As we sit in Izakaya Fujiyama in Surry Hills, picking away at a massive tuna jaw with chopsticks and forks, I ask Sydneysider Helen if she’s got any suggestions for a good breakfast place the next day.
“What about Lumiere?” she suggests. “They do French toast with bacon, maple syrup and caramelised banana.”
It’s as if she has spoken the words of a magical incantation… I am instantly enchanted by the spell, powerless to resist.
I can’t stop thinking about this, my dream breakfast dish.
French toast of brioche with caramelised banana, bacon and maple syrup (AU$18)
Our plan for the next morning is to get up reasonably early, grab breakfast, then catch a train to Cabramatta for more eating and drinking.
To ensure we don’t fill up too much at breakfast, we order two dishes to share, saving precious tummy space for what’s to come at Cabramatta.
At first sight, the omelette with smoked ham, mushrooms, chives and provolone cheese (AU$17) doesn’t have the eye-popping drool-worthy food porn appeal of the French toast, bacon and banana. In fact, it looks downright dull and frumpy next to it.
Omelette with smoked ham, mushrooms, chives and provolone cheese (AU$17)
We don’t realise how generously the omelette has been filled until we cut into it. The mushroom juice makes it somewhat soggy, but it’s tasty. It’s quite rich due to the cheese and we’re glad we’re sharing it.
Omelette innards – with smoked ham, mushrooms, chives and provolone cheese (AU$17)
The French toast of brioche with caramelised banana, bacon and maple syrup (AU$18) is magnificent. Layers of crispy bacon and slices of soft sweet caramelised banana are piled on top of thick-cut eggy toast sitting in a glistening pool of maple syrup.
I know exactly the stages of eating this dish: it begins with desire, then indulgent, intense pleasure, followed by remorse. But the pleasure is totally worth the remorse.
French toast of brioche with caramelised banana, bacon and maple syrup (AU$18)
The others order coffee but I order a Morning Glory (AU$6.80), freshly blended orange, apple and pineapple with mint. I enjoy the fruit juice but the straw gets clogged up from all the shredded mint. It’s a minor annoyance in an otherwise wonderful breakfast.
Morning glory (orange, apple, pineapple and mint (AU$6.80)
Lumiere Cafe is airy and bright, with modern, stylish decor and plenty of seating inside and out in the sunshine – lots of great spots for people-watching. The breakfast menu is extensive and (here are more magic words) available all day.
Go on… desire, pleasure and remorse await.
Lumiere, Surry Hills
Lumiere Cafe
Monday to Friday 7.30am to 4.30pm
Saturday and Sunday 8am to 5pm
My breakfast dream of brioche French toast, bacon, banana and maple syrup began a few years ago with a spectacular dish at the Gun Shop Cafe in West End, Brisbane. The dish is still on the menu, now also with candied pecans.
My Sydney trip (2011)
I went to Sydney with my sister Juji and her fiancé Jay in November 2011.
See the list of posts so far, in reading order. There’s still more to come.
Kong Hei Fatt Choy! My family got together yesterday to celebrate Chinese New Year with a delicious lunch. Photos/post are forthcoming.
I'm TFP, a food blogger from Perth, Western Australia.
{ 16 comments… read them below or add one }
Another smashing post from TFP– It seems I haven’t yet delved into the glory that is Surry Hills, despite having lived in Sydney my whole life… Wonderful photos. I sat at my desk eating a friand and fantasizing about those runny, gooey egg yolks…
:D I miss your homemade dinner posts a la Jac! Have you been eating out a lot lately?
Miss M,
Glad you’re enjoying the Sydney posts. Lots more awesome eating from Surry Hills on the way – we ate at so many fantastic places in Surry Hills on this trip.
Our full-time jobs have become more demanding of our time and energy and this has impacted on Jac’s time to cook. Also, to be honest, 1) there’s only so many times I can post variations on home cooked meals before it gets kind of samey and 2) I’m not happy with the lighting/general setup for taking pictures in our kitchen (especially not good if we have dinner late), and until I sort that out, probably won’t be doing many posts on our meals at home. I do occasionally post pictures of home cooked meals on Twitter and Facebook – that’s all I will be doing for now as far as dinners at home go.
OMG, we were recently in Surry Hills and I really wish we had visited this venue to enjoy the French toast. It looks divine! And Happy New Year to you! Happiness and prosperity!
Lizzy,
We went to LOTS of great places in Surry Hills. Still more Surry Hills posts to come! Happy New Year, hope 2012 is a good one for you.
That brioche banana, bacon and maple french toast sounds divine. I love pancakes with the same combination. I made some the other weekend. So good!
Sarah,
It was heavenly!
Your photos make me so hungry I must go to the kitchen right this minute! No waiting, no collecting $200 in Monopoly. What fantastic photos!
Thanks, Maureen, glad you like the photos. Hope you had something good to eat!
“They do French toast with bacon, maple syrup and caramelised banana.”
**INSTA-DROOL!** :-D
“It’s as if she has spoken the words of a magical incantation… I am instantly enchanted by the spell, powerless to resist.”
Yeah. I’m totally starry-eyed, looking at that photo. Bazinga!! And coincidentally just 1/2 hour ago (it’s nearing bedtime here) French toast came to mind, a craving; that I might have that tomorrow morning. I definitely will now! Unfortunately it won’t be as scrumptious as yours.
“I can’t stop thinking about this, my dream breakfast dish.”
Yeah. I’m turning in for the night and won’t be surprised if dreams of French toast dance in my head, led by that divine photo. ;-)
Cindy,
I’d love French toast dancing in my dreams, instead of work-related thoughts, which I’ve been plagued with for too long now…
I am a real omelette fan more than French toast. But combine that omelette with that morning glory juice and I would be strutting through my day!
Anna,
It was an awesome start to the day for sure. I don’t know if we strutted, but we were sure glad to have plenty of walking to do after our big breaky!
OK , thats it ! I’m officially taking TFP off my home page. The image of that Brioche and bacon made me want it so bad I’m packing up and moving east.
Who am I kidding , I couldn’t move east , Perth is the best place to live…. and I can’t change my homepage or I wouldn’t know where to eat and what to cook.
Do Lumiere deliver ???
8)
Michael,
:D
I wish they did deliver – express orders to you and me!
Mmmm, french toast! It reminds me of a really decadent French toast dish I ate while on holiday once – deliciously eggy slices of bread topped with walnuts, raisins and thinly sliced banana, mango on the side, and with plenty of maple syrup and cream for drenching. I had it without cream, but it was amazing, like fireworks on my tongue. :P
Dea,
That sounds wickedly decadent! Food coma at breakfast, perhaps? :D
{ 1 trackback }