OzHarvest, Australia’s leading charity in the fight against food waste, is branching out into the café business – for the next three months, anyway.
The OzHarvest Café by Gratia has all the hallmarks of a typical Surry Hills café: gluten-free quinoa and chickpea loaf, avocado on toast and goodness bowls topped with nuts and ferments. But the pickles in your bowl utilise vegetable off-cuts, ramen noodles are made from breadcrumbs and the curd that comes with the pancakes is made with egg yolks donated by Black Star Pastry.
Taking over profit-for-purpose eatery Gratia until September, OzHarvest’s new menu is focused on giving rescued ingredients new life. The café also donates 100 per cent of profits to OzHarvest’s food rescue operations.
“This menu is all about transforming ingredients that would not usually make it to a restaurant table into delicious dishes,” OzHarvest executive chef Travis Harvey says.
Watermelon rinds leftover from Black Star Pastry’s signature strawberry and watermelon cake are being used to make jam, while contributions from other partners include surplus bread from Brasserie Bread’s operation in Banksmeadow.
A daily specials board complements the regular menu, which includes dishes such as buckwheat porridge topped with poached prune and roasted pear, and tapioca and haloumi fritters with poached eggs and tomato relish. While not every item on the menu contains rescued produce, every dollar that you spend at the café helps OzHarvest deliver two meals to someone in need.
Whether you’re buying your daily coffee or taking the whole family out for brunch, your morning ritual just got a whole lot sweeter.
OzHarvest Café by Gratia, 372 Bourke St, Surry Hills, NSW, (02) 8034 3818, Wed-Sun, 8am-3pm.
