By now you probably know that Black Star founder and creator of their famous strawberry watermelon cake, Christopher Thé, has opened a cake shop and bakery in Stanmore. However Hearthe is more than just somewhere to eat cakes infused with a range of native Australian ingredients running from paperback to Geraldton wax. The oddly-shaped former butcher shop, sitting opposite Stanmore station, also has enough savoury items to dish up a decent breakfast or lunch.
Winter inclines me toward a stick-to-your-ribs bowl of rice congee ($26) with tart pickles cutting through the heaviness of the warm porridge-like broth hiding buttermilk dumplings. The warrigal nest ($24) is a more compact breakfast pastry teaming native spinach with eggs Benedict under pale yellow hollandaise. You might need to throw in a cinnamon spice stick ($5) to fill out the corners. It’s another Christopher Thé original twisting caramelised croissant dough under a dusting of cinnamon myrtle sugar. Alongside balanced coffees — a cappuccino ($4.50) and a strong flat white ($5.10) — made on beans from local roaster, The Little Marionette, it’s perfect for those who prefer simpler pastries over cakes and cream. I will say it’s a little on the pricy side, but the well-to-do locals look like they don’t mind.
