Grandes - Canberra

My wife and I don't often have the chance to meet for lunch, but this week we found ourselves in Manuka, Canberra at lunchtime with some time to spare. Manuka is known as Canberra's cappuccino zone, where prices are not displayed in shop windows and only those unconcerned about cost should enter the boutique shops. The area is also filled with eateries, which excited us at first. However, we made the mistake of choosing a restaurant with only two other diners, Grandes. My husband ordered the prosciutto open sandwich, which was disappointingly thin and tasteless, priced at $16. Despite this, I have given Grandes 3 out of 5 stars for their fresh and tasty offerings, except for the prosciutto.

I ordered a quiche which was a little bigger than a meat pie, the cost was $13...... I was astonished to say the least. The quiche was served with a couple of leaves of rocket, thats it, no tomatoes or any other salad, the quiche was nice but certainly not worth $13. As for the coffee, it was tasteless!

Grandes has been in Manuka for a very long time. I think perhaps 20 or 30 years. Well, back then it might have passed muster as an eatery, and I guess there weren't that many decent cafes and restaurants. I remember going to Grandes perhaps 10 years ago and thinking the food was quite good but everything else was decidedly average. I recently had lunch there for the first time in many years. The decor hasn't been changed in probably two decades. The tables and chairs are awful, cheap and nasty plastic rubbish. The food is REALLY pricey considering they spend nothing on ambiance or decor, and also the fairly modest servings but it always tastes good. I don't know how Grandes stays in business. I assume they must own the premises and therefore don't have huge overheads. When all other cafes in this area of Manuka are bustling, Grandes usually has only a couple of tables occupied. Small wonder.

I 've walked past Grandes numerous times since I started working in Manuka 18 months ago, and the standard italian fare on the menu has never been particularly enticing.. But now they have a 'raw ' menu i.e. uncooked, unprocessed, often organic, and at Grandes, no meat or dairy. I had the 'spaghetti and meatballs ' deliciously crunchy zucchini 'spaghetti ' topped with mushroom balls in a light, fresh tomato and garlic sauce. Perfect on a hot day, and didn 't leave me feeling overstuffed as pasta so often does at lunchtime. I 'm excited to test out their other raw dishes, and recommend having a chat to their chef as she is obviously very passionate about her new recipes. NB: while I 'm a big fan of healthy food and lots of fresh vegies, I 'll also knock over a bowl of creamy pasta faster than my growing brother so don 't be put off by the description of raw food. It might be another fad, but it 's a pretty delicious one!

I ordered the kelp 'Alfredo ' (which was really a peppered cashew cream) and it was absolutely delicious! Worth the expensiveness, seeing as it was completely organic and something you won 't get anywhere else. There seemed to be a lot if tasty raw food on the menu to try, such as homemade almond and hemp milk, plus kale and kimchi salad. but there is also more ordinary dishes. Great service too and would recommend especially to raw food lovers.