Jac was in a burger sort of mood. She ordered the chicken and bacon burger (AU$12.25), which was absolutely bursting with roast chicken, bacon, avocado, tomato and lettuce. The menu said there’d be mayo in the burger, but the mayo that was used tasted not like “mayo” but “Cajun mayo”. This in itself was not a problem for Jac (and me! I had more than a couple of bites :)) as it was really tasty, but it could’ve been an issue for a diner who doesn’t like Cajun or spicy flavours. Just like the previous time we ate this burger, the juices from the chicken and bacon really kept it moist. Jac thought there was a little too much bacon (come on, all together now: “What?!!! You can never have too much bacon!” Heheheh) – she found the burger extremely salty as a result. It was a big, filling burger – I stepped in and helped out when she admitted defeat with about two big bites to go.

I had English breakfast tea (AU$3.80) with soy milk to start off with. Jac had an espresso milkshake (AU$4.80, not pictured).

I ordered the pancakes with banana (you can have berries instead of banana if you prefer) and maple syrup. After ordering I realised I had forgotten to specify if I wanted honey yoghurt or fresh cream. Since I didn’t mind either, I just waited for the pancakes to arrive to see what the chef served me. Next to my pancakes was some whipped cream piped into a small dish. The thick slices of banana were warm and would’ve been even better if the chef had allowed them to caramelise (I’d have sprinkled a little sugar on them to hasten the caramelisation, yum). The pancakes themselves were disappointing. They had the much-too-sweet taste and the spongey, floppy feel of pre-packaged pancake batter mix. There was nowhere near enough maple syrup, especially on the second/bottom pancake, which was too dry as a result. It would have been much better if they’d served the maple syrup in a little jug on the side. Having eaten a beautiful stack of pancakes dripping with maple syrup at Tastings in Subiaco, I know how amazing pancakes for breakfast can be at a cafe (and a cafe that does not specialise in pancakes!), and the Cuckoo Chef’s pancakes were not even “good”. AU$9.90 for Tastings’ amazing stack of pancakes or AU$11.50 for Cuckoo Chef’s not-even-good pancakes – I know which one wins. I may as well have bought Hotcakes from McDonald’s (which have their place in life, though not in a cafe, and are much much cheaper!). Seriously, I wouldn’t bother serving pancakes at all in a cafe if they were going to be like this – very unsatisfying.