In Short: Zanya’s Cafe is an exciting new addition to Kingsgrove, featuring an extensive food and drinks menu, paired with friendly staff and service. We were there on opening day to try their signature dishes and will definitely be back to check out more items from their menu.
You know that there something special is going when your humble wagon is parked opposite a lineup which includes a couple Ferraris and a Porsche. In addition, a huge black and gold balloon entrance arch with a crowd of people milling outside the café can only mean one thing, it’s grand opening day at Zanya’s Café at Kingsgrove! When Nate and Chanho from Normcore alerted us to Zanya’s opening, we decided to brave the opening day crowds to join in the party. We were especially intrigued since Zanya’s Café menu features middle eastern influenced offerings, and we have always loved the cuisine.
The café is decked out in a casual and warm theme, with lights in rose gold frames, light brown wood shelves and white subway tiles as the backdrop of the main counter. A huge open window also allows passers-by to easily place their take away order and provides the café with plenty of natural light.
The staff were really friendly and helpful, despite the excitement and rush of grand opening day. They were subjected to all kinds of challenges and yet still manage to provide service with a smile and a cheery demeanour.
You know that this is a kids-friendly cafe when you notice that there are lots of families coming in with kids and prams. Kids were also given a complimentary activity booklet with colouring pencils, providing them and their parents with a couple of minutes of distraction and peace. Nothing pleases a kid more in a cafe, than finding that they have their own Kids Meal section in the menu. Besides the usual kid’s favourites like pancakes and nuggets and chips, there are also healthy options like fruit salad. This time, mini Coco and Viner Sammi tried Zanya’s Cafe’s Mini Beef Slider from the kids menu and she was very satisfied with her choice, especially the milk shake that came with the meal, as it came in a cute bottle that she could hold in her hand and enjoy every sip of her delicious milk shake. The burger itself was also really nice and the patty was juicy, moist and delicious. This is one of the few times Sammi actually finished everything on her plate.
The best way to start off your Zanya’s Café experience is by perusing their drinks menu. Besides the usual coffee,tea, cold and hot drinks offering, Zanya’s Cafe also has a 5 types of mocktails on offer in their drinks menu. I decided to go with a Apple Mojito mocktail, made with green apple, mint, lemon and sparking soda water. The drink had a refreshing apple and mint note, with a splash of lemon flavours. The soda water creates a soda effect, making it a fun and fantastic way to start our meal.
On the coffee front, I wasn’t disappointed. With the expertise of Nate from Normcore Coffee Roasters manning the machines providing expert assistance, I knew we were in good hands. The flat white uses beans that have been curated and roasted by the Normcore team. It’s a well balanced blend, that’s creamy, and leaves a delightful chocolate flavour on the palate. It has a beautiful texture and easy to demolish quite quickly.
With the smell of spices gently wafting through the air, we couldn’t wait to check out Zanya’s Cafe food menu. If you want something healthy, that is still substantial from Zanya’s Cafe lunch menu, look no further than their Grilled Salmon served on a bed of smashed pumpkin and a side of kale and apple salad. The smashed pumpkin forms the base on top of which sits a piece of salmon.The kale and apple salad is then piled high on top of the salmon, creating a visually appealing stack with a melody of bright and fresh textures. The salmon is cooked to perfection with soft pink flesh and a crispy skin. The natural flavours of the fish stands out and it flakes apart easily with a fork while maintaining a moist succulent flavour. Combined with the sweet smoky pumpkin, they are like a match made in heaven. The kale and apple salad add a crunchy and slightly tart element to counteract the sweetness from the pumpkin. The clever pairing of classic flavours resulted in a dish that is definitely worth trying.
Zanya’s cooks are adamant that you can go at least one weekend without smashed avo but still deliver a smashing dish with their Smashed Pumpkin Toast from their breakfast menu. It comprises of a piece of toast with smashed roasted pumpkin, goats cheese, caramelised onions, 2 poached eggs and crumbed fetta cheese , sprinkled with dukkah and a sage butter drizzle. Sounds complicated? Perhaps. Taste delicious? For sure! The slice of bread is amped up in flavours with sweet smoky notes from the smashed roasted pumpkin and caramelise onions. The sprinkle of goats cheese and crumbed fetta gives the dish a savoury note. Two poached eggs sit on top of the smashed pumpkin, which when you cut into it, the yolk runs out, creating a sauce to bind the whole dish together. The dukkah spices helps to impart an exotic middle eastern flavour to the dish and finally the sage butter gives it a luxurious richness. Coco and Viner Sacha thoroughly enjoyed his breakfast choice that day and ate up every morsel of the toast.
If you ask me, Zanya’s Cafe calling card has to be the Kanafeh Sandwich. A kanafeh is a traditional middle eastern dessert, originating from Palestine. Because of its addictive gooey, sweet cheesy flavours, it is my favourite Arabic dessert and I relish any opportunity to order it whenever I see it on menus. The crusty lightly browned top is my favourite part of the dessert but usually there is only a coating of it on the top of the kanafeh and I can never get enough of. With Zanya’s Café’s kanafeh sandwich, the crunchy golden brown coating that I love, now coats all around the cheese square, making it look like a sandwich. When you cut into it, the familiar gooey cheese oozes out. The stretchy texture inside reminds me of mozzarella cheese with middle eastern flavours. Ok ,so I skipped main and went straight to dessert. I had no regrets. When my order arrived at my table, I could tell that everyone had food envy as it not only looked so pretty on the plate with the pink fairy floss, rose petals and chopped pistachio nuts and extra syrup in a jar, it also tasted fantastic and satisfied my kanafeh craving in every way. It was definitely a sweet ending to our first experience at Zanya’s Cafe.
Residents and visitors alike should be stoked that Zanya’s Cafe have landed in Kingsgrove. I thought the diversity of diners in the restaurant was a great sign, as were the number of families gracing south west Sydney’s newest cafe. We enjoyed our experience and we will be following their journey and look forward to seeing how their menu evolves.
Essentials
Name: Zanya’s Cafe
Address: Shop 1, 333 Stoney Creek Road, Kingsgrove, New South Wales, Australia 2208
Google Maps : Map
Hours: Mon-Sun 7:00am-4:00pm
Website: https://www.facebook.com/Zanyas-Cafe
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