QTips #8 – Bondi’s New Kids on the Block

By Niall Roeder on August 23, 2016 in Food

Jumping the gun is not a negative. You have to look ahead to see where you’re going; to not prepare is foolhardy. In this case it means looking towards the warmer months, because they aren’t really that far away. July is Sydney’s coldest month; that’s a scientific fact – I read it in a book. That means that it’s only going to get warmer from here on in. And just as spring brings growth and new beginnings in nature, the changing of the seasonal guard also means new life in Bondi. The culinary and cultural ecosystem that is the beach bubble will shed a few unfortunate organisms and spawn fresh shops and eateries, eager to carve out their own nook in the local landscape.

Let’s take a peek at a few of the new kids on the block that look like putting down strong roots…

Milky Lane
Yet another joint riding the burger wave, but are we complaining? Nope. The more places slapping meat between buns, the better. These guys are all about stacked burgers, monster thick shakes and cutting-edge cocktails – prepare to get messy and a little bit tipsy. With background hip-hop and a massive social media presence, I can’t see this place not doing well.

Tip: Try a CoNut – an ice cream cone made of donut that’s overflowing with ice cream, sauce and treats. Get in.

Macelleria
Peter Zaidan and his team of meatologists run Macelleria – a butcher, provedore, and steak and burger bar. They aren’t new, as such, but they recently moved into a new venue triple the size of their old place and have since blown up on the local scene.

Tip: Get stuck into a Bostino burger (Cape Grim Angus beef, pastrami, bacon, Swiss cheese, pickles, mustard, tomato, lettuce and ketchup) and try to tell me that it’s not delicious.

Sadhana Kitchen
Sadhana Kitchen is a vegan eatery and they are obsessed with organic, plant-based wholefoods. Now I realise that for everyone who is drawn in by that very sentence, there is a fat chunk of the population who are equally repelled. To those I say: try this stuff; it actually tastes bloody good.

Tip: You don’t have to do a cleanse or a raw vegan high tea. Perhaps grab a hot chocolate or raw Twix. Don’t mind if I do.

COFFEE Bondi Beach
COFFEE is a new little café on Curlewis Street that does an exceptional brew. It is the only place that roasts its own coffee in Bondi, and they specialise in the procurement of single estate coffees. Basically everyone is a coffee snob these days and this place is a coffee snob utopia.

Tip: Give the martini brew a go. When has anything martini ever been a bad idea?

Paradise Road Kitchen
Paradise Road Kitchen is Paradise Road Diner’s little sister. This awesome takeaway shop is across from North Bondi Surf Club and pays homage to the great Australian chicken shop. Their focus is on animals on the spit, which most will agree is a very, very good thing.

Tip: Get into their rotisserie pork with crunchy AF crackling, fried rice and veggies. Yep, okay!