Cravings cafe, East Perth
Workmate J and I decided we’d go to 88 Royal lunch bar to get lunch, since we hadn’t been for a while. As we walked on the 88 Royal side of Royal Street, a man walked in front of us, swaying and staggering, turning around to look at us every now and then. We couldn’t tell if he was drunk or on other drugs and we didn’t like the way he kept leering at us (yes, he was definitely leering), so I said to workmate J: “Maybe we should cross the street.” And that’s how we ended having lunch at Cravings.
Cravings is where Aroma used to be. I bought takeaway lunch from Cravings just once, shortly after they opened – some of you may remember, chicken chasseur with crunchy undercooked rice. Not surprisingly, since then I haven’t been compelled to get lunch from Cravings. On this day though, as we walked by, we noticed the big sign at the front advertising lunch specials for AU$9.90. “Mmm, I could really go for a BLT,” workmate J said. We decided to dine in and try the lunch specials. We sat at one of the tables outside so we could watch the world (or at least, East Perth workers) go by.
Workmate J ordered the BLT with salad (AU$9.90 lunch special) with a serve of chips (AU$4). The salad had a tasty tangy dressing on it.
I thought the bacon in the BLT looked fantastic. Workmate J’s first comment was “Thank god it’s really a BLT, not a BL like the last time!” She reminded me of the time we had lunch at the Royal pub and she, SRM and C were all served BLTs without any T (they were, sadly, BLs)!
Workmate J carefully cut the BLT into half so it would be easier to eat.
Workmate J kindly invited me to share her chips with her. I happily agreed, of course. They were fresh and crispy.
I ordered the salt and pepper squid with salad (lunch special AU$9.90). Six pieces of crispy battered squid were served on top of a bowl of lightly dressed salad, with a dish of chunky tartare sauce for dipping. I used the tartare sauce as a dip for the salad as well as the squid.
The salt and pepper squid tasted very similar to the frozen kind you can buy in a box from Woolworths. I love that frozen squid in a box (Signature brand) – it’s really tasty! This salt and pepper squid had been deep-fried to perfection,
golden-brown and crispy on the outside, with tender squid on the inside.
This salt and pepper squid really was beautifully deep-fried, and I enjoyed every single piece (and secretly wished there were more!). If there were more, I’d have happily kept on eating until workmate J dragged me back to the office (or perhaps she’d have joined me! :P).
But the star of the show was that BLT. I will admit, even as I munched on my crispy salt and pepper squid, I couldn’t help ogling that bacon! Here it is again from another angle. I just love how the bacon is folded on top of the fresh tomato and lettuce. It just gives the impression of layers of bacon. I love thinking about that – layers of bacon. Layers and layers of bacon. Layers and layers and layers of bacon. OK, I’ll stop now. :P
We both enjoyed our lunch at Cravings (no, really? :P) and will definitely consider eating there again.
Cravings Cafe
129 Royal St
East Perth WA 6004
Telephone: (08) 9225 6215