Get your bite on at Bitton Gourmet Café and Grocer

Breakfast out, or indeed brunch for the late arisers among us, is such a luxury. No mooching in slippers to the barren shelves of the fridge to see the empty bottles of milk. No unexpected lack of eggs or bread, or fighting over the last couple of wheat biscuits or tea bag.

Brasserie Bread for sale at Bitton Gourmet Café and Grocer, Copeland Street, Alexandria

Bitton is somewhat of an institution in Alexandria (or Erskineville as I’ve always called it); its red awnings standing out like a beacon to the area’s young, funky (and sometimes older and stylish) residents. Families with young kids take over the back courtyard while others fill the footpath seating, especially on weekend mornings.

We arrive at a more afternoon-like hour, but the all-day breakfast menu is there waiting to envelope me in the simple comfort that is bacon and eggs for breakfast on the weekend.

Mango (left) and berry (right) smoothies

Eschewing coffee for hopefully more healthy fruit smoothies, the mango and the berry are our choices. The mango one is a bit bland with a not-so-ripe mango flavour while the berry smoothie is seed-y, tart and better.

Butter, spicy tomato sauce and salt flakes

The menu features a lot of chef and owner David Bitton’s own products, like jams and sauces, and offers a broad range of breakfast options, as well as lunch given our late start to the day.

The arrival whole small container of French Isigny butter at the table, along with a chunky tomato sauce and salt flakes, sets the scene for what is to come for my breakfast order.

One pan bacon and eggs with wood fired bread and spicy tomato sauce

The pan reminds me a little of a paella pan, and I can see that both the bacon and eggs are just cooked – no crispy bacon here but no complaints either. The bacon was seriously quality pork: smoky, firm and so full of flavour that I didn’t mind the fat all too much.

The baked eggs were similar to their poached cousins, with the gooey yolk going all over the pan and making very good use of the provided bread, and a few extra slices. Heavenly slices of toasted sourdough bread that required protection from thieving co-diners who appreciate good bread and butter just as much as me.

A side of creamy, ripe avocado upped my fruit/vegie intake alongside the (does it count?) spicy tomato sauce.

Chilli oil roasted chicken supreme on spiced pumpkin with baby herbs

Aforementioned thieving co-diner had been lured by the lunch menu and was looking down at a very tanned chicken breast, roasted in Bitton’s chilli oil and sitting atop a puddle of smooth pumpkin puree and a shallow pool of juices.

The pumpkin, as much as it resembled baby food, was surprisingly rich and creamy with a decent spice kick to prop up the tender, juicy chicken. Said stolen sourdough was used to mop up a lot of the tasty leftover juices.

Bitton products

Perusing a little as we left, there’s an impressive range of dry goods for purchase on the shelves (in addition to Bitton products) as well as a few choice items in the fridge. But going up to pay, we couldn’t resist a loaf of the Brasserie Bread sourdough that we’d just been eating.

We depart with the heavy batard loaf and equally full, heavy stomachs, heading back home for mooching about in slippers and perhaps some sourdough toast for afternoon tea.