21st Dec 07

What:
Cantina

When:
Wed-Sat 7.30am-10pm, Sun 7.30am-2.30pm

Where:
172 Hardgrave Road, West End

Contact:
3846 2211

After a long couple of days Christmas shopping, you have to ask yourself: what do you want? What will satisfy your cravings for food? What will bring you closer to culinary ecstacy than anything else? And help you forget the domestic shopping horror you have endured.

But with all the names, and gift ideas and credit card statements floating around in your head, you probably can’t think of anything right now. When dealing with last minute Christmas syndrome, we recommend getting right out of the City. Cantina on Hardgrave Road in West End is a good candidate. Nestle yourself amongst the Mexican wrestling posters and escape. The staff are quirky and fun which makes for a relaxed environment. And to further sate the Christmas quibbles, the menu is more than reasonably priced. The “cheapest good breakfast around” we were once told.

For the less adventurous (of is that unadventurous?) there’s ‘find anywhere’ standards, such as gourmet beefburgers and chips. But you don’t go there for those kinds of meals. You go for something like the Spanish omelettes, littered with potato and onion, or the size-of-your-entire-plate pancake, topped with bacon, melon and honey. And breakfast even includes a tappas menu.

Sure, Cantina does do lunch and dinner, but we haven’t made it through the breakfast menu yet. No matter what you’re tucking into, the food is simple, made with care and attention.

And Don’t drive there, it kills the planet. Take the bus. The 199 stops right out the front. Or better yet, catch the Ferry. The trip is a change from the routine.

By Elliott Bledsoe

By Elliott Bledsoe

Venue: Eatery

Meal: Dinner