Two good eggs (and some mighty fine pork belly)

Today we went for Sunday brunch at Two Good Eggs cafe in Surry Hills, central Sydney.

A good Sunday brunch is probably my favourite meal of the week - not that we have brunch every week - and so it was exciting to go to a cafe that specialised in breakfast and brunch. Starting with a very good flat white, complete with little wafer, we were not disappointed.

The Two Good Eggs menu is pretty diverse and manages to hit both the usual favourites, such as pancakes with bacon and maple syrup, or Eggs Benedict, plus a whole bunch of creative dishes too.

I opted for something that I would never make myself at home: Roast pork belly with poached eggs, caramelised onion and sourdough toast. Delicious! The two eggs were indeed good, cooked to perfection and served atop tasty, crispy pork belly and sweet, sticky caramelised onions. The photo did not do it justice but an attempt seemed obligatory for something so good.

I was lucky enough to sample a couple of other dishes too: Eggs Benedict with smoked salmon and avocado, and “Goats on toast”, a vegetarian dish of “Warm Trinity Cellars French goats cheese with drizzled honey and smashed walnuts on sour cherry fruit toast”. Both were very good, although I’m glad I went for the pork belly.

Not quite as cheap or close as the amazing sandwiches at One Six Nine cafe in Randwick, but I am already looking for excuses to go back! Top notch nosh.

My top 3 free WiFi spots in Sydney

Two months ago, we stepped off the plane having moved half-way round the world from the UK to Sydney. These days, when you first move to a city - or visit on holiday for that matter - one of the first things on the To Do list is to find a decent source of free WiFi, at least until more permanent internet solutions are in place. Australia is not quite a far down the free WiFi path as the UK, where every other bar or cafe will offer it, but there are still some good spots to be found. Here are my Top 3 Free WiFi spots in Sydney so far:

3. Bondi Pavilion (above). On our first day in Sydney, in an anti-jetlag act, we walked the coastal path from Coogee to Bondi. We were rewarded at the other end by a smoothie and free WiFi at Bondi Pavilion. It was time-restricted and you had to watch an advert first, plus it seemed a little flaky, but with a beach view it still comes in at Number 3.

2. The Australian Museum (right). Museums are often a good spot for free WiFi, especially when there is a decent cafe. On a trip to Wellington last year, I would often visit Te Papa to avail of the facilities. Unlike Te Papa, the Australian Museum is not free (though still worth a visit) but the cafe is. The coffee is good (no surprise), the WiFi is free and you can admire an impressive whale skeleton at the same time.

1. The Art Gallery of New South Wales (below). Edging out the Australian Museum at Number 1 is the Art Gallery of New South Wales. This one is free and is particularly good on a Wednesday night for Art After Hours. In addition to perusing the art - including possibly my favourite sculpture - you can enjoy a nice glass of wine or two and some live music whilst you surf the web.

22 grams of coffee heaven and the brilliant Cafe Brioso

One of the noticeable things about Sydney is the quality of coffee. Unlike the UK, which is dominated by several big chains (Costa, Starbucks, Nero etc.) and has quite variable coffee outside of these chains, the Sydney cafe scene is still ruled by small independents and they are all good! One cafe worth a particular mention is 22 grams on High Street in Randwick, which is just down the road from where we spent our first month in Sydney. Their coffee rates as some of the best that I have ever had - and they do a mean cinnamon bun too!

It would be wrong to mention good coffee, however, without a shout-out for Cafe Brioso, which is more commonly known as the “Library lawn coffee cart” (above). Situated next to the Library Lawn (below), this is my favoured spot for a flat white on campus. Although quiet in the photo above (as I try to avoid taking and posting pictures of strangers), the coffee cart gets pretty busy at peak times but the crew of baristas are awesome and churn through the orders like a well-oiled machine. It’s good coffee, too! My only regret is that, as it’s takeaway only, I alway have a lid, which covers up the pretty “barista art” in the crema/foam. Somehow, it’s nice knowing it’s there, though - a sign, I think, that the barista cares!

One Six Nine Cafe - setting the bar high for Sydney brunch

Australians are big into their brunch (I have been told) and today we had our first proper brunch in Sydney, at One Six Nine Cafe in Randwick, which we discovered thanks to Urban Spoon. (I neglected to take any pictures at the time, so I pinched the one to the left from their gallery.)

We shared the smoked salmon brunch - smoked salmon on sourdough toast with ricotta, avocado and a poached egg - and the day’s special: peanut butter pancakes with maple syrup, grilled banana and crispy bacon. Amazing. The portions were just right (for me) - large enough to feel that I was getting value for money (and full!) but not obscene - and the food was all top quality. The coffee was good too!

I suspect that this is the first of many brunches to come but it might be a hard one to beat! Fortunately, One Six Nine is within walking distance of where we'll be living but not too close. (The temptation might be too strong for our wallets!)

As an added bonus, they also served Tap™, which I had seen advertised outside a cafe before but did not really understand what it was. It turns out that it’s not a crazy gimmick/scam (along the lines of Dasani) but is instead an attempt to save resources by encouraging people to drink tap water, something that I can happily get behind!