United Espresso and Kitchen, Black Rock
The Overview…
Meal: Brunch
Food: United Breakfast Board, Halloumi and Pumpkin, Belgian Waffles
The details…
Looking like a fairly simple cafe from the onset, we loved United Espresso’s low key interior (with little splashes of their Mediterranean/Middle Eastern influences) and their local vibe. We managed to time our visit perfectly with a little lull in their day, however, even with just a couple of tables filled you could sense the friendly atmosphere of this venue which looks to become a regular go to for locals.
Doing a healthy take away trade with their coffees, breakfast burgers and sweets comes as little surprise when you realise they are minutes away from beautiful Black Rock beach, and comfortable though the cafe is, I know I’d definitely enjoy my coffee with a side of ocean waves too when the weather is right. In addition to the take away, there is a decent breakfast and lunch menu with everything from toast to a steak sanga, depending on how hungry you are. We were quite hungry (read greedy) so we opted for the breakfast board, pumpkin and halloumi, and waffles.
The friendly staff warned us the portions were big, and they were certainly right, even the smallest of the dishes – the waffles – came with two good sized waffles stacked onto the plate with a variety of extras. With most of the meals coming in around $18 they offer really good value plates filled with fresh ingredients. Anyway, I’m skipping to the end, so let’s get back to the beginning of our meal.
Firstly we sampled the breakfast board, which is everything I could want in a breakfast dish and combines my two great loves, breakfast and tapas. As a kid, I literally used to make my own breakfast boards with everything I could find in the fridge and I’m never happier than when I’m trying lots of little dishes. This one was loaded with far better tasty morsels than my childhood fridge (sorry mum): The scrambled sujuk egg was a tasty alternative to traditional scrambled eggs, the spinach and feta gozleme (such a middle eastern classic), and who can go wrong with grilled halloumi. Yes, there’s a fair bit of cheese but this is balanced with the smashed avo, olives tomatoes and cucumber to even things out. Loved it, and I’d eat this for breakfast any day of the week!
The pumpkin and halloumi is a colourful and fresh dish. Like a lot of the menu it’s a pretty healthy vibe with plenty of veggies packed on to the plate. There’s kale, pumpkin, beetroot hummus, chopped nuts. I could go on, but I think you get the picture: popping colours, lots of variety and health conscious (like, halloumi is healthy right?). With two slices of seeded sourdough and a poached egg you definitely won’t be left wanting with this dish.
Finally, we ended with the waffles – at this point I was having some serious regrets about my life choices as I was INCREDIBLY full. Miraculously we managed to almost finish these, despite there being two rather large waffles centre stage on the plate. The waffles themselves were a good, simple sweet dish. We loved that they were served with both maple syrup and coulis – this was a really nice touch – and then adorned with pistachio, raspberries and nutella mascarpone. They certainly don’t have the health vibe of some of the other dishes, but they’re a nicely balanced sweet treat!
Everything else…
Website: http://unitedespressoandkitchen.com.au/
Address: 5 Bluff Road, Black Rock
Opening Times:
Mon 7am to 4pm
Tue 7am to 4pm
Wed 7am to 4pm
Thu 7am to 4pm
Fri 7am to 4pm
Sat 7am to 4pm
Sun 7am to 4pm
Parking: There’s a carpark about 2-3 minutes walk away on Bluff Road, or nearby street parking too – just avoid those beach front car parks as they can be a bit $$.
Getting here on PT: It’s not an easy one on PT. Your best option is the 600 bus to/from Southland, alight at Arkaringa Cr.
Disclaimer: We dined as guests of United Espresso, Black Rock. Reviews are honest and based on our own personal experiences. We cannot guarantee things at a cafe won’t change including, but not limited to, menu items and opening hours, so please confirm any details with the venue before visiting.