What a wonderful, welcoming, beautiful food and staff experience.
3 adults, 1 child.
Pies✅️
spinach roll✅️
Banana bread, baby chino Rudolph cake✅️✅️✅️
Wagon wheel slice/lemon cake✅️✅️
Coffee iced and FW✅️✅️
Very clean, attentive, welcoming service.
Highly recommended.
$79.02
Cher C · 2026-01-04
The Hurstbridge Patisserie & Café, formerly known as The French Lettuce, has unfortunately lost some of its charm under the new ownership. One of the first things we noticed was that none of the original staff were present, which was disappointing given the warm and familiar service the café was once known for.
The young woman who took our order appeared quite out of her depth and wasn’t particularly personable. While she may have been new, the level of customer service fell short of expectations. After being seated, our food arrived without napkins, and a significant portion of our order was missing, which we had to follow up ourselves. There were also no serviettes available at the table. The menus themselves were old and tattered, which was surprising considering the recent change in ownership, and other elements felt somewhat amateur.
When we raised the issue of the missing items, the staff were not especially apologetic or accommodating, which added to the frustration. That said, one staff member, a young gentleman with tattoos, stood out as being friendly and helpful.
As for the food, we were genuinely disappointed to see that the original sausage roll recipe has been replaced. The new version was okay, but noticeably smaller, not as good value, and lacked the freshness and flavour of the original. On a more positive note, the desserts and pastries were enjoyable and well made.
Overall, we’d be more than happy to give this café another chance once some of the kinks are ironed out. However, it’s hard not to miss the warmth, quality, and character of the old French Lettuce.
eggy jeanie · 2026-01-12
Loved it. We ordered their smashed Avo (which was fresh and crsip. They severed it on their croissant which gave it a slight sweet taste. Nice) And, their mushroom toast. Served once again on their croissant and was very flavoursome.
A shout out to the pot of tea. (Not all pots of tea are totally enjoyable as was this, plus refill if requested). Loved the loose leaf blend they used.
And to our server who's name I wish I jotted down. You're amazing.
Anna T · 2025-09-23
Enjoyed our meals here. The steak sandwich was really nice, the meat was tender, and the chips were hot and beautifully seasoned.
Would like to see some more lunchtime options on the menu like a chicken parmigiana, etc.
Meals came out super fast!
Emma Valley · 2025-06-08
Was a favorite place of mine however the past 3 visits things have gone wrong that probably shouldn't in a well established Cafe.
1. Chefs hair in my food. It happens everywhere and once staff were alerted they attended to the issue promptly.
2. Allergic reaction to cookies served but couldn't tell me what the ingredients were. They were packaged with no label of ingredients and I had to email and call for the information.
3. My and another ladies order of just poached eggs on toast was missed. We both waited 30 minutes while our tables had finished their food before we were served. It was by no means busy. Outside was filled but inside empty. Other lady made a fuss and got given cakes. I couldn't be bothered as sadly its become an expectation.
The staff are lovely and attentive but the management and chef need to lift their game. Yes the brand is that of a well known Cafe in Carlton but the managements overall attention to detail and food safety is poor. I will still visit, though I dont hold great expectations each time.
Roxy M · 2026-01-04