With all the Instagram hype I finally made my way to Petal Met Sugar! I’m sure everyone has seen images of their decadent desserts against floral tabletop backdrops. So, without further ado, welcome to Petal Met Sugar, a cosy and intimate cafe x florist x patisserie, tucked away in the streets of Wooloomooloo.
Setting and Atmosphere
★★★
What I liked about Petal Met Sugar was the inside space. It’s white, crisp and elegant. To one side, watch behind large glass windows a theatre-like performance of the patissiere’s at work, and to the other, browse the flowers freshly arranged by the florist.
Petal Met Sugar is a workspace first and then a cafe. They primarily take cake and floral orders, but if you’d like to have a sweet treat, there’s a seating area located outside (no tables are located inside). It’s a simple arrangement and not as flash as rising cafes nowadays, but it does the job. The cute floral posy’s add a nice touch on the tabletops.
But what disappointed me the most was the state of the tables. Ningjaeats and I arrived quite early in the morning, around 10AM, and the place was not busy at all! The two free tables were really dirty and the young guy at the counter seemed to be more interested in his conversation with his co-worker, than his potential customers…but more on this later.
Food
★★★★
My goodness. The food here is beautiful! I really love the way that all the dishes look like an artwork. For our tastebuds we ordered the Tasting Trio which included the eclair, peach oolong cake and chocolate candy bar; the ever famous Terrarium and the smoked ham and gruyere croissant.
The peach oolong cake was by far my favourite on the plate. Yum. I would have ordered a whole slab if I knew how delicious it would be. Definitely the highlight of the Tasting Trio, it’s light in its flavours, fruity and not too overly sweet. Also it’s gluten free! I actually recommend you order this standalone as the other two treats on the plate didn’t excite my tastebuds nearly as much.
Secondly the Terrarium is not just a pretty face – it also tastes really good. A little on the sweet side, the trick to eating this is to destroy it – literally. If you try to eat it piece by piece, you won’t get the full combination of flavours as you would smashing the delicate white chocolate globe and grabbing a chunk of cocoa nib soil, passionfruit panacotta and white chocolate all in your mouth at once. All elements together balance perfectly to create a delightful array of flavour combinations on the palate.
The smoked ham and gruyere croissant is fairly standard and tasted like a regular ham and cheese croissant. It was a good accompaniment to reset the palate from the sweetness.
The menu here is limited and I would definitely not go here looking for breakfast or brunch. This place is strictly best for a sweet treat or a small snack, with the only savoury options being a selection of croissants. It’s the perfect place for morning or afternoon tea.
Service
★.5
I feel so terrible having to recount a truthful experience that is so negative, but above all, I promise my readers the truth. I’m sure every other day, Petal Met Sugar has a wonderful person on the service desk, but the young guy in service on this particular morning was terrible.
Okay. There are only 3 tables at Petal Met Sugar and when they’re not busy, I expect them to be clean or soon to be cleaned.
Upon arrival, the young guy at the front register pretty much ignored us. No warm friendly welcome or a “Hi, how are you?” “Where would you like to sit?” or even a “Can I help you?” He knew we were there, we stood literally in front of the register, but he was too busy having a conversation with his co-worker.
So after some time, I gave up on him and decided to take a seat at one of the horribly dirty tables. I grabbed ourselves some menus (after searching for them on the front counter myself – the guy was still in conversation) and took them back so we could order. Once we decided, I went back to order and he seemed almost annoyed that he had to serve me?!!? What?!?! Not only that, I had to clean my OWN table with a napkin.
I went back and asked him if he had a bin to put the napkins in (there were also napkins on the table left from the previous customers). He looked somewhat disgusted at having to touch the napkins with his bare hands, to which I assured him that they weren’t all mine and belonged to the people before me. He reluctantly took them away, making sure to pinch the very far corner of each one so as not taint himself with germs.
Pricing and Value for Money
★★★★
The prices here are really reasonable and the portion size is good.
The Details
Where: Ground Floor, 68 Sir John Young Cr, Woolloomooloo
Contact: hello@petalmetsugar.com.au or 9360 6226
Opening Hours:
Monday – Closed
Tuesday – Friday: 8.00am – 4.30pm
Saturday 9am – 5pm | Sunday 9am – 4pm
