Patissez

The Lawns at Manuka are a lovely place to relax on a warm afternoon, which is exactly what my friend and I did – plus cake, of course! We had a 15min wait for a table at Patissez, and then ordered two cakes from the display cabinet – a pistachio cake and an open lemon meringue tart, both gluten free. Both were beautifully presented, and we went halves to be able to try both! The pistachio cake was topped with a lime-flavoured meringue in fluro green – this somewhat artificial-tasting flavour seemed to dominate, dulling the pistachio flavour, but complimenting the perfect texture of the cake layers. With oozy icing and luscious creamy layers in between the pistachio cake, those less excited by the lime can still enjoy the delicious flavours beneath. Next up was the open lemon meringue – this is a creative take on a classic, with beautiful, crisp honeycomb perched on top of a huge meringue cloud. Hiding beneath are dollops of a tart lemon curd, but the real surprise was the spice-infused tart base – we thought it might be cardamom or nutmeg, which cuts through the sweetness of the rest of the cake perfectly. Be warned – these cakes are huge, so we got the leftovers to takeaway. Yum.

Patissez, 21 Bougainville Street, Griffith ACT, http://patissez.com.au/

Get excited…

Ladies and gentlemen of Canberra… the Night Noodle Market is coming! Part of Good Food Month (I knew there was a reason I was born in March), the market is set to be bigger and better than last year when it kicks off tomorrow night! The line up is looking excellent – I’m particularly excited about the bao trifecta from Bao Stop, a mini-Boodle feast from Kusina (one of my favourite local businesses), the ever-sophisticated fare from Lilotang, and, finally, the ubiquitous Watermelon and Strawberry cake from Sydney’s Black Star Pastry, fused with the genius that is N2 Extreme Gelato. Yes, it will be busy. Yes, the weather is looking like it will be hot. But Canberra, this delightful pop up hawker-market is only here from Friday 4th until Sunday 13th March, so please make the most of it! To keep you posted on what’s happening, I’ll be Instagramming my opening night experience live for you to follow along and decide which queues are worth braving for yourself (follow me at @sharoninez16). Oh, and don’t forget to check out the rest of the Enlighten events while you’re taking a digestion pause. Happy eating!

The Gods Cafe & Bar

The Gods is so lovely! I loved working in this space, and was very excited to try my mango smoothie ($7) and P-Y-T-T-I-P-A-N-N-A (verbatim from the menu, $16), a Swedish-style breakfast with stir-fry potatos, bacon and onion, with beetroot and a fried egg. Ok, so it’s not exactly the healthiest breakfast, particularly for the carb-conscious, but there is an elegant simplicity to these flavours that I can imagine being the perfect start to a chilly Swedish (or Canberra) morning. The fried egg was cooked perfectly, oozy and runny, coating the potato which might otherwise have been a bit plain. The sprinkle of spring onions adds a great bit of bite to the dish, the bacon contributes a kick of salt and I loved the tender, flavoursome slices of beetroot that balance out the other, heavier ingredients. The sourdough toast is coated luxuriously in butter too. Oh, and the mango smoothie was spectacular – definitely worth ordering, the texture wasn’t icy at all and the mango flavour was intense and fresh. Yum! The staff were attentive without being intrusive, clearing plates and happily letting me linger to write.

The Gods Cafe & Bar, Building 16 ANU Arts Centre, Union Court, Acton ACT, http://www.thegodscafe.com.au