The little café (and we mean little – there’s barely enough room in here to swing a kitten) gets going early and pumps right through the day serving up a menu of sweet, soft brioche rolls filled with cured meats and cheese, as well as some very attractive looking muffins, cakelets and Italian doughnuts.
All the better if you can nab a table and eat in – Marlowe’s is staffed by a friendly, attentive crew. We’re not thrilled with the milk coffee (lukewarm and on the bitter side on our visit) but then, it’s pouring rain and that can mess with your grind and milk work no end. We’d certainly repeat offend on a creamy macchiato, though. Each coffee is served with a cute vintage spoon – the type you’d pick up if you were doing a cross-country caravan tour.
The menu is scrawled on a well-thumbed pile of brown paper lunch bags – super cute. A sandwich of pot-roasted beef is served on a chewy roll with melted provolone, mayo and rocket. And, rather excellently, it comes with a side of crinkle-cut crisps. The soup special is cabbage-heavy minestrone, which is a little disappointing. Especially as the next table over’s ordered the fusilli with Bolognese – we’ve got instant menu envy.
Marlowe’s Way is a cute laneway café that’s stylish enough for a breakfast meeting and spunky enough to warrant a lunch later with your mates.
And if you get the lucky spoon (on our visit, it’s Airlie beach – damn you, Parkes!) or stamp on the bottom of your cup, your coffee is free. We’ll drink to that.