PROFILED BY DEGROOTS MEDIAThe menu looks like a blue newspaper, the headings screaming out desirable orders such as Coffee! Milkshakes! Loose leaf tea! The menu’s enthusiasm for its own food is matched by the enthusiasm of the staff. Indecisive, I am informed that sandwich #1 is the most popular choice for lunch; featuring chicken breast, warm bacon, a thick smear of avocado, green oak lettuce and homemade mayo embraced by your choice of hand cut bread. Just to be churlish I try #18 and get rewarded with thick multi-grain bread held together by ricotta, fresh basil, soft cubes of roasted pumpkin, slices of Spanish onion, roasted capsicum and wild rocket.
Of course, as delish as the sandwiches are, there is a lot more on offer at Cafe on Johnston. Menu items like burgers, bagels and frittatas are fun for lunch, but the breakfast menu is where things start to get creative (and the prices stay low, who would have thought it in Annandale?) Try the Morning Trifle; a layered creation containing banana chips, fresh strawberries, passionfruit, bran, puffed wheat and honeyed yoghurt. The cafe is quite spacious, with shady outside tables enjoying the quiet of leafy Johnston Street. Inside, the decor is as colourful and frivolous as the treasures in a nearby vintage dress shop (defiantly worth a bo-peep after your meal).
Jennifer Miller