There is something about beautiful sunny Saturday mornings during Spring. I don’t know whether it is the warm sunshine coupled with blue skies that spark feelings of rejuvenation or the fragrant blossoms on trees, but after working long hours during the colder months, under the constant glare of artificial lights and continually having to miss my beloved Body Pump classes, Saturday morning heralded my first non-working weekend for a month and brought with it, a commitment to get back into a healthier lifestyle. In the spirit of new beginnings, having temporarily exchanged my inner city lifestyle and relocated to the leafy surrounds of Kew for the coming month, the opportunity to explore new cafés and food destinations in the area brought an added sense of adventure. What better way to kick-off the weekend than by heading to Mastic, George Colombaris’ café venture dedicated to healthy and nutritious eating.
The café fit-out is quite unique; with plywood cabinetry and structures built overhead but has a rather confused sense of style in that I wasn’t sure if I was having breakfast at a high school cafeteria or the gymnasium. Thick coloured strips of red and clear plastic separate the café space from the neighbouring Hellenic Republic restaurant; green and white plastic-coated wire chairs are used for seating on top of a blue “raised dot” linoleum floor surface; large plywood communal tables with colourful geometric designs, blackboards and table tennis bats adorning the wall space all contributed to a decidedly “institutional” presence in the interior design. I retreated to a marble-topped table in the back corner and patiently waited five minutes or so for someone to acknowledge my arrival.
It’s not easy being green which I discovered when looking through the breakfast menu. As much as I desire to be lean and healthy, the thought of drinking a green whole fruit smoothie with kale, spinach and other leafy ingredients didn’t thrill me at all, nor did the farro salad and buckwheat porridge dishes. But what did catch my eye was the description of the French toast, blueberries, strawberries, crème fraiche and buckinis offering – I guess if George says it’s good for you, then who am I to say otherwise?
I was thoroughly looking forward to my latte which arrived in a beautiful matte black cup, only to be told by the waiter that they had to pop out back and get some more teaspoons. I usually hate having things placed in front of me and told not to touch, but I can only surmise that it was either my extreme tiredness or newly acquired zen-like attitude that enabled me to patiently watch this guy return to the front counter with a handful of clean spoons and commence his duties in the kitchen. I watched him disappear out back and several moments later he returned to the table with my breakfast. Just before he sped off, I politely asked for a teaspoon and he didn’t bat so much as an eyelid at my request.
Healthy food needn’t be boring or ugly, as evidenced by the colourful array of berries and presentation of the dish. There was a mixture of both fresh and freeze-dried berries scattered over the toast providing lots of added flavour and texture to the palate. I have no idea what type of bread was served (or even if it was bread) but it was soft with a cake-like consistency and quite sweet to taste, as though drizzled in a syrup. It was extremely delicious and not as dense or heavy as a traditional French toast. Buckinis, as advised by Google, are activated grains of buckwheat and added another textural element in addition to the freeze-dried fruit. The crème fraiche broke up the density and sweetness of the cake mixture with just enough served to not overwhelm the other elements on the plate.
Not surprisingly, I polished off my first coffee due to its lukewarm state and was now anxious to order another. I slowly ate my breakfast and tried in vain to catch the attention of my waiter who had set himself the task of walking around the café to monitor empty tables (which were numerous) and not make eye-contact with actual customers. After an agonising five minutes, I suddenly hit upon the novel idea of scoffing down the remainder of my breakfast and placing my empty plate in full view in a desperate bid to lure him over to my table, and guess what … it worked. Incredibly, my second latte was brought over by the barista within a minute of ordering which restored some of my misgivings regarding the level of service at Mastic. Having enjoyed a “healthy” breakfast and a great cup of coffee, I had all the energy needed to venture out and make the most of my weekend.
bonjourchickie 