Zenja

Food

I was sad to see that their specials board has disappeared, so I decided to continue my theme and try out the Eggs benedict - 3 free-range eggs served with smoked salmon and hollandaise on a romano roll ($11.90) - The eggs were cooked just right, but the hollandaise sauce was dry and not enough. The roll was toasted nicely, but there wasn't enough of it to soak up the egg and the salmon. The salmon was good quality and tasty though. I wasn't a fan of the uncooked spinach sitting on the base though. Slokky went with an old favourite, which he has ordered every single time we've eaten here, the Zenja Corn Fritters - fresh corn fritters with fried eggs, crispy bacon, asparagus, sour cream and toasted sourdough ($13.50). At least we know the corn fritters are excellent, with fresh sweet corn, smeared with sour cream, and combined with the bacon and fried eggs, almost heaven like. The asparagus though, was limp and overcooked. We were only given about 3 cm worth of it though, maybe they just wanted to put it on the menu. It was not worth the trouble.

Rating - 7

Atmosphere

This place is almost always filled with shoppers, gym goers, people catching up. We snatched a seat between two couples, and could hear almost everything they said. There are also lots of kids here, including one who was having a baby cappuccino that was so cute. The kids are well behaved and seem to be enjoying themselves, like everyone else.

Everything is very casual, with plenty of very OLD mags (I hate that!) and 2 copies of the paper. On a cold day it's not so inviting, but on this particular Saturday, we were sheltered.

Rating - 2

Service

Pretty disappointing, as I have experienced much better service from them in the past. They didn't take our order for so long that we ended up going up to the counter to order. The two waiters seem to be run off their feet, delivering drinks and food, making the drinks, settling the bill, cleaning the tables. It took a long time to attract their attention. The waiter also tipped over the water at the table next door, causing them to get wet. They were really good-natured about it though and accepted the apologies, but still, their frantic antics unsettles me.

Rating - 2

C-factor

Well, it seems the price has gone up, but the service and quality down. Now the prices are pitched at the higher end of the breakfast market and I expect them to deliver.

Rating - 0

Brownie Points - 11

Info

5 George Street
North Strathfield
NSW 2037
Phone (02) 9746 9334