Petersham has always been a destination suburb for some hangover-busting Portuguese chicken and custard tarts. But look a bit further and you’ll discover that this little pocket of the Inner West is kicking goals on all fronts when it comes to eats and drinks. Daisy’s Milk Bar is a sweet little diner fast making fast with mac'n'cheese and mixed lollies, while the Oxford Tavern has swapped tits and schnits for barbecue and tiny burgers. Even the local bowlo is getting in on the act, pulling excellent craft beers and hosting live gigs.
And now a sunny corner café is charming the early risers with coffee, crumpets and a brisket for breakfast. You’ll find Brighton the Corner in the leafy backstreets behind the station. Sunshine streams through the windows and washes over a simple room of charcoal grey banquettes, bentwood chairs, claw-footed tables and tiled counters for coffee and food. Get here right on the dot of opening and you might get a mist of Windex with your coffee – they keep those windows gleaming. You won’t want to dawdle, especially if you’re aiming for one of the window seats that open onto the street.
Choosing between the house-made sodas is no easy feat. It may be the colour of fairy-floss but the watermelon and basil soda is low on the sweet scale. Or go for lemon and thyme – sweet, acidic and herbaceous all at once. As to the apple and ginger number? Next time, Gadget.
Vegan naysayers should stick a fork in the roast cauliflower salad. Golden brown florets of cauliflower dominate a jumble of shredded kale, pickled cabbage, puy lentils and blanched, toasted almonds in a sweet vinegar dressing. Prefer meat? Indulge your love for brisket with tender strands of slow-cooked beef on extra crunchy potato hash with a poached egg, a swirl of zesty parsley and garlic sauce and some crunchy onion rings to top it all off. It’s a mighty morning meal, made for only the most seasoned of breakfast eaters.
There’s not much we like more at Time Out than a good breakfast dessert. Once you’ve laid the foundations of your day with some savoury victuals, consider the crumpets: four little guys that actually sit somewhere between a crumpet and an English muffin (mumpit? Cruffin?). They’re smooth on top, but house a gratifying chewiness – and they're certainly up to the task of soaking up the sweet mess of melted butter and honey surrounding wedges of gently cooked pear.
Petersham has been quietly amassing a seriously fun food and drink portfolio of late. With the addition of Brighton the Corner you have yet another good reason to invest your time here.
