Tucked away in the backstreets of Woolloongabba is the little gem that is Pawpaw Cafe. Noticed purely by accident in a hunt for lunch, it can be a little difficult to find with the entrance around the back of the building, there is a small sign on the footpath and a glowing orange neon sign on the outside.
The building has an outback shack but homey feel with corrugated tin exterior and large open windows. This ambience is matched by the food menu, offering a range of the usual breakfast and lunch options but with some nice creative touches. Standouts include the Son-in-law Eggs – Thai style fried eggs, fragrant rice, crispy onions, fresh herbs and tamarind sauce, the Mexican Baked Eggs" – Mexican spiced tomato sauce, baked eggs, melting cheese, jalapenos, radish and fresh herbs with house-made tortilla chips, and the Spiced Chicken Ciabatta – Chermoula spiced chicken breast, rocket, tomato, onion and roast pumpkin served with fries. Completed with quality coffee from Campos, the result is a well rounded cafe in a slightly secluded neighbourhood location.
On this visit I ordered the Corn Fritters, served with chipotle sour cream, avocado, tomato relish and an added side of bacon. Ever so slightly crispy fritters but still soft on the inside, delightful. The chipotle sour cream was an interesting and great addition to the dish, combined with the avocado and the relish there was almost a sweet and sour/spicy flavour mix. If anything, the bacon was a little overcooked but that didn’t detract from the dish at all.
Pawpaw Cafe offers a great inconspicuous hideout in the laid back suburb of Woolloongabba, but if you can’t get enough of it there’s also Little Pawpaw in Kedron and Raw Pawpaw in New Farm.