News location:

Canberra Today 15°/19° | Thursday, March 28, 2024 | Digital Edition | Crossword & Sudoku

A busy Bite amid the buzz, buzz, buzz

IT was that day. The day when rain turned to snow and when the temperatures fell below minus 4C by 10am. 

We wanted a nice lunch in the sun, but it wasn’t to be. So we headed to a warm, comfy place instead – A Bite to Eat, at Chifley shops.

It was buzz, buzz, buzz that Friday lunch. And luck, luck, luck. While we hadn’t booked, someone cancelled just as we arrived so we settled into a table for two, marvelling at the chaos – people everywhere, furniture everywhere and “stuff” everywhere (more on that later).

My yummy tummy vegetarian lasagne with roast vegetables and bocconcini was loaded with flavour and quite a good stack for $16.50, considering it came with a sprightly spinach salad and citrus-style dressing. However, the dish wasn’t heated through and so the cheese on top was hard and the middle bits almost cold. Although the temperature was disappointing, I enjoyed the crunchy bits around the edge.

My friend loved her Punjabi tomato curry with spiced roast vegetables, onion bahji (kind-of like fritters) and creamy yoghurt ($16.50). Not too heavy on the spice, but enough to make the dish pretty special.

A Bite to Eat (café and bar) is, by design, eclectic and fun. The lights hanging from the ceiling are all different, the tables – including vintage ‘50s retro chrome and Formica ones – are all different, and the chairs mismatched. The big “mural” wall where we sat is a fascinating collection of bits and pieces. We checked out postcards sent by clients from all corners of the world, photos of people from all walks of life, thank-you notices, baby-birth announcements (huh?) and even a traffic infringement someone felt like pinning up (tsk, tsk).

Lunch is served daily (midday until 3pm) and includes four “sammiches”. These aren’t made with any old ingredients slapped between two ordinary slices of bread. They are feasts. “The Mississippi” ($13.50), for example, is stacked with spicy, slow-smoked, free-range pork, mixed leaves, tomato and more. Other cooked lunches include a burger with smoked bacon and gouda ($18.20), smoked Mackerel cakes with a beetroot carpaccio ($15.50), and a roast pear, honey-glazed walnuts, roast pumpkin, mixed leaves and toasted brie salad ($17.20).

I wasn’t enamoured with the wine list. While I didn’t expect it to be glamorous, it could have a bit more style. Still, the prices are decent with wines from $7 a glass and bottles $31 to $45.

A Bite to Eat serves breakfast and on Sundays you can groove to the tunes of live music and nibble on tapas (5pm to 7pm). Nice one.

A Bite to Eat, Chifley shops. 6260 3703. Open seven days.

[portfolio_slideshow]

Photos by Silas Brown

Who can be trusted?

In a world of spin and confusion, there’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in Canberra.

If you trust our work online and want to enforce the power of independent voices, I invite you to make a small contribution.

Every dollar of support is invested back into our journalism to help keep citynews.com.au strong and free.

Become a supporter

Thank you,

Ian Meikle, editor

Wendy Johnson

Wendy Johnson

Share this

Leave a Reply

Related Posts

Follow us on Instagram @canberracitynews