Thursday, October 27, 2011

Alimento Cafe, Parramatta

There's always that strange feeling when I walk into an unfamiliar restaurant for the first time, and don't know exactly what to do. I've experienced it in bistros, when there's a sign which tells you to wait there, but not a waiter in sight. Or in cafes, when you're not sure whether you're supposed to order at the table or at the counter.

We're at Alimento Cafe (after much indecision as to where to eat), and although there are plenty of nice empty tables outside, we're standing awkwardly at the entrance. Do we just sit down and hope that someone notices us? Do we go up to the staff at the counter? Or do we wait until a waitress notices us and takes us to a seat?

We finally capture the attention of the girl at the counter, who (after establishing that we are not voucher holders) tells us to just sit down anywhere and she'll get someone to bring us the menus.


I don't often eat at cafes, and would probably never have noticed this one, but I'd read about Alimento online after searching for Italian food in Parramatta for a dinner with friends.....which never ended up happening. The prices on the menu are quite reasonable, especially at lunch, with their $10 specials- which we're here for. The lunch specials come with the condition that you order a drink from their extensive list of drinks (which took me forever to choose from). I ordered a mocha, which was nice, though I would have liked it to be a little more chocolatey- but I'm not a coffee drinker (this would probably be about my 5th mocha I've ever had) so don't take my word for it ;)


Lemon Pepper Perch Fillet $10

I order the lemon pepper perch fillet, a delicious piece of fish, grilled until tender and crisp at the edges and covered with a layer of lemon sauce. The sauce is surprisingly pleasant and tasty, with the light taste of lemon not being too overpowering and also serves as a nice dressing for the salad. The chips are definitely the highlight of the dish for me, with their shattering crunch and ability to stay crunchy even when soaked in the lemon sauce. My only complaint is that there isn't enough of them!!



Chicken and Prawn Risotto $10

My friend's order of chicken and prawn risotto, was quite popular amongst their lunch customers- and hard to miss with the strange lettuce leave on the side. The tomato based risotto is delicious and creamy- I certainly wouldn't mind ordering it next time! :)

Alimento Cafe Restaurant on Urbanspoon

22 Comments:

נєαи said...

First!:D

That fillet looks AMAZING - reminds me of Doyle's fish&chips at Watson's Bay *drools* x3 And that risotto looks kinda yummy but I thought it was baked beans L0L0L0L xD

I guess I should let someone who's more pro at this talk now x))))

Kiran @ KiranTarun.com said...

Gah! I hate it when people are unattentive.

But those drinks and foods - so drool-worthy :)

BTW, thanks for visiting my blog!

Unknown said...

Sometimes, I feel the same when I go into a new restaurant!
I call it: "Do not dominate the space". Jajaja.
Chocolatey or not, that seems a very nice mocha:)

grace said...

i'm so impressed by baristas who can make designs in their foam. nice find!

Chandani Shrestha said...

Oh Von another wonderful food trip to Australia. Love looking at the pictures and drool but would be even better if I can actually be there. And girl we all have that awkward moments in restaurants, cafes.

Viv said...

thats some fine coffee art!! so pretty...too bad no chocolatey enough! those dishes look so good and such great value too! i thought that perch dish would cost a lot more than that!

XQ said...

hmm thought i left a comment last night but can't seem to find it anymore...so will repost :)

I've been here for the lunch special too - had the risotto, whilst John had the chicken. Both very nicely done but John also lamented the lack of chips!

XQ said...

ok it took me a while to figure out how to follow you - but I think I've succeeded :) I'm getting too old for technology haha

Shirley @ Kokken69 said...

I am slurping over the risotto!

JasmyneTea said...

I do hate going somewhere I haven't been before and wondering what the hell to do - but that lemon pepper perch looks delicious!

Nic@diningwithastud said...

Lol @ the random lettuce leaf. Sounds yum though!

Anonymous said...

oh this is perfect - i've been meaning to try out italian in parramatta and the $10 lunch specials are so enticing! especially that risotto...

TasteHongKong said...

The fish fillet and the risotto are cooked in the ways I like : ).

Juliana said...

Wow, they all look great...would love to have my fork on the fish dish...
Hope you have a wonderful week Von :-)

Dumpling Girl said...

The chips with lemon butter sounds wonderful, I can't get enough of crunchy chips too.

Rita (mademoiselle délicieuse) said...

I'm wondering what that lettuce leaf is meant to do for the risotto as well!

Nami | Just One Cookbook said...

I'm about to go to bed but the mocha and all the delicious food kept me widely awake... =) That's a big fillet! Really juicy and I love they added french fries. =) I'm going to bed with my hungry tummy now... hehe.

muppy said...

i've spotted this place and wondered what it was like. definitely looks as though you could get a decent lunch.

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