Freckle Face Cafe

I happened upon this café because it was packed & of course that piqued my interest. I was in the mood for a sandwich so I decided to stay and see what everyone else was hanging around for. Unfortunately I had to sit inside because all the outdoor tables were full, and it was a bit hot (no aircon just a fan).
I had a turkey, cranberry, and Camembert sandwich which definitely hit the spot and gets points because a lot of places don’t even offer this sandwich. But I thought $ 11 was a bit steep. It wasn’t a large sandwich (it wasn’t small either) but it didn’t come with any sides so I would expect a price point somewhere below $ 10. As I look around I can see EVERYONE has coffee, so maybe that’s their selling point. I’m a bit too hot to enjoy that now, so maybe that’ll have to wait until my next visit. Possibly after I’ve checked out the other sandwich shops in the neighborhood first.

Great location so close to kirribilli mkts. Service leaves a lot to be desired. Serving hot x buns for easter was a nice treat. The usual café menu of banana bread and friands wears thin after a while. Not the best nor the worst coffee I’ve had. The outdoor seating is generous but unsuitable on a wet or cold day. The added bonus of Nth Syd Councils ban on smoking in outdoor dining ensures your fellow patron won’t smoke you out of your experience.

Not as popular as Garfish across the street, nor quite as upscale, but I thought it was just as good for brunch. No indoor seating here (or maybe a couple of stools inside), it’s all out on the sidewalk. Popular for weekend brunch and takeaway coffee. They have lots of posters of upcoming music and cultural events around the city. Relaxed, with good grub.

They say a face without freckles is like a sky without stars. The same analogy could be applied to Freckle Face Café and Kirribilli. A Kirribilli institution, Freckle Face has been around for as long as I can remember and has stood the test of time, even as the café competition has heated up over the years. Freckle Face seems to be at least double the size of any of the newer cafes in the area (most would be described as a ‘hole in the wall’) and yet it is still always packed.
The coffee here is excellent ($ 3, Lavazza, naturally) and it is served with a signature chocolate freckle, a touch I love! Food wise, the menu is pretty standard café food but the portion sizes are very generous. I tend to gravitate here more for breakfast than lunch so I recommend the poached eggs with sourdough ($ 7.80). My only grip would be that it can feel a little overpriced — I wouldn’t be going for the spinach and salmon with my poached eggs for $ 15.50.

Freckle Face is cute. Meaning it’s small, the menu is written in colourful chalk on the walls, the tables barely fit one pair of legs under let alone a couples, the menu is simple yet the dishes are adequately sized and tasty plus the outdoor area has a few young trees to make you feel less roadside more countryside. Ok, maybe not but they certainly help distract you from the main thorough fair of Kirribilli and it’s train station.
The staff will bend over backwards to seat you even if (in my case) it meant putting a table next to the bus stop style public bench.
They have freshly squeezed juices (I love a place with fresh grapefruit) as well as the bog standard foccacia fillings (think Turkey and Cranberry or Chicken and Avocado). I missed out on my selection as they’d run out of smoked salmon so ended up with some thinly sliced turkey which was a tad disappointing.

Not as popular as Garfish (
) across the street, nor quite as upscale, but I thought it was just as good for brunch. No indoor seating here (or maybe a couple of stools inside), it’s all out on the sidewalk. Popular for weekend brunch and takeaway coffee. They have lots of posters of upcoming music and cultural events around the city. Relaxed, with good grub.