Wednesday, October 24, 2012

Piccolo's Corner - West Leederville

The fact that I house-sat about 100m away from this cute café and never new of its existence saddens me. My bank account however, would be very happy as if I had known of Piccolo’s Corner before, I would have spent every weekend here.

Piccolo’s Corner is located on the corner of St Leonards Ave and Woolwich Street in West Leederville.
This tiny café is actually a little bigger than first expected as you can opt to sit outside in the cute garden courtyard surrounded by plants, flowers and watering cans hanging from trees.
What I love about this place is that everything is mismatched and quirky. There are chairs, lounges, some tables are made of old doors and the sugar pots on the table are all random. They serve free range eggs, the food is fresh and delicious and they even have fresh home-made lemonade on offer!


Through my research I found that the most popular dish offered for brunch is their “Smashed pumpkin, feta, spinach, pesto and poached egg on toasted ciabatta” ($17.50) Those who have reviewed Piccolo’s Corner have ravved about this dish no end!
The menu is really interesting and features gorgeous dishes that you can tell have had some thought put into them.
Being obsessed with mushrooms, I couldn’t go past the “Garlic and tarragon filed mushrooms with salsa verde and fetta on toasted ciabatta.” ($14.50) (I asked for no fetta as I have had a bit of dairy intolerance as of late).

I also ordered a Cappuccino. Upon the first sip out of the vintage china cup with a souvenir teaspoon I realized the coffee was of high quality. A quick check inside and I see “5 Senses” sitting on the shelf. Absolutely divine!!


Jack opted for the Piccolo’s Breakfast which had poached eggs, avocado, bacon and spicy capsicum relish on toasted ciabatta ($17.50) with a Latte.

I found it cute that they served the pot of tea in a china ‘house’ and nearly convinced me to order a tea until I realised I had not had my caffeine for the day and needed this greatly.
My mushroom brekky was absolutely delicious! They did not shy away from flavour with lots of garlic and tarragon! I would have loved the choice of a grain-bread but that’s just me being fussy. On a normal day I would have probably walked away hungry as the size of the meals are very humble (on this particular day I was still recovering from the flu). I do take into mind my abnormal-appetite but I still think they could be a little more generous with the servings.
Jack also made this comment on the size of his meal. Being the biggest meal on offer for breakfast – he was hoping for a big feed but was slightly let down.
Inside Picciolo’s is a gorgeous array of colours - there are artworks painted on the walls, flowers in pots and even a candy bar where you can pick-n-mix!

They have freshly baked muffins on the counter screaming to be eaten and even some freshly made rolls and quiches for lunch.



Piccolo's Corner in a nutshell:
·         Coffee: 5 Senses
·         All eggs are free range
·         Home made Lemonade
·         Candy bar inside!
·         You order at the counter and it’s cash only.
·         We were there at 8.00am (opening) on Sunday but a line of people very quickly grew out the front so get in quick to avoid the wait!  
Piccolo's Corner on Urbanspoon
 Piccolo's Menu:








Tuesday, October 23, 2012

Pumpkin Spice Latte

From my experience of Halloween in Canada I can confidently say that everything is PUMPKIN.
Think of every type of food you have ever eaten.
Now transform that food into a pumpkin version of itself - add pumpkin, flavour it with pumpkin, shape the product in a pumpkin shape - hell – dip it into pumpkin puree! - and this is what America and Canada do obsessively during Halloween.  

I love pumpkin, don’t get me wrong. Do I believe it should be added to every biscuit, cereal, breakfast, lunch, dinner that exists? Possibly not…
Good on them I say – why not embrace pumpkin this Halloween?!
 In honour of my Canadian buddies and combined with my love for coffee and cinnamon – I came across a Pumpkin Spice Latte recipe that I thought I should give a go!
Here it is:

(Vegan)  Pumpkin Spice Latte
Makes about 4 cups

Ingredients:
  • 2 cups non-dairy milk (I used unsweetened vanilla almond milk)
  • 1/4 cup pumpkin puree
  • 3-4 tablespoons maple syrup
  • 2 tablespoons vanilla extract
  • 1/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (plus more for garnish)
  • 2/3 cup strongly brewed coffee
Directions:
  1. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, whisk together milk, pumpkin and maple syrup until well combined. Heat until warmed through and frothy. Remove from heat.
  2. Stir in vanilla, pumpkin pie spice and coffee. Whisk rapidly until latte is frothy.
  3. Pour into mugs and sprinkle top with more pumpkin pie spice if desired.

It was actually delicious and easy to make! I would actually recommend you give it a go!
MMM oh Pumpkin .

Sunday, October 21, 2012

Aisuru Sushi

There isn’t a day when I don’t feel like sushi Japanese full stop.
I would happily eat raw fish and beautiful little roles of rice and creamy avocado any day.
Aisuru gets me excited because I can see the sushi being made there on the spot.
The rice is still warm when it arrives at your table, which just screams FRESH!

Aisuru Sushi executes the art of sushi like no other. The sushi looks like an artwork on your plate when it arrives, and surprisingly enough, the plate is empty by the time you count to 20.


From top left:

Jennifer Roll
Teriyaki Tofu
Chicken Plum Roll
Black Velvet roll
Miso Soup


Aisuru Sushi on Urbanspoon