New Moon, 6000

A hint for a good Chinese restaurant I think, is the house chili oil. Chili oil to Chinese is what complimentary bread is to a French restaurant. New Moon have built a recipe for a deep flavoured spicy oil that has an unpredicted crunch. Between three of us we drained about nine serves of the stuff. Couldn't get enough!



As the routine goes at any worthy dim sum joint, the room is hustling in disorderly order. Things move rapidly and orders are hollered across the room. High turnover means dumplings appear in shimmering, steaming, joyous freshness. I'm not exactly the authority on a quality dumpling like I am say on cake or ice cream (I have only had a handful of yum cha experiences in my day) but these guys impressed me most. 



I heart the comforting fluffy pork buns (Char Siu Bao). Sweet shreds of Chinese barbecued pork, snuggled inside a pillowy bun. I had to gobble two. Prawn Coriander dumplings were also le goods. The parcels were packed with hearty chunks of sweet prawns and chopped herbs, with little stodge.

BBQ Pork Buns

Prawn and Coriander dumplings; slippery wrappers with generous stuffing

Fried Chili Squid Tentacles were a tad on the tough side, but I don't think I've ever tried any that weren't.  We ordered some perfectly steamed Kai-Lan which were served with the routine oyster sauce on the side. 

Chilli Fried Squid Tentacles; well seasoned but hard to the bite

Steamed Kai-Lan served with self pour oyster sauce

Xiao Long Bao come recommended. Also known as Shanghai dumplings or soup dumplings, these gems contain filling along with a gingery rich broth. They’re a bit of a delicate procedure and best consumed with a spoon or by slinging them into your mouth in one go! 

Xiao Long Bao; 'soup dumplings' or 'Shanghai dumplings' reveal a surprising broth inside

I'm not usually an Asian dessert wooer but the silky Egg Custard Tarts were perfect! The flaky pastry split in a pinch when I divided it with a chopstick. And those golden sunny centers. Yerrmm.

Egg Custard Tarts. Divine!

Décor is new and well lit with the token garish light fixtures. Is it an authentic dim sum restaurant without the kitschy chandeliers? The brigade of trolley shufflers revealed a friendly demeanor, which was out of custom with the usual yum cha service.

Dumplings and iPhones. New Moon on a Tuesday lunch

8 bamboo baskets and endless tea filled three of us up for just under $16. Great-value fresh dim sum means that weekend queues are a norm. I ran into a (hungover) friend who had been waiting over an hour (ouch!). VIP-it and book ahead. You'll be the object of dim sum die-hard envy! 

While New Moon is probably the newest dim sum joint in Northbridge, they're already a hit with dim sum devotees. They offer the traditional trolley service but step into the new age by blessing us with dumplings on Friday and Saturday nights too. Picture it: the tail end of Friday night drinks and the munchies call. Dumplings rule over a greasy doner kebab, for sure!

Food: 4/5 (Fresh, delicate, hot and tasty!)
Ambience: 4/5 (A bustle of efficient chaos, bright modern interior with the token garish light fixtures)
Service: 4/5 (Super efficient and friendlier than is the norm for dim sum)
Value: 5/5 (8 plates and endless tea = $47)

The Office on Harrogate, 6007

I knew I was onto a winner when I recognised the lady heading up the kitchen here is from Voyage in Sorrento. You can expect the same wholesome and modern food that doesn't rely on fatty crap for bravado. Fresh and lean; an excellent lighter lunch option for West Leedy office workers. Actually, I'm kinda jealous I don't work within radius! 

Snazzy salads, toasted paninis, lamb wraps, seasonal soups...Might all sound a little 'standard' but you'd be way off. Everything is done with a little more attention to detail here like; serving fresh squeezed juices in mason jars and making sure every quesadilla that leaves that kitchen has a spritely garnish of greens and house made chutney. 

Medium mixed salad plate

For your afternoon sugar fix, The Office on Harrogate has you sorted. Of the wholefood treats on offer; the miniature Sticky Date Cakes proved most popular. Deftly crafted coffee is of the 5 senses breed and the gentlemen serving it up are super fine.

I wouldn't make The Office on Harrogate your next location for a fancy lunch date, but working 9-5 in the area, this should be your staple!

Food: 4/5 (Fresh ingredients, changing menu and never boring)

Coffee: 4/5 (Expertly crafted)

Service: 4/5 (Friendly, efficient for the quality)

Space: 3/5 (Variety of seating indoors and outdoors, for large group meetings or two person lunch dates)

Moana Coffee, 6000

We don’t ‘look up’ enough we humans. Focused always on the path ahead, we fail so often to observe the beauty above us. Moana Coffee reminds us to stop and smell the roses. You’d quite likely fail to notice it if you hadn’t heard the chatter on the grapevine. Suspended over the commercial Hay Street Mall, Moana is like a floating island of calm, and is perfect for a bit of solitude away from the tourist traps below. 

The balcony cafe, which you reach by a stately staircase, is positioned at level with the canopy of colonial buildings; the historic skeletons, of what they today house at street level. Up here you’ll meet Tranquility, History and Coffee.

Since its beginnings in 1907 as a café, the bygone Moana Chambers have seen an assortment of tenants from tailors, to jewellery makers, to families and theatre performers. Sewing machines and theatre chairs have since been replaced with coffee gears and low and high seats on which to perch; but the historic casing still remains. The reactivation of Moana Chambers into cafe-gallery and office space is thanks to a collab between the City of Perth and Spacemarket. Spacemarket has been responsible for awakening a number of underused buildings around Perth and repurposing them for creative ventures like artist studios.

 

Hanging outside on the quiet balcony is peaceful and charming. British Racing Car Green coffee cups, looped fairy lights, buffed floorboards, up cycled chairs and elegant archways. The ambience is lovely. Leaving will be an ache.

The beans are supplied by Bonissimo; my soy cappuccino had rich flavour and a fat crema, with good cocoa dusting. To fill your tummy, there’s a simple selection of bakes, toasties and salads, plus soups for the wintertime. 

I’ll be honest, I’ve been sitting on this review for a while, mostly for self-seeking reasons; I’d like Moana to stay the city centre sanctuary it is! The earnest owners work hard though, and deserve every patron they get. So I put my selfish motives aside, to share with you this treasure…

Coffee: 4/5 (Full flavoured and produced to a high level)
Ambience: 5/5 (An oasis. Can’t help but linger)
Service: 4/5 (Sweet and sincere)
Value: 4/5 (Slice of homemade pumpkin bread: $3.50, Small coffee: $3.80, soy milk: 30c)

Typika, 6010

Britney Spears ‘Toxic’ and Anastacia ‘I’m Outta Love’ were the last tunes I expected to hear when I visited the latest hotspot for a fashionable brunch last week. I like to indulge in some noughties pop now and then, just not over morning eggs and artisan-roast coffee. Thankfully, the taste in brunch hour music was the only point out of shape here.

Typika has become an instant favourite among Western suburb ladies of leisure and you don’t have to spy hard to see why. Exciting menu, quality cooking, smart service and a behemoth space that features a state-of-the-art coffee roaster. With floor-to-ceiling glass walls, the lab-like roasting room takes the limelight at Typika. The mammoth yellow building is a bit of an eyesore from the street, but there's a buzz inside and you sort of feel like you’re dining in a stylish, pumping factory. 

The AM menu is fresh, thoughtful and full of things that sound like something you’d want to try. Typika really used their genius when they dreamed up the Spiced Beef Benedict ($18.50). Gooey poach eggs and tears of slow-cooked beef come smothered with Harissa (Tunisian chilli paste) spiced Hollandaise. A defiant version of a breakfast classic. It’s that dish that creates buzz, and launches a hundred Instagram tags. The dish that your boyfriend/dad/big brother will probably order. 

Eggs Benedict with salmon on house baked gluten free bread

Not having the backbone for beef at 10am, I went for the Eggs Benedict with smoked salmon. The helping of fleshy pink salmon, wilted spinach and Hollandaise, was generous. What really impressed me was their Multigrain Gluten Free Bread ($2? extra) which they bake on site. A combination of Tapioca, Soy and Rice flour, this was seriously the most deceptively gluten-free bread I have ever tried. Springy, fluffy and wonderfully not like cardboard! 

The tour de force: coffee. Well, it was very good. Full-bodied, rich and smooth. The only downside are the steep prices, but admittedly, I wasn’t surprised by them in this neck of the woods, especially as the owners (of Cimbalino) are famously elevated pricers.

Also on offer are some little deconstructed cake pots and biscuits that would make fine breakfast dessert. Next time! 

With food this exciting and coffee this good; finally that mediocre Atomic place has some healthy competition. 

Food: 3.5/5 (Big portions, bold flavours and fantastic house baking)
Coffee: 3.5/5 (In house roasting is pretty good)
Service: 3/5 (Efficient but dismissive at times)
Ambience: 3/5 (On the fence. Bustling, open....questionable music)

Value: 3/5 (Not cheap. Paying for quality and locale.)

Tea For Tú, 6000

Tea for Tú has all the makings of a girlie meeting place – pastel vintage crockery, a small library of loose leaf teas, cutesy fit out, and a willfully obscured courtyard that is perfect for gossiping.

Via William St.

Courtyard and urban art on Lock Lane

Fall upon this hideaway by one of two ways: underneath (one of my fave bars) Mechanics Institute via Lock Lane; or through a buried doorway at the back of Tú boutique. It’s all very The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. This minuscule tea salon, with its daydreaming decor and inconspicuous nature; will have you seeking it on days you just want to get away from the noise.

Courtyard via Lock Lane

In order to fully indulge your inner Marie Antoinette, take your tea with a French pastry. Choose from a small showcase of delectable sweets; cupcakes, croissants and masterpieces from Choux.  Heading trends; Tea for Tú are also one of the few cafes that serve creamy green tea lattes and price take-away coffee at $3 before 9am. 

If all this frou-frou isn’t for you, then maybe the free Wi-fi connection, kindly service and coffee strong enough to give you the jitters, is.

Coffee: 4/5 (Strong, full-bodied, smooth).

Cakes: 4/5 (Small selection of fine looking cakes)

Service: 4/5 (Chatty, obliging and cute!)

Ambience: 4/5 (A tucked away location for quiet contemplation and secret catch ups)

Excelsior Deli, 6008

I chanced upon Excelsior Deli whilst running errands in the Western Suburbs the other morning. The pleasant location is accessible yet somewhat secret. A small detour from the Subiaco commercial hub, this cafe-delicatessen is positioned on a leafy Shenton Park street.

I stopped in for a Soy Long Mac after observing the gadgets and damn, it was delicious! The combination of - Synesso machine, 5 Senses Compton Road blend and a moustached barista- is proving a heady mix! Smooth and creamy texture with a hazelnutty, buttery taste. Perfect with soy milk and the best i've had in months! It reminded me a lot of the stuff at The Daily Espresso Bar in Swanbourne, who guess what? - use the Synesso/5 senses/hipster barista formula too.

The nifty space has seating to convenience a variety of visitors: 4 seaters, alfresco seekers, newspaper readers and a big table up the back with a bit more privacy that would work nicely for client meetings.

Back table ideal for meetings

There are some tidy looking sweets like Portuguese tarts, chocolate banana bread and oval berry friands which look either home made or very well sourced. You could also make a satisfying brunch of one of the savoury items. And also: gelato! I'm not sure of the brand or if its homemade but it stood out as high quality to me.

     


Need to get caffeinated in Subi? Detour to Onslow Rd. You wont be disappointed.

Coffee: 4.5/5 (Food and drink is not cheap but oh, that coffee was gewwwd!)

Service: 3/5 (Nay the fastest coffee up, but they're concentrating on consistency)

Value: 2/5 (Regular Soy Long Mac = $5)

Dough Pizza, 6000

In a nightlife hotspot, and with a funky (if slightly young and trendy) décor, its gratifying to see the main focus here is the authentic Napoli pizzas. This means airy crust with a charred exterior and a chewy centre with pointedly sparse toppings. 

As the name articulates, the key to a perfect pizza is the dough. And the Italians operating the wood-fired oven here in Northbridge have nailed it! True to Naples in flavour and form, the bases are thin but not waif-like, pliable and slightly chewy. Pizzas are cooked in a wood fired oven at high temperatures for short time, giving the pizza the wonderful, rustic bubbled edges. The toppings are delightful too. You'll only find authentic combinations such as the salty and brazen; 'Puttanesca': capers, olives, and some serious anchovies, scattered over a wonderful tomato base. This pizza is a triumph of moderation.

'Capricciosa', $22

To beat the Sunday evening blues one night recently, my clan and I ordered one Capricciosa, $22; marinated artichoke, smoked ham, Spanish olives and mushrooms on a Margherita base; a Prawns pizza, $24.50; Marinara, prawns, zucchini and rocket; and a Diavola, $22; Ventricina (smoky pork salami), olives, roast capsicum and chilli. A Margherita base by the way, means tomato sauce with buffalo mozzarella. 

'Prawns', $24.50

With its spicy and salty combination, the Diavola was the first to go. Unfortunately they forgot the rocket element on the Prawns. The chunky curled prawns were however, cooked to perfection...so I let that minor gripe go. 

'Diavola', $22

After getting my 'mangia' on like I'd never 'mangia'-d before, I quickly decided this was the best pizza I'd eaten in Perth. Dough is about quality ingredients and long-established recipes. Pinning down the essentials. The flavours are punchy without the reliance on hunks of frivolous toppings like pork belly or cajun spiced chicken. Quite a different pizza experience from the Little Caesars variety. 

BYO and proximity to Perth bar life mean groups of young people abound here. If you're bothered by the noise, order take-away or if you're fortunate enough to live in the surrounding suburbs, they deliver too!

Food: 4/5 (Near perfect dough, well sourced toppings, stays true to tradition)

Ambience: 3/5 (Buzzing if thats what you're up for, but don't plan an intimate dinner)

Service: 3/5 (Simple and Italian, much like the food)

Value: 3/5