Bean Drinking - Crows Nest

Location: Crows Nest, Sydney
Date: Sunday 25 October 2009

CH and I had read in the local paper recently that this cafe in Crows Nest called Bean Drinking (cool name huh?!) did really good coffee and had won a few awards for its coffee.. so we ventured out on an absolutely terrible Sunday morning to try it. Torrential rain, streets flooding, thunder and lightning.. after the usual driving round the streets of Crows Nest in the vain search for a parking spot, we found one a couple of streets away, then splashed our way through the puddles in pouring rain both trying to huddle under my tiny umbrella.

Found the cafe, decided to pass on sitting outside! Found a table inside, no one came to greet us so we assumed it was order at the front counter (it wasn't actually we later found out) . Fairly small place, was very drafty on this day, given the howling winds outside and most of the tables are exposed to the large open doors so nowhere really to escape the cold.

CH scrounged some menus and I grabbed the one newspaper in the place and we dried ourselves off. CH ordered us some coffees, flat white for CH and I got a skinny decaf as I had already had an espresso and a large Synergy sugarfree energy drink that morning so was more than sufficiently caffeinated!

Coffees came quickly and were nice. Think it was their own blend. Mine tasted like regular nice coffee, which is always a good thing with a decaf.

Minor point, I'd asked for a skim milk flat white decaf.. and I noticed when the barista made it he used hi-lo milk, not skim milk. They only had 2 kinds of milk behind the counter, I could see them.. regular and hi-lo. Hi-lo milk is NOT skim milk !! Skim milk is 99.9% fat free and hi-lo is 2% fat. If you're going to advertise that you offer SKIM milk coffees, then use SKIM milk, otherwise you're breaching sections 52 and 53 of the Trade Practices Act !!
So the coffee was too fatty/milky tasting for my liking (the skim milk doesn't have that creamy/fatty taste to it) with a large layer of milk froth but the actual coffee was nice (couldn't tell it was a decaf.. sometimes decafs have a 'different' taste).

The real fun started when we ordered food. CH ordered scrambled eggs and toast. I ordered the raisin toast with jam from the menu.

After a few minutes the waiter came back and said they'd run out of raisin bread! (What is there a shortage of raisins in Australia at the moment or something?... when we went to the Cammeray golf club cafe a few weeks ago for brunch we were also told they'd run out of raisin bread!). I was about to offer to go around the corner to Woollies and pick them up a loaf.. but instead ordered 2 poached eggs on toast.. Was told the chef couldn't poach the eggs (where did he learn to cook.. even I can poach an egg!) so I said "fine, boiled is fine"... only to be told he couldn't boil them either !!! The only eggs he could cook were 'scrambled or fried". As I don't eat either of those.. I was out of luck.

Menu was quite limited. It seemed their emphasis was on their coffee and the food is an aside which is fair enough.

The only other brekky items on the menu were muesli and mega huge muffins.. which I didn't feel like as I needed protein and not heaps of heavy carbs before my long swim in a couple of hours' time.. There were some pre-made wraps and rolls in a display case at the counter but I really wasn't in the mood for lunch yet.

So I sat there with my coffee and CH ate his scrambled eggs. CH said they were nicely done but overpriced for the size/plainness of the dish.

Waiter was friendly and most apologetic... he even offered not to charge me for a muffin if I wanted to get that instead. There was another waitress there who was wandering around offering people samples of their chai drink to taste.. the place was pretty busy and we waited a while to place our orders so it might have been more productive for her to be helping her colleague (the only person actually taking orders!)

What let down this place for me was the skim milk passing off... and the fact the chef couldn't/wouldn't poach or boil a couple of eggs! I mean, what kind of cafe offers breakfast/brunch with eggs on the menu and then will only scramble or fry them? Very strange....
[So we went back to CH's place after stopping at the supermarket on the way back.. and CH cooked me two boiled eggs and grilled tomato with fresh basil from the herb 'garden' on the balcony! Yum yum! Then it was off to the pool for a swim in the rain (actually the rain gods held off for my swim!)]
Total came to about $20 (bearing in mind I only had a coffee) so pricey.

I'd get a takeaway coffee from them if passing through, but wouldn't brunch there again. I imagine it would get quite busy on weekdays/Saturdays with workers/shoppers in Crows Nest.

Overall rating 6 / 10

Coffee Hound's coffee review for Bean Drinking: 6.5 / 10

Bean Drinking

1/13 Ernest St
Crows Nest NSW 2065
(02) 9436 1678

Get directions

CH: This is what the different kinds of milk look like:

CH: And here is that uber yummy dish recommended by one reader (at least one version of it):

  CH: And here's to boil an egg (it's easy, no?):

1. 
   
   
   Step 1
   
   Place the raw egg in a saucepan.
   
   
2. 
   
   
   Step 2
   
   Run cold water into the saucepan until the water is 1 inch above the egg.
   
   
   
3. 
   
   
   Step 3
   
   Place the saucepan on a stove and cook over medium heat until the water begins to boil.
   
   
   
4. 
   
   
   Step 4
   
   Reduce the heat to low.
   
   
   
5. 
   
   
   Step 5
   
   Simmer for 2 to 3 minutes for soft-boiled eggs or 10 to 15 minutes for hard-boiled eggs.
   
   
   
6. 
   
   
   Step 6
   
   Remove the egg with a spoon or ladle and let it cool slowly, or run cold water over it to cool it more quickly.
   
   
   

Didn't go out for brunch today..

Location: CH headquarters, Sydney
Date: Sunday 11 October 2009

Hi everyone,

CH and I decided not to go out for brunch this morning... miserable cloudy day, we had no target destination... so hung out at CH's with moko pot coffee, yoghurt with banana and blueberries, fresh apples, oranges and pears.


We tried the new Allens Naturals 25% reduced sugar lollies too - the Fruit Salad mix.. not bad at all.

And CH bought me a dried berry mix: Lion of Sahara: Fruit for Life. Contains sultanas, cherries, goji berries, strawberries and mulberries. Very nice. Will be good to put in oats for sweetness and also for baking muffins with. That reminds me, my mulberry tree is laden with berries, must pick them this afternoon. Am going to freeze them in little freezer bags so I have them throughout the year.  They will be great for blending in protein shakes, cocktails.. and also will be good in my procakes (protein pancakes). Recipe for that to follow soon.. if you're after a near 100% protein content food.. almost nil fat and carbs... stay tuned.. I'm fine tuning the recipe using baking powder, xanthan gum, trying to get the ratios all perfect!

And high time another muffin recipe was tested too. I bought a Wiltshire silicon bendable muffin tray yesterday so that will be good to test out.

Peppermill Cafe - Milsons Point

Location: Milsons Point, Sydney
Date: Sunday 4 October 2009

Tucked off the main drag of Alfred St at Milsons Point, just a short stroll up the hill from the ferry wharf and Luna Park, Peppermill Cafe seemed pleasant enough. Modern decor, some undercover seating on the balcony, though it was a bit cold and windy so we opted for the indoor seating. Small and cosy, but clean and nicely decorated. Greeted by smiling friendly waitress and shown to table. Water offered immediately and coffee orders taken. Menu is extensive with a huge variety of breakfast choices. Breakfast served all day, plus lunch menu.

Only a couple of newspapers to go around all the tables, so we pounced on one as soon as it became available.

Coffee arrived promptly. Campos brand. Lovely. Equal sugar substitute provided upon request. I ordered skim and it was a true skim flat white. CH liked the flat white too.

I couldn't go past the Somona fruit toast with homemade mixed berry jam. CH ordered a cooked breakfast, spinach and ricotta with 5 grain toast and 2 poached eggs. I also asked for 2 poached eggs on the side.

Food came promptly. My fruit toast would've been lovely, if it wasn't the hardness and texture of a house brick on the outside, as the inside was light and fluffy. I was scared I'd crack another tooth (having done so a few weeks ago) so ate carefully! The homemade jam was delicious with whole berries in it. And no butter just as I asked, so they get a point for that... however...
I'd just asked for 2 poached eggs on the side.. but they brought out a whole separate dish with the 2 eggs, plus 2 huge pieces of sourdough toast and cooked tomato.

I took the 2 eggs off the plate and left the rest in the corner of the table, then explained to the waitress the mistake and that I'd just ordered the two eggs on their own (which the menu said you could do as an 'extra' at a couple of extra dollars) and not another entire dish! She said she'd note it on the bill and took the other plate away.

CH and I should've swapped our poached eggs. I like mine a little overdone, and CH vice versa. My eggs were really underdone, basically just completely runny inside, and CH's were quite hard. CH liked the rest of the meal, though CH's toast was really hard too! Maybe turn the setting down on the toaster and let it cook a bit more slowly...?

When we got to the counter to pay we'd been charged $9.50 for the poached egg dish. We again explained the mistake to the guy at the counter, who got rather surly and then begrudgingly deducted a whopping $2.00 off the bill, meaning that we were charged $7.50 for 2 poached eggs!


CH Says: Coffee was really good, shame about the service and food.

Shame about the attitude of this guy (he seemed to be the owner/manager). The food and service would've attracted a 7/10 rating, but the bad experience we had means we can't give it more than a 5/10 overall.

Coffee and most of the food was good, nice quiet location especially on a Sunday. Shame our experience was ruined by bad customer relations.

$42 approx so not particularly good value either.


Overall rating 5 / 10

Coffee Hound's coffee review for Peppermill: 8 / 10

Peppermill Cafe
30 Glen St
Milsons Point 2061
Sydney, Australia

Coffee Hound's Official Coffee Rating Scale

Coffee ratings as certified by the global worldwide coffee and caffeine companies of Australia (GWWCCCA):

1 = Make sure you've had your tetanus shots, and only after a dare.
2 = Tastes like unfiltered fish bowl water after a month of heavy feeding and unseasonably warm weather. So if that's what you're into...
3 = If you have a gun to your head.
4 = Only if you're desperate for the caffeine hit and happen to be passing by and in a hurry to get to a very important job interview.
5 = It's raining and you have one stamp left on your get-one-free loyalty card.
6 = Barista easily distracted by opposite sex, could do better by shutting up and focussing on the job of making coffee.
7 = Good coffee, resembling a purchase worthy of the amount of money exchanged.
8 = Go out of your way for this coffee, and be thankful.
9 = Worthy of a mention in a Tarantino script.
10 = 'I have a dream'.