Stephanie D.
Yelp
I was super excited when I heard a French chef was making steak tartare in the suburban bowels of West Footscray. I myself can't eat it due to dietary restrictions but my French dude was really stoked to try it.
We rocked to the little cafe around 1pm and it was chock a block full of lunching mums. No inside seats were left so we grabbed a table out front. Service was a bit slow but it was busy and they were friendly throughout. We ordered two decent if standard coffees and the steak tartare (for him), the Chapin breakfast (for me).
Sadly, I wasn't impressed. The tartare was ok, if missing the raw egg that is essential in a French bistro. My breakfast, on the other hand was really disappointing. I had been happy to see plantains on the menu...you never see them in Melbourne. I'm used to having them sweeter, with an almost candied tang. These were a bit starchier and blander than I liked. I'm not sure if it was the cooking technique or if Brother Nancy is serving up a different type of plantain but it wasn't great. The plantains were served with very nice, fluffy pile of scrambled eggs, some very under seasoned black beans, and a dense, greasy piece of toast. It was all very heavy, bland, and unexciting. They're aiming for South American but there was no spice, no tangy salsa to enliven it, no fresh tortillas. It just failed utterly and at 16 dollars, was the most expensive item on the menu. No thanks.
I'm not in any rush to return here. A shame, as this part of town deserves a good cafe.