Cafe 55, 6160

A satisfying power lunch for under $12 in Freo? Hello, Cafe 55

The name says; 'predictable coffee shop', but what you'll really find are tasty Asian style lunches for the time deprived. Steaming bowls of Pho, $11 (go so well with Winter) and fresh, tangled 'Buns' (Summer choice). Western transation: rice noodle soups and salads.

 

Also for lunch you can grab a ready-made Asian salad, rice paper rolls ($6.50) and simple, yet sustaining three component Viet meals, like lemongrass chicken or pork cutlets served with a mound of steamed rice and chopped salad.

 

I give the rice paper rolls about a 6/10 but you can't go wrong with a brothy Pho or a creamy Cafe 55 Laksa!

Food: 4/5

Ambience: 2/5

Value: 4.5/5

Service: 4/5

To To Vietnamese, 6101

Are you a visual person? I am, and I love it when Asian restaurants design their menus complete with pictures and number references.  Almost like taking a jab at Western ignorance where we need it spelt out for us....It is quite handy when you want to avoid the anti-climax when the meal you're presented with is a far cry from the image you conjured up in your mind.  Picture menus allow you to avoid order bungles - you know exactly what you're getting and pronunciation is not a problem, "No. 16 please".  Like that scene in (500) Days of Summer.  Expectations > Reality =  disappointment.

The perfect lunch

Easy to navigate menu

Vermicilli with braised beef, lemongrass

Mixing it up is a fun ritual

You MUST try the beverages at To To's too! They make the most delicious traditional Vietnamese iced drinks I have tried...although they say 'beverages', but they're more like desserts; shavings of ice mingling with cubes of jelly, lychee, creamy coconut milk and exotic fruits. So refreshing on a warm day! Sometimes the contents of this fabulous concoctions are unidentifiable, but thats all part of the fun.

To To's 'special' drink

Dessert+beverage in one

Bill  -$15 such good value

No skin off my back

Food: 4/5

Service: 4/5

Ambience: 3/5

Space: 3/5