Hello Foodies and welcome to my latest Blog which took me to Church! Yes that's right; The Vestry Belfast is an old Church that has been redeveloped into a sleek, modern, French inspired Cafe and Patisserie which boasts an abundance of charm and a delightful selection of treats!
The building itself is magnificent looking, located at 135 Lisburn Road it is set back a little from the road so you would be forgiven for never having noticed it before, I hadn't. I made the mistake of going through the main doors which took me into a furniture shop (A very nice furniture shop), now I was able to get to the Cafe from here but the proper entrance is actually via a narrow courtyard located to the left of the main entrance. Even the courtyard was impressive, with its hanging window boxes, ornate seating, quaint lighting and all important outside heating for our wonderful NI climate, I can imagine this being a popular spot over summer for some alfresco dinning or even just a glass of vino.
Having made my way through the courtyard I was immediately impressed with the cafe! It was so bright (I absolutely hate eating in the dark! Anyone else feel this way?) the ceilings were tall, the tiled flooring and marble counters gave a clean and sophisticated finish and overall the place just looked superb - really grand, really clean and really elegant.
To the food! The menu continued the 'Church' themed approach and what a menu it was; from lite bites to the aptly named 'Last Supper' there really is something for all on this menu (including a kiddies' menu) I toyed between the following;
- Crispy duck pancake with hoi sin and cucumber @ £5.00
- Eggs Your Way with avocado, tomato with choice of bread @ £6.50
- French Toast with cheeky pigs and Maple Syrup @ £7.50
As it was breakfast I opted for the eggs as I don't function correctly without eggs, get wild moody, ask Lauren. P.S. WHAT A CHOICE!!!!
I went for poached eggs on sour dough bread with pureed avocado and what seemed like pickled tomatoes. The sour dough definitely had some sort of marmalade on it too which was superb! Anyway I will let these two images speak for themselves - look at that ooze! In a word - Sublime
(Please click into the photos to get full effect)
Lauren went for the Sweet Waffle with Crispy bacon, espresso salt caramel and banana for £6. Taking my role as The BFB very seriously it was compulsory that I had to to try it, and try it I did! T'was beautiful! The salt caramel over the banana was amazing. I myself prefer savory to sweet for breakfast but I really enjoyed this, the bacon BTW was the crispiest I've ever had - except for that one Saturday Sean (Lauren's dad) burnt the bacon, grill up too high!
Lauren also got a macaroon for afters - it's hard not to buy something sweet when you go here, you'll find out why when you go!
3 Things that make The Vestry Belfast stand out?
1. The menu is superb, not only with choice but each section has its own wee quote, or riddle which makes choosing a dish fun, you might even learn something!
2. Everything is cooked in house using local ingredients and you can actually see them making the breads, granola etc when you are there.
3. The tray bakes - Holy Lord, honestly you need to go and try these, there is a take away option available if you don't fancy sitting in.
So all in all a great wee eatery, one which I def recommend you all try! Wheel chair friendly, excellent staff and remarkable food for exceptionally reasonable prices all make this one of my fav places so far! Now I know what Hozier meant when he sang - "Take me to church"
