Piaf at Southbank

Piaf
Shop 5, 182 Grey St, South Brisbane



If I was allowed a wish list, 'ability to sleep in whenever I choose to' would be somewhere at the top. I complain HEAPS about having to wake up early. Usually, it's uni that's the main culprit. Sometimes it's work or just the sun blaring in through the window, right onto my face. However, I have to admit to this one time last week where waking up early was 100% voluntary.



Mochi and I are good for sharing new food interests (hey, what are friends for?) and when she told me about Ben O'Donoghue's new restaurant called Southbank Surf Club, I was right on it. We were planning to go for breakfast. I LOVE breakfast. If there is anything that's going to motivate me to set a 6:30am alarm, the thought of toast, eggs, waffles and pancakes etc will definitely do the trick.

I got up before the sun came up and as a result, managed to be early. After scouting around Southbank, daydreaming about the coffee I planned to order, I realized that most cafes weren't open yet. I found Southbank Surf Club and yep, it was deadsville.

With my trusty iPhone on hand (Apple, do you hear this? Surely I deserve some promotion reward), I Googled the opening hours and found that uh... it wasn't open for breakfast on Friday. Drat.

Ah well.

With 2 self-proclaimed foodies, the uncertainty in where to eat was quite short-lived. We spotted Piaf and made a bee-line for it. I had examined the menu before Mochi's arrival and found it to be satisfactory and she reinforced this choice by saying that they are known to make good lunches and dinners.


Piaf is a rather small cafe but the interior was refined and comfortable. It gave me a piano-bar feel despite the fact that it was early morning. I attribute this to the abundance of dark wood and the smart attire of the waitresses. They also have the bar-facing-out-into-the-world thing happening, which I love. I find at breakfast time, it's especially nice to peer out and people-watch.

Latte

We ordered coffee to start with. The latte was good but nothing that blew me away. Mochi got the same but in soy and I when I asked for her feedback, it was similar to mine "not bad but I don't really remember much".

Pesto mushrooms with spinach and haloumi on sourdough

For food, I was undecided between a few (as usual - when do I ever know what I want?!) but I ended up going for the pesto mushrooms. The menu states that it is served on multigrain bread but I asked specifically for sourdough and the kitchen was happy to oblige. It was really yummy - fresh, juicy mushrooms with a distinct pesto flavor but nothing that's dominatingly garlicky (I have issues with anything that has such a pungent garlic flavor that your mouth feels icky for hours afterwards). The grilled haloumi was my favorite part and the bread was nice but unmemorable.

House-baked muesli with berry compote, yogurt and honey

Mochi was craving muesli so she knew what she was getting right away: the house-baked muesli. It was a HUGE serving and she didn't get to finish. Unfortunately there was no take-away option either. However, in terms of taste she says it was pretty good and of course, muesli's always a healthy option and very 'cleansing' for the digestive tract.

We had a nice breakfast at Piaf and didn't feel like we missed out on much with Southbank Surf Club being closed. The service was quite friendly but moreover, I liked that the cafe had a relaxed, calm atmosphere. I'd definitely go back to try their lunch or dinner menu.