Reviewer WENDY JOHNSON dines at a cafe that’s a certified work integration social enterprise and a registered charity, where dining there supports creating inclusive employment and training opportunities. And the food’s pretty good, too.

On a little side road on Hawdon Place, Dickson, is a special café that serves wholesome, tasty food and creates opportunities for migrant and refugee women from culturally diverse backgrounds. 

The first thing that hits you with the vegetarian menu at Café Stepping Stone is how the dishes are inspired by many cuisines. 

The Dickson location (ground floor of the Common Ground Dickson housing project, hidden between Dickson Playing Fields and Sullivan Creek) has a large, sunny outdoor area out front and an impressive outdoor area out the side. 

Windows are floor-to-ceiling, and the long, open-concept kitchen enables aromas from the food being prepared by the café’s busy cooks to waft through the dining area. Your taste buds are truly stimulated.

As its name implies, the café’s business model is about providing a “stepping stone” for women to progress in their future. The prices are eminently reasonable and, while the café has an extensive beverage list, it’s not licensed.

The mushroom and broccoli dish was moorish and soul-satisfying ($23). The thickly sliced mushrooms are pan-fried in seven spices and cooked to retain some bite. The broccolini added a burst of colour and flavour. The veggies were served on sourdough with pickles, hummus and plenty of herbs, plus a wedge of lemon.

I eyed the Turkish eggs but settled on the potato masala toastie ($16.50), motivated by the promise of Indian-spiced potato curry. The curry was made with sauteed greens, fried onion, tomato relish, cheddar and a spicy mint chutney. 

It was packed in between two slices of bread. I couldn’t fault the flavours and the toastie was such a generous serve I couldn’t finish it (I did, however, devour the sliced side pickles). 

The third member of our party ($19) ordered the Spanish tortilla (also known as Spanish omelette). This traditional dish was presented more like a stack with a vibrant, fresh salad. The tortilla was lovingly made with slices of potato and onion, combined with egg and dished up with a house-made tomato relish.

We shared an order of brined chippies ($9.5). The chips were placed in a brine (likely a combo of sugar and salt) and let to sit for some time before being fried. They were chunky and we dipped them into Stepping Stone’s special mayo. They’re a real treat. 

Stepping Stone is a certified work integration social enterprise and a registered charity, so dining there supports creating inclusive employment and training opportunities.

Café Stepping Stone also has a home at Strathnairn Arts in West Belconnen. Since opening in 2020, Stepping Stone has employed and trained 43 women from diverse migrant and refugee backgrounds. Impressive indeed.