Sunday, April 26, 2009

First Impressions: Gillberries

ACR had never been a big fan of Mortar & Pestle in Dulwich – the coffee was usually very average, but the kitchen did cook up some great lunch options. So, when I walked into M&P’s re-incarnation as “Gillberries” on their grand opening on Monday I was certainly impressed with much-improved coffee and a minor re-fit. The service and coffee were so good I went back again twice that week.

M&P regulars will be happy with minimal changes to the menu – the breakfast menu has just been re-worded and slightly altered in make-up. French toast ‘fingers’, green eggs and ham, and toasted muesli complement the standard bacon and eggs. The scrambles have shown improvement, but the whole bacon and eggs meal isn’t anything spectacular – though the multigrain toast and tomato relish are nice for a change. More mouth-watering are the lunch options: sumac-crusted lamb served with chickpea fritter and baba ghanoush (a special); and their Thai/Asian vermicelli noodle salad usually carries a great zing.

Service was incredibly friendly, intuitive and professional – but we should give them a few months to see what happens when the owners aren’t always around: the real challenge is whether Gillberries can consistently produce fantastic coffee and service no matter who is staffing the suburban café. For now though, Gillberries offers a fantastic quick coffee option, offering a style of coffee very similar to nearby GG’s, but with a more up-market ambience. Flies can be an issue when sitting outside in their courtyard, however I doubt this will be a problem in winter!

Gillberries
37c Dulwich Ave, Dulwich 5065
83324628
gillberries@bigpond.com

(no website yet)

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Richard Gill and Kylie Berry - the latter now a Gill - make up the husband and wife team at Gillberries...Richard's long career as a chef (Swaines, Cork & Cleaver, Tin Cat Cafe, The Aldgate Pump)coupled with Kylie's passion and experience as a chef and front of house person set the bar pretty high...watch their new venture for great food , coffee and service for years to come!

Anonymous said...

Being a regular at Mortar and Pestle for years I for one was suprised and even disappointed the new owners had decided to change the name, as M&P had a fabulous reputation and many regulars. However I put this aside to test out "Gillberries". On arrival the green paintwork made feel nauseous to begin with, as did the new and not so improved menu clearly made on publisher and very confusing. As for the decor, the elegence M&P once had with the beautiful ornate mirror and finishings has disappeared and been replaced with tacky and overly loud plastic flowers. While I was waiting for my coffee I was most upset by atmosphere caused by the amount of disrespect the manager was showing her dilligent and over worked employees. After this episode I felt compelled to walk out. Coffee was average and the food no different to Mortar and Pestle. Overall the experience was far from impressive.

Anonymous said...

Excellent Service, Excellent Food, Excellent Coffee.

Definitely going back many times to try everything on the delicious menu.

Anonymous said...

May 23 commentary is clearly a case of sour grapes...are you a disgruntled employee or perhaps just the former owner?? or their best friend - get a life

Anonymous said...

This place is amazing!!! Best coffee I have had in adelaide, incredible attention to detail with the food, and the service is fantastic. I'm now a 'regular' and not alone - the group of regular customers I see time & again when I grab my morning coffee is a testament to what a fantastic cafe gillberries really is.