Little Brisbane Cafe and Catering

Visiting from Melbourne. Popped in for breakfast before work. Coffee was okay, not really Melbourne quality. Had the smashed avocado on toast, which wasn't great. Toast wasn't hot enough or crispy enough. Avocado was a bit bland, and not enough avocado. Service was friendly and quick. Probably wouldn't go back.

This place does great coffee and friendly service - consistent every time. Even during the morning rush (their busiest time) I don't have to wait long.

Great coffee! Good food and friendly service. Overall the prices are slightly on the expensive side. Would recommend this place for a quick breakfast, lunch and for coffees.

Getting into the heart of the business district within the central business district, the Little Brisbane Cafe & Catering is well situated. It provides a quick meal for those who are busy, a catering service for businesses in the city, and is mostly what is to be expected with a cafe. Overall, I don't want to be too cruel on this cafe because it is managing to do what it is aiming to do and not doing too bad a job. From the perspective about what is the best place to eat, and comparing quality produce - I do guess that a lot worse could be done, but at the same time not that far of a walk from here are some much better options. After managing to get some contacts for other members here, a group was organised for getting future collaborations. For once, this was able to be done quickly and effectively. Among the contacts already in tow, there the blog site Espresso & Matcha (which is run by a duo as I found out), and in getting into contact with them, a lunch time meeting was quickly arranged. Finally, it managed to work out and one weekday lunch time I was here to meet the two of them for a bite to eat. They use the pocket-sized shop area really well, and take the corner location to an advantage. While the three of us were at a table inside (which was incidentally chosen, as the first coffee order was already out before the second one could make their selection), that was all there was there. Most of it is al fresco, and it has a few charms to it. From the subtle choices of design, the atmosphere is like a meal away from work with the shade and the trees across the road. What is good here is the service. The staff here are definitely well trained, and professional, along with being polite all the way through. It is counter service here, where you order and pay, then are given a number. After the meal is done, they are swift to clean the table to make way for the high turn around. While not anything really memorable, they tick off all the really needed aspects of service, and make it possible to streamline the quick meal that they are offering. Attentive is the best word to describe them. Most of the menu has an Italian influence to it, with a big focus on coffee as the beverage aspect of the menu. With the food choices, it is more or less general cafe fare here and there with what you would expect - there is the usual lot of sandwiches, some cous cous salad, a couple of pasta choices, and the standard selection of breakfast items for in the morning. In the cabinet is a big range of cakes to have with coffee at the end of the meal, or as a snack between times. All in all, the fare is the wholesome variety and you get what you get. The coffee that is used here is from Espresso di Manfredi. The bad news is that this is not among the best blends that is around. For, uh... less bad news, the coffee was only okay. It was definitely not one that is worth writing home about. In fact, it might have been a bit too hurt, and tasted burnt in parts. As per usual it was a doppio that I ordered. For meal that I got, it was a chicken and mushroom pasta, and on the side was a couple of slices of garlic bread. With it, the dish was okay. One thing that can't be debated with about it is that the portion size was certainly generous, and you got value for money. However, from an Italian point of view (and someone who cooks a lot of pasta) they got a lot of the consistency about a nice pasta dish wrong. Not everywhere has to be authentically Italian with how the pasta is presented (i.e. there is much more pasta than sauce, sauce is only slight) but the balance here was definitely way out of proportion in any sense of the word. It was mostly a bowl of heated cream, with maybe a handful of spaghetti (which was cooked al dente), and even the bits of chicken and mushroom were scarce. What really worked about the composition was the shaved parmesan cheese that mixed well into the cream sauce. And the one last aspect about the dish was the garlic bread, and it was pretty good. The garlic butter was tasty, and it soaked up much of the sauce effectively. So, all I would say here is "you tried". Another idea I had in mind here, with the sharing aspect considered, was getting a side of fries. There was maybe a bit of loss in communication (partially me), so that was just a small order of fries on the side that I got. Each small order on the side is served in the mini-deep fryer basket (which is a cute touch). This was given with a bit of ketchup on the side. These fries were pretty good, well seasoned and were pipping hot. They must have exited the fryer not one minute before they were put on the plate and they were all the more better for them. They were hot, crispy, and the inside was soft. Adding onto that was a decent level of seasoning and salt, and it was a good addition onto the side. Regardless, Espresso and Matcha got a big bowl anyways (and that was more than enough between three people). Their one was served with some aioli. Before heading back home, I pondered for a bit about getting another coffee and a cake to go with it. With the coffee not being all that here, the coffee part was skipped out. However, I kept my house mate in mind and thought to get a sweet to split with coffee when I got home. After looking through the cabinet, the one that I decided upon was the classic sticky date pudding. This is only gripes and association here, but often I associate getting a sticky date pudding with a whole lot of melted caramel being poured over the cake. Obviously that wasn't feasible here as far as the restaurant is concerned. This sticky date pudding was also good, soft and moreish. It had a couple of dates on top, as well as sticky caramel. The cake part was soft, had a tart flavour throughout plus big bits of date as well. Not a bad way to finish the meal. Well, um ... this place kind of exists right there. To always give the deserved credit, it has an audience in mind. It is just not for me. For what it is worth, in keeping the perspective for the workplaces nearby - and this is essentially the business end of town we are talking about - having the orders come out quick and efficiently makes for a good selling point. For that, it certainly guarantees that they are reliable. It is buoyed by service that is quite good, and food that is wholesome enough and at a decent portion that it will do most people well enough for the rest of the day. From the looks of it with catering, that it probably does well so credit is certainly due there. When it comes down to it, the way I would put it is that it is what it is. TL;DR: It is more of a place that you would go to because it is there than anything else. To put it in a better way, it is not brilliant or anything and it is definitely not something to make a conscious destination for. Within the middle of the business district, what it does have going for it is that you can be in and out quickly during the lunch rush. Service I will give lip service to, it does do better than most around here, and the food portions are generous beyond belief. As for the food itself, decent and wholesome while nothing to write home about. There is certainly an Italian influence throughout the menu, but in saying that this would not be on the short-list if someone suggested going out for Italian while in town. Little Brisbane Cafe had is perks, but overall the idea is skip if you don't have anywhere to be, if you do - you could much worse.

Getting into the heart of the business district within the central business district, the Little Brisbane Cafe & Catering is well situated. It provides a quick meal for those who are busy, a catering service for businesses in the city, and is mostly what is to be expected with a cafe. Overall, I don't want to be too cruel on this cafe because it is managing to do what it is aiming to do and not doing too bad a job. From the perspective about what is the best place to eat, and comparing quality produce - I do guess that a lot worse could be done, but at the same time not that far of a walk from here are some much better options. After managing to get some contacts for other members here, a group was organised for getting future collaborations. For once, this was able to be done quickly and effectively. Among the contacts already in tow, there the blog site Espresso & Matcha (which is run by a duo as I found out), and in getting into contact with them, a lunch... read more

Love this spot. Never had a bad experience since they opened. Food and service are unmatched. Can get a little busy in the morning but it's def worth it.

Awesome breakfast! Just what you're looking for on an early Saturday breakfast. I was looking for a poached egg and bacon and it really hit the spot.