A Bite to Eat has a new lease on life

Brett Waslin is no stranger to A Bite to Eat in Chifley. He was working as the head chef when the previous owner decided to sell. He was interested, but ultimately didn’t have the money to buy it at the time.

Fast forward a few years and Brett now runs the thriving North Lyneham cafe Hide and Seek and has now realised that dream – he’s the new owner of A Bite to Eat.

“I’ve always been ambitious and driven,” he told Region.

“And I’ve always wanted to have a Canberra institution and A Bite to Eat has so much history. Chatting to the locals, they’ve all got stories about this place so it’s exciting to be able to take it on.”

The cafe was closed for two weeks, so Brett had to undertake a few renovations: the walls have been lightened up, the copper bar has been polished to a shine, and there are some new plants out in the rear courtyard. While the overall look is a little more modern, the art deco features, retro carpet and familiar, cosy vibe remain.

Key to Brett’s vision was getting the right team on board. With a solid team in place in Lyneham, he’s moved head chef Josh Sargent to Chifley to lead the kitchen. And barista Tom Riethmuller (formerly of Lava Coffee) is slinging coffees to the locals. There are also local beers on tap and a few wines available to cater for those leisurely lunches.

Like Hide and Seek, the kitchen has a focus on fresh, simple food done right.

“We’re not opening packets, we’re making everything ourselves from scratch,” Brett said.

“The menu is different from Hide and Seek because we’ve got access to a few different pieces of equipment here. But we’re not reinventing the wheel – we want people to come here and have a great, affordable meal every time.”

Dietary requirements are also catered for, with a focus on safe food handling practices for coeliacs, and a menu that can be easily altered for vegans or people with allergies.

Customers can expect dishes like hand rolled vegan gnocchi, house-braised brisket for Rueben sandwiches and deliciously smokey shakshuka.

It’s a blank slate beginning for Brett, and he’s been busily hiring local teens for casual weekend shifts – a rite of passage! – as well as other chefs, baristas and wait staff.

The cafe opens at 6.30 am on weekdays to allow for hospital workers to come in when they finish a run of overnight shifts and need a proper feed early in the day. Brett explained that when his son was born prematurely, he and his partner Caity met a lot of nursing staff who were regulars at the cafe, and would come by at 7 am for ‘dinner’ before going home.

He’s also keen to hire out the space at an affordable rate for evening functions, or hold special events like wine dinners in the future.

“We want the community to come back to their local shops and enjoy what we’re doing here.”

A Bite to Eat is located at 8 Chifley Pl, Chifley. They are open from 6.30 am to 3 pm Monday to Friday, and from 7.30 am to 3 pm on weekends. Follow A Bite to Eat on Instagram or Facebook.

Original Article published by Lucy Ridge on Riotact.