Mr Cafe, Balmain. 'The Pancake Files'. – For Food's Sake – A Sydney Food Blog

[invite] Bianca: The Pancake files continue at Mr Cafe, Balmain. It’s a fairly small 30-40 seater cafe in the heart of Balmain. Turning a steady stream of takeaway coffees, people perched on shared tables soaking in the Saturday morning rays.

We visited a few years back and fell in love with their Cinnamon Doughnut -w/ a walnut and thyme crumb but could no longer see it on the menu, bit of a shame as it was devilishly delicious but in its place some strong additions.

Our Will & Co coffee’s, Skim & Soy Caps $4.20 were well balanced and not overly milky, a good few shakes of chocolate powder which we definitely appreciated!

Starting with the savoury The Corn Fritter -w/avocado, coriander & corn salsa, whipped cream cheese + bacon + hashbrowns $25 should be your go to if you’re wanting something substantial with a lot of wow factor. The corn fritters had a great crispy exterior, excellent caramelised flavour. The bacon crispy! It was fresh and colourful. The hashbrowns needed to be a little crispier and lacked seasoning.

Alex advocated for the Acai Bowl -w/acai, banana, strawberry, house granola, chia, toasted coconut, baby mint + natural peanut butter $15. I typically steer well clear of Acai’s but I thoroughly enjoyed this version. The addition of the peanut butter really elevates this from a soupy smoothie to something pretty damn enjoyable. Loved the house granola, with clusters of caramelised nuts, seeds and oats. Alex would have liked a thicker consistency to the Acai (his go to is My Fruitologist, Balmain) which is more like a soft-serve.

And what I was most excited about, the Apple Crumble Buckwheat Pancakes (gf) – w/caramelised apple. ANZAC crumble, caramel sauce & vanilla gelato $18. The pancakes were slightly grainy & dry, which is not to say they were unpleasant, they still retained their lightness and were quite fluffy in texture. I adored the ANZAC crumble, buttery oats? Sold! Alex was a little less enthusiastic about the caramel sauce but it was balanced perfectly by the apple. It probably wouldn’t be my guilty pleasure pancake but if I was in the area and in a bind, they’re a solid option.

Bianca

Photos by Alex

*For Food’s Sake dined as guests of Mr Cafe.