Espresso Martini
After two full days of a Mental Health Conference my brain was fried. I needed a decent breakfast and as luck would have it my hotel was right next door to the one of the best on The Esplanade.
And of course they also had a great café. As with all the cafés here it ‘beach front’ meaning there’s a busy and loud road between it and the beach. If you’re lucky you can hear the surf, but more than likely all you hear is the pressure washer and the w*cker in his sports car revving his engine hoping he’ll attract the birds…
I was meeting Ross*. I’d met him at the conference and we immediately hit it off. I can’t remember what it was about what was happening at the front of the room, but one of us made an under breath comment and that was it. Buddies; except when we wanted to see sessions more appropriate to our interests.
We also spent the time competing for the ‘Most Social Media #WMHS22’ prize. We even decided if one of us won we’d split the $500 prize. Then we realised that was the prize for something else. Anyway, I won a free ticket to a conference. Suck it Ross!
I arrived first and saw that they had EB on the menu. Awesome. As it was order at the counter I ordered a large Latte and grabbed a seat. Once Ross arrived, rather than join the excessively long queue to order we order via the QR code. The final screen before paying asked if we’d like to tip 5%, 10%, 15%, 20%, or ‘maybe later’.
I ordered EB with Smoked Salmon, the most expensive option at $22. Ross had corn fritters with a poached egg, soft. He also ordered a large Latte.
We chatted as we waited. Mostly about the conference, use of language, movies (again, it was a reoccurring theme), disconnect some of the speakers had with the real world, Tinder dating…
His coffee arrived. He took a sip. Then the waiter returned to say she’d given him the wrong one. She allowed him to keep the soiled beverage after seeing the clear dent in the froth. It wasn’t a latte, but it was large and a coffee, so acceptable.
Food arrived. Both plates were huge and looked bright, fresh and colourful. All the things that make food appetising. Ross’ corn fritters fell into the same category.
As always I started by tasting the hollandaise. A quick swipe with the finger. It tasted like lemon butter. It was sweet, clearly homemade, but too sweet. Ross didn’t believe me, so also took a little on the tip of his finger.
“Ohh that’s just wrong!”
Then I cut an egg. The yolk was richly orange on colour, sadly over cooked as it did not run, at all. I made a note.
“I love how analytical you are about it, that’ll be useful when you do your PhD”.
‘This is important stuff!’
I think he was a little surprised by how many of these reviews I’d done.
I took one of the pieces of bread away. Too much bread. One slice is ample.
After eating we carrying on talking. I decided not to rush away for the 11am workshop I had signed up for. I was getting enough story telling where I was. We ordered an orange juice each, drank that. Ross nipped away to the bathroom.
While he was away I order the one thing both of us had tried and failed to get the entire conference.
We parted ways outside the café as he jumped into a taxi to the airport. Maybe we’ll see each other at another conference one day. Whatever happens, there’s always Twitter.
Would I go back. Yes. It wasn’t terrible, but it wasn’t the best, the sauce was clearly meant to be hollandaise, but someone got carried away with the lemon and oil. Maybe the company helped make the meal passable. I’m not entirely sure, I tend to be less mindful about the review process when I’m with someone.
As for ‘Maybe later’. We didn’t.
Sharing a meal is always a bonding experience.
Location: Castaway
Address: G1/84 The Esplanade, Surfers Paradise QLD 4217
Website: Castaway Coffee Bar
EB Price: $19 (more bacon or smoked salmon)
*Not his real name, but chosen as an amalgam of Roy and Moss (if you don’t know, I’m not explaining).
