Gastronome European Deli, Capalaba

I always love when there’s a new cafe in town and I was eager to try out the new offering Gastronome European Deli at the Capalaba Central Shopping Centre.

It’s been a long time coming as it has been ‘under construction’ for a while. I love a good deli and love discovering new and favourite foods from all over the world that aren’t readily available in the supermarkets. I’ve always felt we’re in a ‘foodie wilderness’ here in the Redlands with not many deli style foods available.

I was raised with European parents and this kind of food was on the table all the time. At the time I thought some of the foods my Latvian dad ate were a little weird but now I love them but they have always been hard to find.

About Gastronome

Gastronome is a European delicatessen and cafe offering a variety of smallgoods, European grocery items, hot and cold drinks, cakes and small meals.

• 

• 

From what I found out from one of the staff, the owners moved to the Redlands from the south of Paris. I believe most of the staff are either from the Ukraine or Russia.

• 

• 

• 

• 

On the Menu

The menu consists of small eastern European lunch snacks and traditional foods, a beautiful selection of cakes and hot or cold drinks.

• 

• 

The day I went with my girlfriends, I decided to have a ‘sandwich of the day’, a Chai Latte and a piece of the delicious Honey Cake. Something that I grew up with having a Latvian father who bought it for us all the time.

There were only 3 sandwiches to choose from and I would’ve liked the opportunity to select some of the beautiful meats and cheeses on offer to make my own custom sandwich. When I asked I was told by the waitress she’d find out but never got back to me.

The pastrami, sauerkraut, mustard and arugula on rye would’ve been nicer with a European style cheese instead of the cheddar I got but it was still really nice. My friends also enjoyed their choices which was great for one friend who is gluten and lactose intolerant so a lot of choices for all dietary requirements.

Service was a little slow but that’s always to be expected when a new place is trying to find it’s rhythm especially since it’s only been opened for a week.

Grocery items

There is a wide selection of eastern European grocery items and if you don’t know what you’re looking at, you wouldn’t know what the goods were because of the writing on the packaging.

• 

• 

• 

Lucky I did (not that I understand Russian but knew what was inside the packet) and I’m glad to see some old favourites I grew up with.

When I heard of a new deli opening up I was excited at the thought of a wider variety of grocery items from all over the world and maybe that might still happen. What they do have covers a wide variety of Eastern European tastes.

Plenty of great confectionery items which makes a change from the usual supermarket offerings so great gift ideas for the hard to find.

In the meantime, I’ll enjoy a piece of reasonably priced Honey Cake and a coffee in the beautiful atmosphere and enjoy the smells of dill, smoked meats and enjoy the memories of my childhood.

Gastronome European Deli
Shop 7, Capalaba Central Shopping Centre
Moreton Bay Road
Capalaba
Facebook
Website

Frontier Coffee House, Capalaba

Nothing gets me more excited than a new coffee shop in town. I’ve lived in my area for near on 15 years now and where I used to live, there was already a thriving coffee culture. I was spoilt for choice for a quick takeaway coffee or a lazy Sunday morning brunch while I read the paper. Up until recently, Capalaba only had the major chain coffee shops which usually serve up bitter coffee prepared by 15 year old baristas and over priced food.

Frontier Coffee House is, literally, the new kid on the block, situated on the corner of Redland Bay Road and Andrew Street, Capalaba. Having only opened recently, I knew my lovely group of school Mums should add this one to our list of ‘must visits’ this school term.

The menu is pretty limited with a few breakfast, brunch or lunch items featuring Turkish bread and a few other things like mini quiches and salads or a sweet treat but you go to Frontier Coffee House for the coffee. Frontier Coffee House uses Dramanti roasted coffee and they are part of a larger group of Dramanti owned coffee shops in Brisbane and other areas of Queensland.

You can purchase the Dramanti coffee beans from the shop plus grab a takeaway on your way to the shopping centres. It’s in a great location for retailers and other business plus us busy Mums who want to sip on a decent, not bitter coffee from time to time.

The menu changes monthly so I might just have to pay another visit and check it out oh, and grab another excellent cup of coffee.

Frontier Coffee House

145 Redland Bay Road

Capalaba   Qld  4157

Pelican's Nautical Treasures Cafe, Redland Bay

(Source)

I love catching up regularly with my girlfriends. We try to do it at least twice per school term (or more if we’re lucky). We have quite a selection of cafes, restaurants, pubs and clubs in my area but we’re always up for trying something new so when I googled “cafes in the Redlands”, the Pelican’s Nautical Treasures Cafe in Redland Bay was the first to pop up.

The Pelican’s Nautical Treasures Cafe is part of a family owned business, Pelican Slipways which provides slippings, moorings, boat repairs, fitouts and restoration of boats, a most unlikely spot for a cafe. When we went the day started out pretty overcast and gloomy so the view from the top floor veranda, where the cafe is, wasn’t as nice as it usually is. There was a steady stream of barges from the surrounding islands as the barge terminal is directly opposite.

A lovely warm, open and inviting space greets you with the delicious home baked, treat filled cabinet displayed at the door with the the open working kitchen behind. There is plenty of fresh lemon flavoured cold water to keep you refreshed while you wait for your order, as well as plenty of kid’s activities set aside. The decor is mismatched but that adds to it’s charm.

The biggest ANZAC biscuits I’ve ever seen are available for only $1 each and look just perfect. We decided on brunch and couldn’t go past the vegetarian option.

A beautiful crunchy sweet potato rosti on a bed of baby spinach, mushrooms, fresh asparagus and avocado with eggs (cooked however you like) topped with bernaise sauce. The coffees are good and there are a range of cold smoothies and milkshakes available as well. The cafe had a steady stream of people coming and going the day we went from all walks of life. Definitely a favourite of mine and one I’ll be back to very shortly. Check out their breakfast and lunch menus below.

 

They are open Monday to Sunday from 7:00am until 3:00pm. They also hold various craft and yoga classes amongst other things. You must go check it out, even if it’s just for a coffee and a look out into Moreton Bay. A true hidden gem in the Redlands.

Review: Whisky Business

Who doesn’t love homemade baking? That soft, buttery goodness in cakes. A natural flavour and taste that can only be found in home baking. I found this in “Whisky Business“, a pleasant new addition to the ever growing cafe scene in Capalaba in the east suburbs of Brisbane. Up until recently we’ve had your standard coffee chains with over priced slivers of cakes that have been sitting in shop windows for days and bitter coffee made by underexperienced baristas. 

Tucked away in the small shopping complex where the Golden Circle factory outlet is in Capalaba, Whisky Business is full of delightful vintage one-off pieces and all things pretty. The coffee is really good, the tea blends are from T2 and the sweet treats are to die for. 

I had the opportunity to visit just before the kids broke up for the summer holidays last December and on offer was a $10 per person morning tea comprising a mini scone with homemade strawberry preserves and chantilly cream, your choice of macaron, a meringue and choice of two cupcakes. We all opted for the carrot cake cupcake which was baked fresh that morning and topped with cream cheese frosting.

 They don’t skimp on the special touches like the little macaron teabag infuser and mini milk bottles for serving the milk. (I love all that kind of stuff.) And macarons are what they are famous for. You’ll see their lovely range of macarons popping up in a lot of eating establishments in the Redlands too but why not visit Whisky Business and try to decide which flavour ‘Whisky Mac’ to try and experience the vintage charm and ambience on offer. With flavours like Peanut Butter and Chocolate, Pineapple Lump, Kahlua and White Chocolate or Banana Lolly, you’re really spoilt for choice.

Whisky Business has also been having a High Tea every few weeks at $40 per head. The menu changes each time but check out this menu for what’s on offer.

Like their Facebook page to keep up to date with weekly specials. They’ve kindly put on a $2 coffee happy hour between 9am and 10am (starting Tuesday, 28 January) for back to school week next week and the girls and I will be there with bells on!

Going Greek at The Gleeka

I think I live in a pretty good suburb of outer Brisbane. I have everything I need to raise my two young children. Close to their schools, shops, parks, doctors, hospital, sporting grounds etc etc but as far as having a nice place to go for a cup of good coffee, other than the usual coffee shop chains, we’re in a ‘cafe wilderness’ out here. That was until I discovered a hidden gem called “Gleeka Bakery”, “gleeka” meaning sweets in Greek.

I’d seen the “Gleeka Bakery” sign from a business I have been going to for some time and just automatically thought it was a bakery that must’ve supplied to shops and restaurants. It wasn’t until I saw a picture in my local paper of a beautiful ‘high tea’ at The Gleeka, that I discovered it was open for business.

I gathered up some friends a couple weeks before end of school term and off we went. It was absolutely gorgeous. All of the delicious Greek sweet and savoury treats on sale are made on the premises and it doesn’t matter which one you choose, you won’t be disappointed.

There are your traditional baklava, karithopita (walnut cake), katalfi (shredded pastry sweet rolls), galatoboureko (Greek custard slice), melomakarona (walnut syrup biscuits), kourabiethes (Greek shortbread) and plenty of your familiar cakes like carrot cake, cheesecakes, cookies, truffles and other well known slices.

And if you’re in the mood for savoury, you can expect a delicious spanikopita, frittata (I had a sundried tomato, feta and olive one) and toasted filled flatbreads with all of your delicious Greek ingredients plus a breakfast option. There are also plenty of gluten free options to choose from.

Because the kid’s have been pretty good these school holidays, I thought I’d treat them to morning tea. There are plenty of kid friendly cookies and cakes plus baby cinos, milkshakes and cold drinks.

With an all day special of a savoury and sweet option for only $11.95, you’ll spend a long time trying to choose from so many options. Or you may just have to keep coming back until you’ve tried them all. That’s what I intend doing. Owner/baker Eleni Pantelis will be sure to make you feel welcome.

Gleeka Bakery
Shop 10 – 8 Redland Bay Road
Capalaba
www.gleeka.com.au

Disclaimer: I was not paid for this post. I just really love the Gleeka Bakery and thought you should know about it too.