It's just good, no-fuss Sri Lankan at this Woden lunchtime spot

The mouthwatering smell of curry hits you as soon as you open the door to Midnight Mocha. The Woden cafe took over the space from Short Eats and quickly found dedicated followers among the office workers in the Furzer Street precinct.

I was introduced to Midnight Mocha by a friend who works nearby: she caught a whiff of something delicious when walking past and just had to go in for a taste.

Rabita Chaudhary is the owner, and she explained that her brother chose the name when they were thinking of opening a late-night coffee shop. In the end, they decided that daytime service was more practical for staff, but the name had already stuck!

The menu is split into two sections: there is a mix of Western and Sri Lankan breakfast dishes and a bain marie set up for lunch with around six different curries. Popular breakfast items are the roti toastie or kottu roti with egg.

For lunch, choose three curries with either rice or roti for $15 or $17, respectively. It’s an affordable meal, and the flavours are absolutely top-notch! Food is served in biodegradable containers, so any leftovers are easy to pack up and take home.

I tried the lamb, eggplant and lentil curries with roti and they were all delicious. The lamb was incredibly tender, the lentils comforting, and the eggplant was creamy and tasty. There’s chilli crisp available on the side for those who like a little extra heat.

The masala chai is also worth ordering: the spices are strong and include cardamom, cinnamon, clove, dried ginger root, pepper and an Indian variety of basil. It’s a very tasty addition to lunch, or you can grab a coffee.

From 22 July, they will extend their hours to include dinner service, and the Nepali staff will add momos, noodles and other Nepali food to the menu.

Rabita explained that there are many Indian, Sri Lankan and Nepali people living in and around Woden and they’re keen to offer more evening options that will appeal to that demographic. They also offer student discounts, catering and private events (there were still some Happy Birthday balloons from a weekend event when we visited). You can also pre-order bulk handmade momos with the flavour of your choice!

The queue can get long during the lunch rush, but the staff worked through it fairly quickly. There’s been so much demand they’re upgrading to a larger flat plate to accommodate twice the number of rotis! Early lunchers will avoid the worst of the rush.

Midnight Mocha is a gem worth seeking out if you’re looking for an easy lunch in that part of Woden. Simple, hearty and totally delicious: this is no-fuss dining at its best.

Midnight Mocha is located at G06/35 Furzer Street, Phillip. They are open from 7.30 am to 3 pm Monday to Friday, but stay tuned for extended opening hours (including Saturday trade) later in July. Follow Midnight Mocha on Facebook for more.

Original Article published by Lucy Ridge on Riotact.