Le Comptoir

PROFILED BY DE GROOTS MEDIA
People used to exit this French patisserie clutching brown paper bags filled with flaky French croissants or wielding arm-length baguettes wrapped in tissue paper. The new owners noticed the foot traffic and decided slow down their customers and put some Parisian pleasure in their day. The counter started displaying tins of soothing T2 teas and silver-clad Toby’s Estate coffee along with an actual menu so visitors could sit down and savour the scent of baking bread.

The patisserie background shows up in the toast options: choose from wholemeal, raisin, white, Turkish, rye or spelt bread. The breakfast menu offers the usuals like bacon and eggs, but takes care to make Bircher muesli the proper way with grated apple, then topped with roasted almond yoghurt, berries and honey. Under foot, the heavy wooden floorboards seem to have shrunk with age, leaving quirky gaps between each board, probably hiding a cache of ancient two cent coins. The pressed metal ceilings and burnt brulee walls add a lovely warming touch to the small room, and tiny round tables the size of coasters are too small to fit both your breakfast and the papers, but are great for parking prams between. In short, this former patisserie in Annandale has evolved into a cute-as-a-button cafe.