This must be Braidwood’s grooviest cafe/restaurant, and the only one guaranteed to be open daily from 8am. The coffee is top quality and the food is also consistently good, and often imaginative, and there is usually at least one vegetarian option as well as willingness on the part of the staff to leave a meat ingredient out of the pasta, for example.
Vegetarian lunch options over summer include a frittata and a bruschetta – both delicious, with the latter oozing (but not too much) with a quality olive oil, a soft and not too salty fetta, plump tomatoes and of course some fresh basil. The organic sourdough bread used for the bruschetta comes from the local bakery – not the one frequented by tourists in the main street but Dojo Bread up the laneway behind the pizza place, a favourite with those in the know. The baker uses only the finest organic ingredients and loves to talk about the ratios of grains and flours, and any other aspect of the process.
It is clear that Cafe Albion management requires high standards in its wait people and accordingly the staff are friendly and thorough. The outdoor area, which is on the verandah of this corner building, is usually frequented by smokers, and unfortunately the smoke drifts inside if any of the windows are open. In winter there is slow combustion stove which provides welcome warmth in comparison to the low outdoor temperatures.
While popular with locals, many of whom go there daily for coffee, food or socialising, it is gaining notoriety with the many tourists who stop in Braidwood on their way to or from the coast. The tap water provided can taste pretty poor, but that’s a problem with the town water supply rather then the cafe, though perhaps a filter might help.
The cafe has recently decided to open for dinner, following its obtaining a liquor licence, and is open from 6 from Friday to Sunday. Breakfast is served untill 12, and lunch until 3. If you’re desperate for coffee, make sure you leave enough time for it, as you can’t guarantee that the machine will still be on if you get there too close to the 4pm cafe closing time.
Braidwood is NSW’s only heritage-listed town, situated on the Kings Highway between Canberra/Queanbeyan and the coast. The town could do with a by-pass, as it’s hard to find a park anyway near the main street on Fridays and Saturdays but more of more relevance is the number of vehicles, including B-doubles and other large trucks, that pass through without stopping, making it hard for pedestrians and unpleasantly noisy at times for outside diners who people walking up and down the interesting main street.
Postscript, January 25: I have just discovered that Cafe Albion is now closing at 3.30pm and will no longer be open on Tuesdays.
Postscript, July 2011: it now closes at 3, is closed on both Tuesdays and Wednesdays over winter, and the business is for sale. The coffee is still my favourite in town.
