Sydney’s Never Had a Cafe and Wine Bar Like Ca Phe Mai

It’s a big call to say something is a first. But we’re confident Sydney hasn’t had a venue like Ca Phe Mai. The 30-seater – from couple Cindy Mai and Ed Loveday – opened on Monday, hitting a back-alley space in Double Bay. The menu is a mash-up of Vietnamese and Australian flavours, taking you from early-morning cafe to low-lit wine bar.

“Ca Phe Mai is naturally what we felt we could do and wanted to do,” says Loveday. “It wasn’t like we set out to cook up a unique concept – it just was what was right for us.”

The venue brings together elements of the pair’s history. It’s detail-oriented and elevated, like Loveday’s now-closed ACME and The Passage. The menu is underpinned by Mai’s Vietnamese heritage, her Viet Kieu (a Vietnamese person living overseas) identity, and her and her family’s experience owning and running Vietnamese restaurants (Phuong Nam, VN City). Add in elements referencing the pair’s fondness for a small-plates wine bar, and Ca Phe Mai becomes a Sydney first.

Most of the morning offering could be categorised as “brunch classics with a Vietnamese twist”. Have a bacon-and-egg banh mi with the signature ca phe muoi (a silky riff on a salted Vietnamese coffee), adding the hash brown with its dippable crème fraîche and house-made chilli oil. A cheesy muffin is stuffed with egg and lemongrass pork sausage, and avo toast is topped with a bright herby salad and lime. You can design your own brekkie plate, or go for the signature CPM mix.

“It’s fresh fruit, cheese, sourdough, egg, Asian herbs,” shares Mai. “That dish itself is an expression of, say, how I as a Viet Kieu would like to eat breakfast. I want that choice – to go to my local all-day joint that I love, and be able to be like, ‘Today I feel like the CPM brekkie plate’ or the next day I really want to hit a chicken pho or a laksa.”

The pho ga broth recipe has travelled through Mai’s family, with her mum and grandma finessing the pot at Ca Phe Mai with head chef Bobby Nguyen. “They are very involved in making sure that the chicken stock is exactly the same,” says Mai. “He really respects my mum and all the restaurants that we’ve had.”

Beyond that wonder stock, Mai’s family has been tasting dressings and sauces – so that they’re “Viet-mum-approved” – but leaving the rest of the menu to Nguyen (with Ricos Tacos founder Toby Wilson consulting).

Lunch means seared-tuna rice paper rolls, classic banh mi and ultra-fresh vermicelli “canteen bowls” (perhaps topped with Hanoi-style turmeric fish cake). Then, the wine bar vibe sets in.

There is a pickle plate and anchovy toast, coconut-water-dressed tuna crudo and glossy, crunchy Hanoi-style spring rolls. A fish cake – spiked with turmeric, dill and house spice mix – is crumbed and deep-fried, slotted into a soft roll for the Fillet o’ Cha Ca burger. “Think flavours of cha ca,” says Mai, referencing the Hanoi-style grilled fish dish. “If you were Vietnamese, you would definitely be able to see where the inspiration comes from.” There’s a sunny, pickle-heavy turmeric tartare sauce and plenty of fresh dill.

Loveday’s drinks list sticks to the same brief. There’s the spritzy Suong Mai with jasmine vermouth and melon, and the punchy, chilli-laced Fruit Cart. There’s a soft-green Pandan Colada and a Dragonfruit Margarita, too, while the Espresso Martini – firmly in ca phe muoi territory with condensed milk and salted cream – is “perfect for the eastern suburbs”. The wine list spans the globe, with special mention to Song Cai’s yellow-rice sparkling wine, a sparkling produced in Hanoi

The Vietnamese Australian Ca Phe Mai is fresh, energising and new – without being unrecognisable. “We’re elevating [the cuisine] in a way that looks beautiful and still tastes like if my mum was to eat it, she would think it’s Vietnamese and that it’s delicious.”

Ca Phe Mai
Shop 1, 377 New South Head Road, Double Bay
Behind Forum, enter via Kiaora Lane

Hours:
Mon & Tue 7am–3pm
Wed to Sat 7am–10pm
Sun 7am–3pm

caphemai.com.au
@ca.phe.mai