Belesis Cafe - Carindale

TL;DR: Not what would come to mind being trendy, nor is it the place that people will say is the place to be seen, but in many ways that works to its advantage in the long run, going for what still has a quiet draw, and that is being suburban, not pretentious in any way, and proves itself to be a reliable choice without tooting its own horn. That is Belesis in a nutshell. Good solid portions, some of the best service that I have ever seen in any place - mostly from the speed and efficiency - and just an all-rounder for everything that matters. This all hidden in plain view, and is worth being scouted out for anyone on this side of town. A high bar is set when it comes to good old Italian cuisine, and if a place barely scratches at least a few notches above adequate you know it will fall short. For something to last at least a few years, if not going on several presidential reigns, than there has to at least be one or two things going on that can impress the general audience - us in Australia are absolutely like that. While it may not be in the pantheon of greats, it is at least have to be solid on several feet to stand as being so popular and Belesis certainly does that. Think of it as one of Coorparoo's reliable, local family eateries, and it has brought Italian dining's philosophy along with it. Getting here was by pure chance and merely driving around the local area. It was a short morning, since I had someone to meet at somewhere to be, and time was of the essence. That still meant with persistence that breakfast could easily be fit into the equation. As happens slightly often, the initial plan was not able to come into fruition. One place close by had my dining buddy's eye but it was not open on a Sunday so that led to traveling a little further afield. What that meant was the reliable inner-east areas where there is always something open among the great array of choices in which is offered. That search was abruptly ended when he eyed out "Belesis". Looking on the app, I realised I hadn't been here yet and that was that. What works to an extent is the interior. It is a bit on the standard side, making the most of what it can do. Where it manages to utilise well is how spacious it all is, and a mini courtyard just out the front among the greenery, a little hidden from the streets and tucked away from the junction up-stairs. That is a rare combination in suburbia, and it does have its charm right unto that. The kitchen is centralised, making it ergonomically efficient, and the atmosphere during the quiet hours is relaxing - you could imagine how alive it would be during peak hours just from looking at it then. It is a bit standard, and won't win awards for its look. What I have found is some of the rougher and crappier looking places tend to bring out the raw honesty. One of those is with the service. Speaking of which ... Ho boy! Let's get down to the service. This is a place in which anyone who is inspired to open their own cafe - or any sort of business in fact - should come here and observe closely. Everybody would be acutely aware of the essentials in customer service, which we will get to, but the true devil is in the details. And these details are down into the minutiae, so much so that it is easy to pass over if you aren't actively looking at and observing it. Where people say that aspects like this are either a science or an art (it is both really), when it comes down to something as impressive as this, it ups the ante to performance art akin to professional wrestling or a magician. Let's put it in a less abstract manner, this service is really high quality and very dynamic. A well-oiled machine is taking for granted in general when it does what it needs to do, but when the action and performance reaches a certain level of efficiency it is noticeable and all the more impressive. That was the case here. From the moment we entered the restaurant, the waitstaff had already snapped to attention. A young woman noted us and immediately pointed us to a table without a beat to be missed. She was professional, bubbly, and really friendly. The efficiency in delivery was pretty much at the expected level. Where it goes above and beyond is between the ordering process and receiving the orders. It was possibly the quickest, or at least some of the quickest, that I have yet seen. This is the kind of service you can get used to in the States, that was the first thing that it reminded me of when the food was put down on the table. What can be inferred is that the chef's are always poised and ready to cook whatever items on the menu have been requested, and that there has been a lot of training behind the scenes to ensure this. Add on to that a high output of clients at the peak time, and this is undeniable at a first-rate level in customer service. You can be in and out within the hour if you need it to be fast, while it also has the right aesthetics and environments where staying a while is just as viable. Adding onto that was the table clearing. Within the amount of time that it took at the end for the two of us to pay at the counter - only about a dozen steps away - the table had already been cleared, wiped clean and set up for the next lot of clientele to walk through the door. From beginning to end, they have their stuff sorted out well. Getting onto what the clients are able to order, even if it won't outright say it - or by looking at the breakfast menu at least - this is an Italian place. An Australian kind of Italian place, which is pretty commonplace when you start observing. With the breakfast menu, it is essentially the usual array of hot dishes along with a specials board. These are the wholesome substantial ones, and is definitely more on the traditional side than the modern, trendy side (personal preference, this one is better). Get onto the lunch time rush and it offers the general range of cafe items, with a notable influence of Mediterranean cuisine. The range includes several kinds of salad, burgers and wraps, several big plates of meat, and a range of pastas and risottos. Getting onto the drinks, and it is a general range as well. We have tea and coffee, plus beers and wines, and all kinds of juices, sodas, smoothies and milkshakes. That is without mentioning the specials board, and the dessert cabinet. Both of which rotate a lot, and provide some of the more interesting choices from the menu. Everyone is catered for well here, and it can generally be described with the word "wholesome". First things first are the drink orders, and that can only mean getting some coffee to commence the meal. Merlo is the bean that is used here, and that is one which I rarely get that excited about. It is never really bad, though what is necessary is a barista who knows what he is doing for it to be good and memorable. Most of the time, it exists - here though, it is safe to say that the coffee is done in an adequate enough manner. There could only be one kind for me here, and that was the trusty old doppio. For the breakfast order that I got, it was off the special's board. This was one case where there were several options which sounded good to me, but what I ended up ordering was the haloumi stack. This was on Turkish bread, topped with poached eggs - and yes, requested soft as always - half a tomato, and a couple of bits of haloumi cheese topped off with hollandaise sauce and some rocket. And as usual again, I got a side of crispy bacon. This was more or less a version of eggs Benedict, and one thing is for certain that it will always be reliable when done right. That it was. The eggs were plump and delicious, with the yolks bleeding very profusely once the egg got pricked, and was thick and delicious. On top of them, there was a big amount of hollandaise sauce which the well-toasted bread soaked up well. The haloumi was thick, and cooked quite well, plus the bacon was ordered crispy and they really delivered on that aspect. It was one solid dish in which all the aspects were good, balanced with some freshness from the tomato and rocket, and was a substantial and filling breakfast. There was enough time I thought, and I wanted to see just how good the place was. Call this the potential shot at a 5.0, and while it doesn't get the score it certainly didn't fail supplanting just how good it was overall. Also, the "coffee and cake" deal is a hard one to pass up I find, especially with a set price with whatever one of both you want. Looking into the cabinet for a different sort of cake, the one that took my fancy was a frangiapani. Once again, the coffee was pretty good and strong going well with the cake. This was a good cake, smooth and soft, not overtly sweet either and it had a nice, nutty flavour from the almond and a creamy texture from the marzipan. Next to it was some cream, and that complimented it well. This was a good way to finish a meal, and indicates another weapon they have in their arsenal - a reliable coffee and cake deal that works a treat in this setting. This is another indication to point out how much the service reminded me of dining in America. While the portion size is the key difference here (they are much bigger over there, no joke) it still had that aspect where one soul would order a slice of cake or pie, then the plate came with a fork for each client at the table. That is one fantastic touch to distinguish it, and it need to even have to be asked. Because everyone here knows few will turn down even a taste of a sweet, die or no diet. And that is the cherry to top it all off. There is a good reason for why Belesis has managed to stay around for so long, and that all has to do with the honesty they put forward that could only come from a family-owned restaurant. It is comfortable and spacious, making great use of its location. The food here is pretty high quality, and is more or less what it is - and does it as good as it could do. Portions are generous, and all the food simply pops off the plate and has such a great palate and it is easily able to be enjoyed in a big group - whether it is a walk-in, or a booking - which can be as casual as you want it to be. For all that it is worth, Belesis is classically what Australian dining can come down to when it puts its mind to it - wholesome food that is the usual selection, service that is approachable and friendly plus the decent value for money. For that case, it gets a 4.0 rating to indicate just how solid it is, and that is a strong 4.0 that is as good as it could get. Especially if you are around the area, it must be tried out.

TL;DR: Not what would come to mind being trendy, nor is it the place that people will say is the place to be seen, but in many ways that works to its advantage in the long run, going for what still has a quiet draw, and that is being suburban, not pretentious in any way, and proves itself to be a reliable choice without tooting its own horn. That is Belesis in a nutshell. Good solid portions, some of the best service that I have ever seen in any place - mostly from the speed and efficiency - and just an all-rounder for everything that matters. This all hidden in plain view, and is worth being scouted out for anyone on this side of town. A high bar is set when it comes to good old Italian cuisine, and if a place barely scratches at least a few notches above adequate you know it will fall short. For something to last at least a few years, if not going on several presidential reigns, than there has to at least be one or two things going on that can impress the... read more

Had brekkie at this café yesterday morning. It was my veggie day so I ordered the vegetarian risotto and a flat white. Service is very sincere and I saw the chefs were very seriously preparing meals for diners. Vibe is cosy and I felt very comfortable to enjoy my risotto there. Well, back to the food and drink, even though they are serving Merlo but I could not taste a strong aroma of Merlo coffee that maybe due to the strong flavour from my risotto. The vegetarian risotto gave me a bit of surprise. It is generous in portion and most important is the rice which is just well done not as hard in the centre as most of the risotto served in other restaurants that they think it should be. I love al dente feeling but not raw....

Great little cafe! Food is amazing, cakes are to die for, I had the cheese cake *begins to drool* the service is probably the best I've had in Brisbane.

Awesome food, coffee and service to match. Bacon and eggs were delicious, so was the chicken omelette. Coffee was hot and strong, and the service was genuinely friendly. Definitely the place to go for brekkie or brunch