Cook & Archies Surry Hills is a cafe that serves breakfast and lunch in an environment that is refreshingly charming and, for lack of a better term, “nice”. The menu is not busy trying to jump onto the latest trend, rather the dishes are simple, with the focus being on the high quality local produce that is used.
Granola, muesli, eggs, toast, pancakes and the usual breakfast suspects are what you’ll find on the breakfast menu. For lunch a variety of options are available, including but not limited to an impressive looking array of sandwiches and salads.
Eggs with Organic Sourdough ($12.00)
My wife was saving herself for the lunch we had booked at Momofuku Seiobo in a few hours time so kept her order simple. With nothing fancy going on, the quality of the ingredients really shone through. The bread and butter were as good as can be and the eggs (which you can have any way you want) had a beautiful orange yolk.
Unfortunately the eggs were overcooked so, while being tasty, they weren’t what poached eggs should be. We didn’t complain as they were still nice and there’s no point in wasting good food but it was a shame as properly poaching eggs is something every cafe needs to be able to get right. Having said that, we only visited once, and mistakes do happen. Given how positive everything else went with our experience at Cook & Archies I have little doubt that the eggs would have been replaced with properly poached ones if we had complained.
Banana Ricotta Pancakes with Maple Syrup ($16.00)
The pancakes I ordered were light and fluffy, with the ricotta really helping to smooth out the texture. The bananas were slightly caramelised and having the maple syrup (the proper stuff) on the side meant that I was able to control the sweetness. I really enjoyed these.
Coffee ($4.30)
The coffee is a custom blend which is supplied by Single Origin Roasters. As we tend to do, I ordered a flat white and my wife ordered a cappuccino. The coffees weren’t particularly punchy however they were smooth and tasty.
Our waiter was really friendly and when I went up to the counter to pay the bill the staff member behind the counter was also very friendly and talkative. The vibe of Cook & Archies in general was very friendly and genuine. It felt like the kind of place that we could have sat in for hours just chilling out, reading and chatting without any bothers.
Cook & Archies might not be the most innovative cafe in Surry Hills nor the most exciting but this matters not. In a refreshing change from what I see far too often, Cook & Archies doesn’t feel like it’s trying to appeal to anyone other than locals who want a nice cafe with friendly service that serves simple food using top quality local produce. Sounds good to me.
Cook & Archies
4/14 Buckingham Street
Surry Hills
New South Wales 2010
Australia
Telephone: (02) 9310 3933
Email: [email protected]
Website: http://cookandarchies.com.au/
Open
Mon – Fri: 7:00am to 4:300pm
Sat: 8:30pm to 2:00pm