Little Hideout Cafe

This a really nice niche cafe which serves great coffee and interesting meals.  There is always a breakfast special.  Dining is inside, on the street front, or in the leafy retreat out the back.

Love this little café.  Cosy inside and secluded outside, excellent coffee and inventive menu. Fabulous place for a weekly catch up with my girlfriends.

Like many of its contemporaries around this part of the world, the Little Hideaway Cafe - regardless of the intended name - is unsuspecting right on the big stretch of road. Go right into it, and it almost certainly feels worthy of the name. And it is worth trying, so the hideaway is not a bad deal at all.

My brother-in-law was staying up from the Northern Rivers at my house for a few days with work commitments. With the last morning that he was up, he went and offered a breakfast out for my birthday the day beforehand. From his work, a colleague of his had mentioned this place - and it was relatively new. Sending me a text sometime the night before asking if I have been, the answer was "I don't believe so" and therefore early in the morning the next day he was waking me up to go here.

This occupies a small and modest square of shopping space, with the design of it being quite subdued in comparison to many others. From an observation, the whole arrangement is much like a small-scale Japanese restaurant using a few plants here and there, as well as a few small trinkets. They do what they can here, with a few tables inside and some dining al fresco. Out back is a small courtyard in case business gets even more hectic.

There is nothing too out of the ordinary is noted with the service. From the demeanour, it is a little less enthusiastic than normal - certainly not apathetic, plus the speed of the food coming out is pretty good. Tables were cleared in due time, including taking away used dishes and that in the meantime while being there. The customer service was certainly there, if a bit in the background with a more introverted member of the waitstaff at the helm.

For the most part, the menu follows a pretty familiar pattern with most day-time cafes. That is that it starts out with an all-day breakfast menu - and a separate one for lighter options - before moving onto a smaller lunch menu that has a couple of burger among other items. In the cabinet is a bunch of pastries to have with coffee later on, and those drinks are the usual tea and coffee, then milkshakes and similar drinks, juices, frappes and such. With saying the aforementioned comments, there is an notable Asian twist with a lot of the dishes so that can distinguish it somewhat from the rest of the competition around the neighbourhood. Pork is frequently featured as well in a few of the breakfast items.

So, starting off with the drinks it was coffee as per usual. And that means I get a doppio. This coffee was courtesy from Dramanti, which I have heard more about than really had experience drinking (even after nearly ten years passing a place that does Drammanti Espresso on Ann Street I have yet to visit it, only a matter of time). Nevertheless, the coffee that I had, contained something of a chocolate note in there somewhere, and was pretty strong. It had a smooth texture, was nice on the tongue, along with a decent crema. Not a bad coffee by any means. If this is going to be an indication of how it is overall, then I will definitely be looking out for this bean in the future. Let's put it another way, a second cup was ordered which certainly should shine somewhat of an optimistic light on it.

As for the meal that I ordered, it was a black lentil hash cake. This was topped with a thick piece of pork belly and a poached egg (requested with the yolk runny), made with braised cabbage, drizzled with both salsa verde and a white bean sauce, then with a few decorative cherry tomatoes on the side. This was a very tasty morsel, and the way that it was presented had elements of a Michelin star to it.

First off, the egg was cooked perfectly where the whites were kept soft and moreish, and it took a mere prick with a fork for all of the yolk to be bleeding out onto the plate. The lentil cake was mild in flavour, smooth in texture and was not too bad. It would desperately need something to go along with it though, as on its own it is a bit on the bland side. The cabbage was crunchy and added a bit of texture to it, plus it was not bad with the combination of salsa verde and white bean sauce - it gave it a taste which was not quite spicy, but certainly was tangy. Then the few tomatoes were a sweet touch to it outside of being a garnish. Last, and absolutely most, was the thick slab of pork belly that presented along with it all. It was very tender and juicy. Even the slab of fat was edible and gave off a crunch at times. All of this made for one breakfast which certainly is worth trying.

What my brother-in-law had was an eggs benedict, which I more or less had everything that it had bar maybe some bread and hollandaise sauce (yes, there was a pork belly benedict - sounded too good to be true). To make sure the streak of tradition is not broken, he cut a segment off the bread and put some of the sauce on after I cut a bit of the hash to put on his plate. From the taste of it, the bread was quite good - it was solid, possibly was a sourdough, and this was a decent hollandaise sauce that did not go too heavy on the flavour, and was the right texture. If the pork on his benedict was anything like the pork on my dish, this possibly would have been one good eggs benedict.

As always credit is given where and when it is due. The Little Hideout Cafe has forgone what is the usual route with breakfasts out - thankfully - and in place of it is something that is Asian-themed, making it a little bit like fusion. With the portions, they range somewhere in the middle and yet are filling enough with solid produce put into each dish. For what it is worth with the service and setting, they are pretty well matched to one another where it certainly gives off a laid-back vibe. Well dear brother-in-law, this was a good find and a nice meal.

With the 4.0-score of this one, it is to indicate that there is definitely due care given to the food and it is pretty decent quality. As tasty as the food was, in both being something a bit different and having a better than average quality, overall it is nothing that is too spectacular. It is the kind of indication that it is competently done, and certainly not without good merit.

TL;DR: Asian-fusion meets breakfast in the eastern area of Brisbane. It is a cute little pocket that is already doing well, and while service and design aren't as prevalent here, they still work to make it a solid eating spot in what is already got a number of great places nearby.

a such hidden gems and a awesome charred asparagus such a healthy breakfast i had at  cupcakes cafe . Dramanti beans coffee is amazing and smooth , good work by barista as i ask for flat white  with half strength no froth and its was perfect.

The food and coffee is awesome and well priced! I have had the pulled pork omelette and the charred asparagus. This is a little gem in the area that not many people have discovered yet.

Nice atmosphere, delicious food with good presentation. The service from the staff was fantastic.

A beautiful little cafe - so picturesque and peaceful and caters for dogs with a lovely courtyard as well as tables facing the street for some nice people watching! A fantastic menu with fresh and innovative dishes and also very kind and happy staff. My favourite breakfast and lunch cafe in the Balmoral/Hawthorne/Bulimba area by far!

Have the best service and the most scrumptious food. They never disappoint. I had banana pancakes with rum raisin ice cream, nuts, strawberries, blueberries and maple syrup 🤗

We had mushroom and burger for breakfast, taste absolutely amazing! Highly recommend it!!!