Panette Eatery, South Melbourne. Review
Hangovers make honest critics of us all. Nothing is forgiven and very little is noticed unless it is wrong.
We arrived at Panette on the corner of Cecil Street in a state best described as provisional and took a table outside. There was a short wait for a table but incredibly efficient and energetic staff for a Sunday morning made quick work of getting our bums on seats.
The place was full, which is not what a hungover table wants to see, but the first coffee followed soon after. It was good coffee, properly made and hot, and the person delivering it seemed unbothered by the queue behind us. We were grateful in the quiet way the occasion required.
The service deserves its own paragraph. It was busy enough to excuse a lot and nothing needed excusing. Orders came out in the right sequence and water appeared without a request. The tables on the footpath where we sat were looked after as well as the ones inside, which is not a given on a morning like this.
The flatbread was the dish of the day. It came with minced beef, a generous hand with the herbs and enough seasoning to wake a table not keen on being woken. The herbs were treated as an ingredient rather than a garnish and the beef was kept in check. With a deliciously runny poached egg plopped on the top for extra protein, it was shared with less ceremony than planned and did not last.
The other order was scrambled eggs with salmon, with a side of bacon added on medical grounds. The eggs were soft, the salmon was left to do its job and the bacon did what bacon does for a hangover without making a fuss. Nobody at the table discussed it, which is about the best compliment available at that hour.
Panette describes itself as rustic Mediterranean, and a busy breakfast is a fair test of the claim. It passed. The coffee was good, the food was better than it needed to be and the service made the wait feel shorter than it was. If you can, and Melbourne's weather allows it, ask for a table outside and watch harried parents, lazy shoppers and a microcosm of Melbourne's fancy folk pass you by.
Panette Eatery is at 144 Cecil Street, South Melbourne.
Open 7 days 7am -4pm.
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