As I mentioned in my post about my few days in Coolum, each day included a morning stop for coffee. Lucky for me, my dad had tried out most of the coffee options before I got there and had settled on Little Lane Espresso as being the best on offer. The cafe is tiny, with just a few tables down a laneway (hence the name!) and it wouldn’t have looked out of place in Melbourne at all. It was always busy with locals and tourists alike, with extremely friendly staff who not only made delicious coffee but stopped to chat and even remembered our orders after only a day or so of visiting – impressive!
As well as delicious coffee, most morning we shared a muffin or two which were always freshly baked and full of flavour. Each day they had one sweet and one savoury to choose from, and we never saw the same flavours twice! We tried varieties like blueberry & white chocolate, spinach & feta, banana & date and cranberry & white chocolate and all were equally delicious!
The menu is short and changes monthly, with four choices for breakfast and four choices for lunch. Our first food based visit was for Saturday lunch and we shared three of the dishes (well, I didn’t eat any of the non-vegetarian dish!). The first was Braised Broadbeans with garlic yoghurt and dill ($15) and it was absolutely delicious. So simple but perfectly cooked with a great combination of flavours – we could have kept eating this for a long time!
Next up was a Beetroot, Lentil and Goat’s Cheese salad ($15) which was equally as delicious. There was a generous amount of goats cheese, everything was full of flavour so this dish didn’t last long at the table!
The final dish we got was the Fish Kofte with beetroot relish and flatbread ($16.50). Obviously I didn’t try this so I can’t comment on it too much, but my parents both really enjoyed it and there wasn’t a scrap left, so I think that says it all!
On our final morning we went by for breakfast with mum and I both getting the Turkish Toast, which came with avocado, tomato and feta, drizzled with olive oil and lemon juice ($15). This is one of my favourite breakfast combinations and I wasn’t let down, it was perfect! Excellent ratio of each of the elements and some delicious, lightly toasted Turkish bread to hold it all together. We were very happy campers!
Dad ordered the Baked Eggs with lentils, onions and sucak ($16.50) – given there was Turkish sausage involved I obviously didn’t try this dish, but dad really enjoyed it and mopped it all up with the Turkish bread, so that’s a good sign! It was the heartiest option on the menu, and given we didn’t get to eat again for a long time thanks to the delightful traffic jam we got stuck in, it was probably a good choice!
We were very glad we found this place (and were able to get a table each day!) and I would highly recommend it to anyone in the area. The coffee was always excellent, the food was delicious and the staff were welcoming and chatty – there’s not a lot more you can want from a cafe really!
Little Lane Espresso – 1790 David Lowe Way, Coolum QLD
Open 6am-3pm (closed Mondays)
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I Spy Plum Pie is Liz, an early 30s kiwi-born, Melbourne raised girl who is passionate about the environment and sustainability, food, exploring and learning new things. Join me on my journey to a happy, sustainable life!
Foodie
October 4, 2013 at 3:44 pm (11 years ago)Great review! The food looks so fresh and hearty. I love boutique cafes like this one. I always feel the people who work there are happy and welcoming, they seem to really care about the food and their customers.
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I Spy Plum Pie (admin)
October 5, 2013 at 12:35 pm (11 years ago)It was all so delicious! I love small cafes too, they are usually so attentive and friendly and pay close attention to their food and customers. This was no exception!
Iron Chef Shellie
October 6, 2013 at 4:57 pm (11 years ago)Looks great! Sometimes limited choice is great, looks like they do things well there 🙂
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I Spy Plum Pie (admin)
October 6, 2013 at 8:50 pm (11 years ago)It really was fantastic! I agree, limited choice done well is much better than lots of options done averagely!