Bondi Hall, Bondi – Rating: 16.5/25

Bondi Hall

With such a broad choice of cafés at Bondi Beach, it’s hard to pick one. But that’s just what my guest and I had to do! With no recommendations from readers this week, we simply chose a spot and sat down.

Service was a bit slow on the uptake but nothing unbearable. Once the waitstaff started to pay attention to us, they were on the ball. The staff have some personality too which was refreshing.

This is a narrow café with limited seating so you might want to get in early! There’s an obvious South American theme to the menu as Mexican flavours and ingredients adorn the dish descriptions. After a bit of Googling though, we had chosen what we wanted!

Flat white

Orange pekoe tea

My flat white ($4) was served in an unusual stone cup which looked great. The coffee was prepared reasonably well but its flavours didn’t astound me. And that’s what I’m after these days; a cup that makes me say “wow” after the first sip. The beverage list isn’t huge. The other hot drinks are the ubiquitous teas ($4.50) such as orange pekoe, peppermint, lemongrass & ginger and sencha green.

On the cold side of things, there’s iced latte ($4.50), seasonal cold press ($7) or orange & thyme soda ($5).

Croissant

I wasn’t thinking when I ordered the croissant. I’m being picky here but I don’t like that Bondi Hall has them sitting out in the open on the counter. Not only because of the inevitability of people coughing over them but if you have baked goods, the last thing you want to do is keep them out in the open!

Anyway, our croissant was okay. It was served to us and the jam followed eventually. Apparently the chef was angry with the staff for not clearing plates fast enough. So the only logical conclusion is to sulk and punish your clientele by withholding their jam.

Fried eggs with chimmi churri

I hold no grudge against the kitchen at Bondi Hall though because our dishes from there on out were amazing. My guest ordered the fried eggs with chimmi churri which was served with a chilli guacomole on the side. Absolutely delicious! The presentation was on point, the eggs cooked just right and a tangy, spicy kick from the chimmi churri. The avocado had plenty of love too as it was seasoned very well. Kudos!

Baked eggs

Bacon short loin

After such a disappointing baked egg dish last week, I’m delighted to say that Bondi Hall does it right! To this baked eggs ($19.50) dish I added goats curd and bacon short loin ($6). The chunky, rich tomato base hit the spot thanks to its seasoning and excellent use of herbs and spices. The creamy goats curd is an excellent option and the eggs were baked perfectly. The toast on the side makes for a great scoop and the addition of the bacon short loin with it’s thick, chewy consistency can’t be faulted.

No matter whether you need a cool escape from the beach heat or a delicious start to or through your day, Bondi Hall did a few things wrong but a lot of things right. They’re worth a visit for some quality food with a bit of flair.

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