Paperboy, Concord

Bianca: We’ve been eagerly awaiting the opening of Paperboy for close to 6 weeks now and the doors finally opened last week. From the boys at Left of Field in Rhodes, the coffee is Single Origin and the menu has a few twists on popular café dishes. Though I’ve moved to ‘The Meadow’, Concord has been my home since 2004 and I’m practically in the area most days of the week. We have some decent cafes and restaurants but nothing quite on the level people in other suburbs are fortunate to have. Particularly the Mortlake/ Breakfast Point area. It’s a virtual café black hole. The corner shop was home to a former sandwich and grocer and they really wanted to keep it a local, friendly spot.

The fit-out is corner store-esque in its quaintness but the final result is still sleek and polished. So just to be completely transparent, we know the LOF boys fairly well, I went to primary school with owner Matt in Winston Hills many moons ago but when it comes to food, don’t despair we’ll give you our honest thoughts and we passed on our feedback to Matt during our visit.

My Skim Capp $3.8 needed a 1/3 tsp to take the edge off the bitterness. There is no divisive Breakfast/lunch menu, instead, an all-day menu is served until 3 pm daily.

Now, the food. I was a little strategic with my food choices avoiding the typical standard ‘any’ café dishes. Starting with the Lamington Waffles – w/dark chocolate, nougat parfait, desiccated coconut, fresh fruits & berry jam $17. If there was a dish that is soon to become a signature it’s this one. The waffles had a great crisp to the outer edges, we loved the varying textures from the waffles to the creamy parfait to the toasted almonds. The dark chocolate was a fairly unobtrusive layer acting as an adhesive for the coconut to bind to. I liked the pockets of sharpness from the house made berry jam but would have loved just a bit more. This dish is still being tinkered with, so don’t be surprised if a different version starts appearing soon.

Shakshuka are a dime a dozen these days, they’re typically not my go to but for interest’s sake, I gave them a whirl. Spicy Baked Eggs –w/chickpeas, zaatar, cheese, lamb sausages & flat bread $18. A generous and hearty serve with tender sausage, a well-developed and balanced tomato sauce. There were a few too many chickpeas for my liking, I would probably prefer a more discernible cheese such as a feta and a more robust dipping bread like a Turkish or ciabatta.

Of course, the chicken burg was going to get a look in. The Nahm Jim Chicken Burger –w/Asian slaw, iceberg lettuce on a milk bun w/prawn crackers $17. A slight misstep here, the flavours were pleasant and there was a muted tanginess from the Nahm Jim dressing, a nice dose of freshness from the Asian slaw & herbs. Those that like a lighter/fresher burger will enjoy this but I like mine bold and in your face and it didn’t quite do it for me.

And finally, the Ruben Cuban – Cuban style roast pork, corned beef, sauerkraut, Swiss cheese & mustard mayo $18. Talking about big bold flavours, this sandwich delivers. An excellent ratio of sauerkraut and mustard mayo in relation to the pork & corned beef. With the pork being tender and very flavourful. Mum and I disagreed on the thickness of the bread, I thought the outer crusts were slightly too thick and I do question whether grain bread is the best option.

All in all, an exciting new addition to the Concord café scene.

Bianca