Cafe Oratnek, Redfern

Cafe Oratnek is the first solo project from Kenny Takayama, former head chef of bills. It’s hidden in plain sight on leafy Pitt St. If you’re stuck, look for the signature four pronged fork spraypainted in mint on a wooden board. You’ll know it when you see it. There seems to be an overarching theme of neutral colors accented by mint. Takayama’s motto is “finished everyday, fresh the day after”, a remnant from his days at bills. Everything is made in-house except for the coffee and bread. Here, the chosen coffee roaster is Mecca and Brickfields provides bread. Even the herbs are “in-house”; you can sit amongst them in the courtyard.

You may have seen quite a few people rave about the pork fillet katsu sandwich ($10) served with cabbage, Japanese bbq sauce and mustard – it’s a popular choice. I, however, went for a Japanese fried chicken and kimuchi mayo sandwich ($10). Getting crispy chicken with minimal batter is a beautiful thing. Kimuchi is a milder version of kimchi, so no, it's not a spelling error. It's enough to pack some flavor but not blow your head off. Personally, I like extra heat. But that's just me. Sadly, these sandwiches are only available for lunch, so don’t get there too early.

My pick for breakfast would be the toast with house made chili jam, vine tomato, cucumber and goats cheese ($13) plus an extra poached egg ($2.50) because I live for eggs. The menu is rounded out by breakfast classics like the bacon and egg roll with tomato chutney and mustard mayo ($12) and granola with poached fruits, honey, yogurt and milk ($12).

Enjoy your brunch will a glass of bubbly – in this case it’s zonin prosecco ($8 glass/$35 bottle). If that isn’t really your thing, there’s Asahi ($8) and Sapporo ($9) beers available. I’d also be pretty keen on a minted lemon lime and bitters ($5.50) to accompany my lunch; especially if the weather is nice.

With the former bills head chef at the helm, Cafe Oratnek has a lot of promise in the breakfast department. It's one of the few Asian options for breakfast/lunch in Redfern and does it fairly well. It also has the perfect atmosphere for a lazy weekend brunch with friends.

Edit (26/9/15): changed kimchi to kimuchi and my opinion on the "mildness" of the mayo

Cafe Oratnek

4 Pitt St

Redfern NSW 2016
Website