Food Review: Gordon St. Garage Perth

If there is anything that Australians are particular about, it's how discerning they are about their coffee. Mainly their brunch. Brunch is that time of the day where they need a coffee break, get out of the office and get a pick me up, a couple of minutes to themselves with a sandwich and maybe even a slice of cake. 

So I have embraced the idea of brunch. I have fully embraced the idea of fresh ingredients, and the difference a salad and a coffee can make in your otherwise bleak day of school or work. 

Gordon St Garage has been gaining momentum recently, and is actually pretty easy to find despite being described as a spot that's tucked away. 

My initial impression of Gordon St Garage was that it would be a small space, since it was said to be in an old garage. Instead I was met with:

Now this is a big place. They used an open concept for their restaurant, and even have a second storey if need be! I was shown to my table, which was in the middle of the place and giving me a clear view of everything going on.

The place seemed very relaxed, airy, with exposed beams, different sections, loads of sunlight, with interesting furniture. A lot of vintage furniture, matt black steel lamp posts and absolutely lovely tableware! I might be slightly biased because I do like all shades of blue...

After admiring their place, me and my lunch-buddy made quick work of the menus, and ordered:

 Roast pumpkin wood-fired pizza with chilli and parmesan, $21

This pizza was shared by two, and was really satisfying. It looked/sounded really plain, but it was just right when you combine salty, savoury cheese, tangy tomato, sweet chunks of roasted pumpkin on a savoury crispy thin crust! Pumpkin on a pizza, who'd have thought.

(Also, how lovely are their plates!!)

Chilli-Salted calamari, $12 & Frites, $8.5

Now, I love my chips. Aussies love their chips. The frites were really, really good. It sounds simple enough to fry up a batch of chips but these were so beautifully done. Perfectly crispy with a nice amount of salt and potato that was perfectly soft with a hint of butter, they almost didn't need the aioli dip that came with it.

(It's also creatively piled into a terracotta flower pot, but I'd like to think they were meant for food.) 

The chilli-salted calamari was great, but there was a mix up because we thought we ordered the calamari salad but ended up with just a bowl of breaded, deep fried calamari. It was good, but we got charged $18 for it instead and didn't realise this till much later. ):

Poached chicken, cauliflower and hazelnut salad, $18

This was a really really great salad! Filling with so many textures to it. I have never had hazelnut or cauliflower in salad before, but it tied together really well with crunchy rocket and spinach leaves, soft onions, beetroot discs, tangy balsamic dressing and tender, tender slices of chicken breast!

So happy with this, both me and my friend were really impressed!

Dark chocolate tart, $12 & Hazelnut Chocolate slice, $10

It was important to try some of their desserts, so we took a look around and got these two slices. The hazelnut chocolate slice was popular, my friend was lucky and got the last slice! Crumbly and filling, almost like a brownie but not as dense. My chocolate tart was heavy on the dark chocolate, especially on the cocoa powder - almost too much of the powder! It was nice, but I thought it was a bit pricey for a chocolate tart.

I also got a coffee, iced as it was pretty warm out. Gordon St Garage uses Mano A Mano coffee, which is a good italian roast and pretty good iced or hot.

So, if you are going to order dessert, take a look around, their desserts change from time to time, and are displayed around the place.

Another interesting observation was that Gordon St Garage also sold a variety of produce, like flavoured olive oils, coffee grinders, pickles, jams and lots of other foodstuffs. All of which seemed pretty exotic to me.

I didn't pick up anything but I think if I have time to browse next time, I might get myself a bottle of Saffron Thyme vinegar, or citrus infused olive oil! 

Would I go back? I would, but I think the food can get pretty pricey, especially their desserts. The staff can seem a little pretentious but most of them are quick to serve. It's quite easy to get a seat, but can be confusing as I didn't know whether I was going to be shown a table or whether it was a walk-in place. All in all I was happy with my food, and the place is lovely to have a sit down with some friends or alone for some coffee and catching up.

So, if you are around West Perth, or need a rest after your shopping at Harbortown, make a trip down to Gordon St Garage to get some seriously good salads or a nice cuppa!

Gordon St Garage can be located at:

16 Gordon Street, 

West Perth, WA 6005

08 9322 8050

(Walk in, no bookings required)