Brunch: Crate Cafe, Morningside

Crate Cafe on Sainsbury Rd, Morningside. Photo / Sarah Ivey

Herald Rating: 2/5
Address: 55 Sainsbury Rd, Morningside

We came here because we wanted to check out a cafe outside our Mt Albert safe-zone.

Parking was easy, with spots available right outside on Morningside Rd or underneath the block of shops the cafe is a part of.

We walked in and immediately thought it's freezing. The doors were all open despite us arriving in the middle of autumn's first cold snap. There were no heaters to help us defrost, though folded blankets had been set down on chairs around the cafe.

The most unusual thing on the menu was the Quebecois specialty poutine, with its unusual but tasty mix of fries, thick beef gravy and cheese.

We ordered eggs benedict ($16.50) with a hash brown and avocado and the omelette ($15.50), with a flat white and a chai latte ($4 each).

The coffee was generously sized and pretty good. But the chai latte tasted like warm milk with a slight cinnamon flavour. More syrup please.

The service was minimal. The sole, slightly frazzled waitress was very nice, but another person on floor duty would be a welcome addition.

We recommend if you come here you should prepare yourself for quantity rather than quality.

Overall we thought the food was plentiful and reasonably priced, but it sure wasn't going to earn any Michelin stars. It needs to get better to make it worth sitting in a cafe-sized fridge.