The Vogue Cafe (Macquarie Centre)

Feeling a bit peckish after shopping at H&M, Gap, Uniqlo,  Zara and Forever 21? The Vogue Cafe in Macquarie Centre is perfect for you.

Macquarie Centre has undergone a makeover transformation which Carson from Queer Eye for the Straight Guy would have been proud of. A whole new section, a new train station, not to mention a host of international fashion stores has revitalised the centre. Since Macquarie Centre does not sponsor me in any way I will stop giving them a plug and move onto the food.

 
Located on level 2, the Vogue Cafe offers an all-day breakfast menu, along with burgers, salads, pastries and its famous smoothies/shakes. The decor is lovely, especially the attention to detail all the way from the wooden doors and windows to the little tags on vases which serve as table numbers. Despite being indoors, the cafe makes every attempt to create an outdoor garden feel.

Some of the cakes, pastries and sweets on offer

If you were after something substantial, I had the "Not a Misteak" - scotch fillet steak, bacon, sauteed spinach, mushrooms, seeded mustard and mayo, served with chips. Flavour-wise it was pretty tasty, the seeded mustard and mayo combo for the sauce was a great combo, though unfortunately my steak was a little overcooked. The chips were nice and crispy. It was quite filling in the end.

"Not a Misteak": Steak, bacon burger

For something a little lighter, you can get the "Salmon slice" - salmon, avocado, grilled tomato, capers and spanish onions on toasted bread.

Salmon slices

And the best till last, all the drinks at the Vogue cafe are amazingly presented. I got the mixed berry smoothie, which came in a choc-rimmed jar with a cone and Maltesers. The smoothie was very refreshing. One tip would be to eat the cone early, don't let it get soggy as I did!

Recommendation: 

• If in the area, I would recommend trying this place, even if you are not hungry, grab a drink.
• I am generalising, but I feel that this cafe will appeal to the female clientele, so guys if you are taking your girlfriend shopping and you need a rest, why not take her here?

Mary's (CBD)

On the 28th of November, there was a disturbance in the Force...the Star Wars trailer had come out amidst much anticipation while Mary's also opened amidst similar but more locally contained anticipation.  Thankfully, the public response to Mary's has been far more positive.

Mary's is famous for their fried chicken and burgers at the Newton restaurant. In this CBD takeaway, the menu is simple - you have the selection from 5 burgers, which is fantastic for those who struggle to make a decision.

 

Burgers are $10-$12, while a meal deal with Fries and Soda/Thick Shake will set you back $15-$19. Whilst by no means cheap, this won't break the bank either.

You can add an extra patty and/or bacon to the burger. The options for the thick shake on the day were chocolate and passionfruit. Luckily for me, the day I went was the first day the thick shake machine worked!

Chicken Burger with Chocolate Thick Shake

I went with the Chicken Burger meal with Chocolate thick shake. One thing about Mary's is that it is substance over style, it will never win a fashion contest but then again all burgers are beautiful...

I really enjoyed the burger - the chicken was juicy the whole way through, the bun was soft but not flaky, and rounded off by the traditional tomato, lettuce, onion and cheese. The Mary's sauce brought it home. The fries (reminded me of Macca's fries) and thick shake were good complements but the burger was the attraction.

Mary's Burger

I will be back to try their other burgers for sure (such as the Mary's Burger pictured above)!

Recommendation:

• Definitely worth trying, try to get there early/late as the queue and serving time can get up to 30 minutes, otherwise wait till the hype dies down. Don't forget there is tomato sauce on the side counter.
• Not recommended for those with a strict diet -  a logo (which has now been taken down) had the motto "Get Fat".