A hidden gem situated on the main street of Braidwood, Vanilla Catering
“I have been catering off site in Braidwood for over 17 years… weddings, private catering, corporate & community […] The perfect space and opportunity arose at the former Cafe Altenburg that was vacant for the first time since 1986 ( when it was opened by the three amazing women Angela, Jenny and Nat).”
The Cafe
Braidwood’s Hidden Gem: it is in the garden and courtyard of Studio Altenburg (former Commonwealth Bank ), right in the middle of the Main Street. Access through the original iron gates and up a tree lined driveway which opens into a country cottage garden that still has the original stables and servants quarters. Our gardener Kaye has lovingly tendered the gardens for over 30 years, and the seasonal variety in plantings is a testament to her passion and knowledge. We have marquee seating in two gardens, a courtyard which is covered by an ornamental grape and our cafe is glass enclosed to maximise the view and capture the northern sun in winter and shaded during the summer months.
The Food
Our range of food could be described as eclectic fusion, we have a relatively small menu with breakfast running until 11.30am.
Breakfast
Doorstopper fresh sandwiches, a mountain of freshness Toasties… Our Reuben is legendary, in house slow braised corn beef in star anise, cardamon, coriander and cloves, our own sweet and sour red cabbage, Swiss cheese, horseradish a Ukrainian dressing and dill pickles all toasted, and the rocket is added afterwards for freshness and zing. And our most popular bowls, a smoking beans taco bowl and a Poke bowl… this allows our blackboard specials to take full advantage of seasonal produce and brings daily variations depending on supplies, the weather and inspiration.
Cakes
We bake daily muffins, a range of cakes and scones with our own jam and cream and a range of biscuits (all our baked goods are made from scratch with free range eggs and butter ), we have at least one gluten free option, usually two, on any given day. I also supply a range of wedding/ birthday or special occasion cakes that need to be ordered in advance.
Coffee
Our coffee is roasted in Queanbeyan by Prism
Coffee.
Blackboard Specials, an example of daily offerings:
- Bahn Mi Roast Pork Rolls
A foot long roll with freshly roasted Asian Pork (it comes out of the oven at 11am), Asian slaw, in-house pickled carrot and cucumber, shallots, snow pea shoots, coriander, chilli, crackle, kewpie and our own spicy hoisin. - Zinger burger
Crispy Southern fried chicken tenderloins, lettuce, handout slaw, local herbs, double cheddar, jalapeños, an we make a smokey chipotle sauce all on a toasted brioche bun. - Wok Bowl
Stir fried king prawns in a BBQ Japanese sauce on a salad of Asian slaw, cucumber tomatoes dressed with Noch Nahm brown rice and topped with local coriander and Vietnamese mint from our garden. - Trio off soft shell tacos
Crispy wrapped prawn with pinapple minted salsa chilli and roasted sesame dressing. Spicy chicken with blackened corn and capsicum salsa and chipotle. Slow roasted beef tomato and red onion salsa and jalapeños. - Soups
Roasted sweet potato, pumpkin ginger and coconut. - Cake
Cauliflower, haloumi and feta with soft herbs and pine nuts and garden salad.
Dietary
We cater for all dietary requirements, as I cook everything to order and the kitchen is open so customers can chat with me while I’m preparing their food, so I can tweak or make something up to suit.
Catering
We are able to cater on site/off site or arrange pickup from the cafe from weddings, corporate catering, parties and community functions from 5 to 300 people.
Opening Hours
Wednesday to Sunday 8am to 2pm… we close some days for catering and this is posted on our facebook page (we suggest for customers to book in advance
to ensure we are open if their booking is for a special occasion).
Contact details:
Address: 104 Wallace St Braidwood | Phone: 0416836136 | Email: [email protected]
