Beam Cafe
Milford's unassuming local with a crispy chicken bene that had all the right intentions but left a few things on the table. The iced oat latte, on the other hand, was simply divine.
Scores
Every day I pass the bustling Beam Cafe as I drive through Milford on my way to work, so when a friend lauded their crispy chicken eggs benedict, the fate of my Sunday was sealed.
I found Beam Cafe to be unassuming and modest; a refreshing contrast to the myriad boujee cafes found in Milford. It's a cozy atmosphere, the staff were friendly, and we were seated and served with alacrity. Ordered the crispy chicken eggs benedict ($26) on GF bread, accompanied by a rosti. Inevitably, crispy chicken is not GF but sacrifice is the cost of any noble endeavour.
I enjoyed watching the passersby, and shortly after, every mother and young child within a 5km radius also wandered into the cafe. Their fluffies for juveniles looked great and a young girl seated adjacent demolished a mouthwateringly good-looking ham and cheese toasty so fast it was nigh on magic.
The coffee (oat milk iced latte) was divine from the crema to the dregs, and shortly after, breakfast was served. The presentation of the bene was tidy, a touch insubstantial, and woe is me for GF bread. The aroma from the chicken had me salivating and filled with an animalistic desire to consume.
Beginning at the outside of the bene was the tomato sauce companion to the meal; let's just say I left that for decoration - too sweet for my taste buds. The eggs were overcooked so the yolk failed to engulf my meal in its delectable magma. The hollandaise was smooth, but also lacked the flavour of salt, zest, or yolky goodness to balance the butteriness necessary for hollandaise perfection, and fell short of the requisite coverage to blanket the meal. The rosti was well portioned, yet the outside was cooked past crispy and the inside too akin to mashed potato.
Finally, we must opine on the eponymous crispy chicken, so fabled it surpassed the rank of ingredient to become namesake. The chicken itself was cooked perfectly but personally, the breading was too doughy - has the potential to stand toe to toe against the formidable staple crispy bacon.
For the daily coffee, absolutely, yet the bene was a brunch of many strengths, none of which were fully realised - a 7.5 / 10. Final arbitration reveals a madrosti_ score of 7.9 / 10.