I took an immediate fancy to this cute pocket sized cafe right off Sydney Road: They're going for the American vibe here, with polished wooden booths and matching lunch counter dressed with hot sauce bottles. Add that to a bagel heavy menu and I was feeling the love.
The clientele is a sea of tatted hipsters in black hoodies hunched over cups of excellent coffee and avo dressed bagels. So far, things were good: The place looked cool, the coffee was awesome, and there was hot sauce everywhere. Unfortunately, the menu left a lot to be desired: First off, True North is a bit ambitious. They don't have an actual kitchen, just a prep area behind the counter with a toaster oven and tiny stove top The teensy area shares space with the cash register and coffee machine. This is simply not enough room to cook a plethora of bagels, egg dishes, and assemble sandwiches, and the "kitchen" staff is none too nimble: It took over thirty minutes to get a veggie sandwich and a plate of huevos rancheros, both simple dishes that don't take a whole lot of time to throw together. My sandwich was fresh, but a bit bland and the addition of a pinch of feta for an extra two bucks was a bit rich. The sandwich should have come with it in the first place and what did arrive was barely worth 50 cents. Not impressed. My friend ordered the huevos rancheros, and sorry, these weren't. They are supposed to be smothered in cooked salsa but these huevos only came with a raw chopped tomato and avocado. This is traditionally a wet dish, but what we got was dry. Not really what we North Americans expected but maybe they can get it over on the Aussies.
We entered on a five and left on a two for the grand total of an so-so 3. It's a shame, because the coffee and the vibe is good. The food however, needs attention. read more