Baconfest
During a recent trip to Sydney, Australia I had a true FatSteak experience. A large group of us visited the ultra trendy Cuckoo Calley Cafe in Surrey Hills. Our model like waiters led us to a private dining room, and we were given the bacon fest and brunch menu. The night before had been a particularly large one, so appetites were big.
It's not often I am spoiled for choice on a breakfast menu, but this was something else. The cafe had a Baconfest special, covering sweet treats, savoury dishes, and drinks, all with a bacon twist. Decisions were difficult, and thankfully we all chose different dishes so could sample most of the menu.
Our cover star is the #Instaham. Essentially an eggs Benedict, This one on brioche, loaded with pulled ham hock, pickled red & white cabbage and a 63 degree poached egg. Smothered in a bacon hollandaise and fried shallots. Each mouthful was a mix of textures.
Next up was the Bacon MacDaddy. An impressively stuffed croissant. Loaded with triple-smoked crispy bacon, bacon mac'n'cheese, tomato relish, poached egg and fried shallots. Almost the perfect hangover cure, but could have benefited with some crunch.
For the burger lover we have the Piggie Smalls (The Notorious P.I.G.). This impressive stack contained a pork mince pattie, chargrilled chorizo, maple bacon jam, Mexican flaming cheese, the crunch of pork crackling, and chipotle aioli. A big mouthful that satisfied, the heat of the chorizo and aioli hit the hangover where it hurt, and the crunch of the crackling needed against the soft bread.
For those of you with a sweet tooth at breakfast you were not ignored. I Like Pig Butts and I Cannot Lie gave an incredible sugar hit. Coco Pop and salted caramel French toast came with bacon and banana ice cream (not too successful), maple glazed bacon, chocolate soil, honeycomb and mascarpone. Far too sweet for some.
When there is too much choice on the menu, and not enough people to order everything, what do you do? Order a dish for everyone to share! Time Fries When I'm Bacon With You is a bowl of crispy fried chips, loaded with BBQ pulled pork, bacon, and American cheese. Not that we needed anything else on the side!
This may have been the perfect hangover recovery meal for the devoted bacon lover, and what certainly helped was the Bacon infused Bloody Mary, and Espresso Martini. Well, you can only be hungover if you sober up!
