Cafe Lewi – Lewisham NSW Restaurant Review

We had an uncharacteristically nice meal for a weekday morning in a narrow little Inner West cafe that doesn’t quite have an all day menu, but does have some relatively elaborate options for breakfast. This was actually our second attempt at eating here, our first visit foiled by an extreme Saturday morning wait for one of their few tables.

The cafe’s physical space was very narrow, however brightly lit with large windows and nice artwork, it reminded me of a inner-west house I could not afford to live in.

We had the very photogenic confit king salmon with salmon roe ($33), a pyramid of salmon, sorrel, and avocado puree on a deep fried potato bed. I enjoyed the taste of the herbs together with the salty and umami pops of salmon roe, the crunch and oiliness of the fried potato, and the soft and fatty semi-cooked salmon. It was really something reminiscent of when we used to eat small food on a large plate. My wife was less impressed by this whole thing, having been socialised (by me) over the last few years to appreciate larger foods on larger plates for fewer dollars.

My only complaint would be that I thought that the salmon would’ve been better served warm than how it was, which was cold.

The hot cross bun ($8) was one of the best HXB I’ve had in probably years ,and that includes looking forwards in time and considering the one I had today from Cherry Moon.

This hot cross bun had an unusually buttery and soft interior texture, as well as a filling of even more buttery sauce. The little raisins had the perfect dimensions of a little bit of sweetness with a touch of bitterness that made the hot cross bun feel extra premium.

I was less fond of this cheese scone ($8), which I thought was a lesson in dryness.

I think it’s a hard balance to strike, and this in house scone, despite its microplaned cheesiness, did not hit it. (The one I had today from Cherry Moon was better. You winsome, you lose some.)

Overall pretty nice! Everything baked is baked in-house, which is a plus, and the under-renovation photos of their space on their Instagram really shows what a bit of imagination and a couple of million dollars can get you a few suburbs west of the CBD. $1.2M in 2021 is unreal, but you really have to have that kind of vision.

Cafe Lewi
8A Victoria St, Lewisham NSW 2049