The Flavour Report with Derek Goforth: The verdict on Geraldton’s Piper Lane Café on Marine Terrace

You could be forgiven for not knowing what the new Piper Lane Café is trying to be after it reopened last year a few doors up from their previous premises.

Bar? Restaurant? Café? Or something in between?

Sitting in a prominent spot with extensive frontage on Marine Terrace, Piper Lane has an ambience that I find difficult to describe. Kind of European, kind of Aussie and kind of something else. It’s an unusual mix of décor and arrangement, but I have to admit it works well.

Their menu is more lunch than brekkie and we were hungry and opted for a selection of dishes. Kids waffle, hot chips, fried za’atar chicken bites. All that with a large cappuccino and strawberry milkshake.

I will start with the service, which was to be honest, flawless.

The two young ladies serving were polite, quick and helpful.

Secondly, the speed in which our food and drink were brought to us was amazing. I sat down, flicked through my phone, chatted to my boy and the fare was there. Not only quick but it all arrived together and piping hot.

The chips were fine — crispy, fluffy, and hot. Not many compared to other cafes’ offerings, but we didn’t feel short-changed.

The kid’s waffle was again, just reasonable.

I am not sure if it was freshly made as I didn’t see this happen, but my boy thought it was tasty and had enough syrup to keep it moist. The banana was a nice addition and gave some extra sweetness.

The star of this visit had to be the fried za’atar chicken bites. Tender, moist and with zesty flavour. The mayo that was lathered over them added an extra spicy hit which took the albeit-small dish to the next level.

I always struggle to rate coffee as most cafés in Geraldton do cappuccinos and the like to a high standard.

Piper Lane was no different — smooth, mellow and with just enough foam to top it off. The strawberry shake, however, was the best we have tried so far in the Mid West — thick and actually tasting of strawberries. Something, bizarrely, we have not found before.

Piper Lane is another café in the Mid West that knows what it is doing, delivering interesting and tasty food in a very saturated marketplace.

At $45.50 for our meal we felt like we got value for money, not only in quality and quantity but also level of service, which was the best we have experience so far in the windy city.