In Short: Calibrate Coffee is located in Roseville and serves healthy, creative and visually pleasing dishes. Coffee is outstanding. A village type atmosphere and handy location adjacent to the train station.
As those close to me would know, I will travel long and far for a good coffee. For instance, I work in St Leonards during the week, and will often walk 15 minutes to Crow Nest and Double Cross for a coffee and toast or travel an extra stop on the train and grab breakfast from the guys at Salvage in Artarmon. Speaking of good cafes in close proximity to a train station, Calibrate Coffee in Roseville has recently opened to give residents good coffee and breakfast before jumping onto their city bound trains. It also allowed me the opportunity to grab breakfast in the village type setting. It’s hard to imagine that bustling Chatswood is only 5 minutes away, yet Roseville has that sedate, relaxed atmosphere that is common along this part of the North Shore. I nabbed a table out the front and enjoyed the relaxed ambiance that is occasionally interrupted by the screeching of the local sulphur crested cockatoos.
Calibrate Coffee goes for a minimalist approach with a Scandi style fitout. Lots of white with warmth provided by the sleek strip lights and wooden panels. While Calibrate Coffee may be new to the area, the team behind the new cafe are old hands. Sam Gabrielan has cafes in Northbridge and Castlecrag, as well as his boutique Gabriel Coffee roasting company that has its coffee served in over 100 cafes across NSW.
Starting out my visit, I go with a flat white. The coffee is stunning. Smooth and subtly sweet with beautiful flavour of vanilla, it reminds me of some of the best flat whites I have had in my life in the coffee mecca of Melbourne. The milk blend beans specially developed for Calibrate has a nice punch that does not linger. It’s all class.
With the coffee scaling the heights, the experience continues with summer matcha oats, with tahini, sesame seeds, topped with banana and pistachios. I love the matcha oats, which is delicately flavoured with green tea. There’s a nice zing from the tahini and the fruits provide a contrasting sweetness. Fresh peach and strawberries are a delight. Love the play of textures from smooth to crunchy, and a daring touch of spice works a treat. It’s a healthy dish, that’s delicious and filling.
On a return visit(well it was actually the next day) since day one was so good, we sneak in a quick lunch. With wife in tow, we choose two dishes. The first of which is a chicken salad of grilled Holmbrae chicken, pickles, spiced seeds and nuts, leaves, and it all sits on a bed quinoa. It’s a vibrant dish with chicken that is tender and flavoursome. I particular enjoy the spicing, which is tempered by the pickles. There’s a nice hit of sweetness from the raisins. The yoghurt provides a depth to the dish, and ensure you leave Calibrate Coffee ready to power through the rest of the day.
Our second dish on this visit is a salmon rillette with creme fresh, soft boiled egg, fresh herbs on rye and caraway bread. The salmon is creamy and perfectly seasoned. The robustness of salmon flavours are restrained and helped by pickles which slice through the creaminess of the fish. Break open the soft boiled egg and you have the richness of the yolk with softened bread and herbs that makes for an exploding mouthful of flavours. Again, there is loads of freshness with nice layering of flavours.
I finish my lunch with a cold brew. One sip reveals a lively tart berry flavour with a clean refreshing mouth feel. It’s smooth like a cold brew should be. There’s a nice smokiness that comes through. Letting my coffee sit as the block of ice melts, reveals a mellowing of flavours. It’s a cleansing drink that freshens up the palate, the essential way to end the meal at Calibrate Coffee.
With the sun beating down, Coco and Viner Mavis skips past the warm drinks and chooses an ice coffee with ice cream. Even with the ice cream, the robust flavours of coffee comes through. It’s creamy, with a nice complex balance of acidity with accompanying chocolate and vanilla notes.
Every part of our experience at Calibrate Coffee was a treat. Service is friendly and food is delivered rapidly. We loved the relaxed feel, with a wide cross section of diners enjoying great food and coffee. We definitely will be back to try more of Calibrate’s offerings.
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