perth: sayers sister, lake street.

sayers sister was one of the cafés listed on my to-try list for perth. it wasn't exactly accessible though- it was located a good twenty minutes away from the cbd. i'm so glad that we made the effort to go, though, because the food was good. definitely worth the trek.



the first time we came, it was for lunch. it was quite late by the time we made it there, but the place was buzzing. managed to nab the only available table inside. found the tables too close together for comfort, though. it made getting out of the seat a challenge, and privacy for conversation was basically nil.

i was undecided between the pulled lamb (A$23) and cornbread (A$19). from what i saw on instagram, the cornbread was what almost everyone ordered, and it looked spectacular. the pulled lamb, however, sounded really good, with its middle eastern inspired flavours- i just wasn't sure about the black pudding. upon asking, i realised that the black pudding was just three small pieces, so i decided to get it.



when i read the menu (black pudding & pulled lamb, pearl barley salad, sweet potato hummus, flatbread & minted chimichurri) i certainly did not envision it to be... well, the way it was. when it arrived, i was startled by the way the dish looked. i was expecting it to be more... traditionally presented, with all the elements flat on the plate and flatbread on the side. it came, however, as more of a stack, with the flatbread acting as a layer in between, with the black pudding at the side. it was a good sort of surprise, though!



the pulled lamb was actually mixed together with the pearl barley to form a salad, and that was the base of the dish. the pearl barley added a delicious bite that was countered by the smooth sweet potato hummus. every element worked together to form a coherent dish. the only element i didn't get was the flatbread- it felt like it was more for aesthetics than anything else.

X got the chai tea poached chicken salad (A$25), which came with smoky eggplant, sundried tomato, mozzarella, basil pesto and rocket. similarly, portions were generous. we were both stuffed at the end of the meal.

the food was so good that i decided that we had to come back for breakfast, because i wanted to have the cornbread.



we returned the next day for breakfast, and i got to have the cornbread. having had cornbread for dinner the night before at pleased to meet you, i found sayers sister's rendition lacklustre in comparison. it was not as rich and buttery as the one i had for dinner, but with all the add-ons, it was still a delicious eat. the perfectly poached eggs added a richness when paired with with the cornbread. it also came with maple roasted pumpkin, baked ricotta, capsicum relish and blackened corn salsa, which added complexity to the dish.



X couldn't decide on the leek croquettes (A$19) or the potato rösti (A$20), so she made me decide for her (!). i decided on the potato rösti for her, and similarly, it came in a stack, with a tangle of rocket leaves on top and the rösti buried beneath.



i found the lamb to be better than the cornbread, but i enjoyed the food both visits. X, however, i think, found the flavours too strong for her liking. i would go back just for the lamb- too bad it's not in singapore. café food in australia is generally much more refined and value-for-money as compared to its singaporean counterparts. eating in cafés in perth has been an absolute joy- i would so love to have had more time to eat.




sayers sister
236 lake street
http://www.sayerssister.com.au