V and I recently had brunch at Dinner Rush at the Kitchen located at the Narrabundah shops. Dinner Rush is a local business offering freshly made meals that can be purchased for lunch or dinner from those that do not have the time to cook. It offers nutritious ‘fast’ food where everything is sourced from the local markets and made with no preservatives or additives. These vacuum sealed refridgerated meals can be heated up at home and last up to six months in the freezer. Great for those that are time poor but still want wholesome food. Dinner Rush started off selling its meals at the Old Bus Depot Markets and The Forage, and have recently opened up their shopfront in the ‘burbs. Owner Siobhan Palmer has worked in various Canberran eateries such as Silo Bakery, Beez & Co, and Hotel Hotel, so I couldn’t help but expect some really tasty food. See HerCanberra article for more information on Siobhan and the story behind Dinner Rush.
Dinner Rush at the Kitchen is a small cafe seating about 10 people inside and out.
There are shelves of Dinner Rush’s own sauces and preserved items for sale against one wall.
The front counter is laden with more yummy looking treats like muffins, cakes, salads and rolls. The shelf next to it sells The Muesli Bar muesli, paleo granola, Highgate Lane Coffee Roasters coffee beans, and more of Dinner Rush’s items such as lamb spiced rub, salad seeds, chilli jam and dulce de leche.
I was eyeing the rhubarb and custard scrolls that had a gorgeous sheen on them.
I ordered a soy mocha ($4.50) and enjoyed it outside in the sun. Dinner Rush uses Highgate Lane Coffee Roasters coffee (who set up a cafe in Kingston last year). There’s no shade outside so I moved inside after I got my dose of vitamin D.
There were only 3 items on the breakfast menu but I still found it hard to decide what to have. Sweet or savoury? I went with the healthy option and ordered the Spring greens with poached egg ($12) with the addition of speck ($4) to the plate. It’s not often you see a breakfast menu where dishes are only $12 so I was really happy with the price. My plate of greens were cooked fabulously. The snow peas and asparagus were such a healthy green colour, and not overcooked so that they were crunchy to bite into and bursting with natural juiciness. I wish my snow peas turn out like that when I cook them! I was really happy with the poached egg which was perfectly runny when popped. The sourdough is delicious and I forgot to ask where it’s from, but I know it’s local. I enjoyed this simple healthy meal.
V had the spicy butter beans with fried egg ($12) and was equally happy with her meal and inexpensive price tag.
I would love to go back for lunch after seeing the menu options – slow cooked beef with eggplant and coconut, lamb tagine, pies, soups and more. All very delicious sounding and homemade. There are also gluten free and vegetarian options.
Don’t have time to make dinner during the week? Dinner Rush’s Dinner Sorted pack includes 5 meals for 2 people, for 5 days at $125. There’s also a Family Combo pack if you have kids. If you just want to try one meal, you can walk into the cafe and grab something out of the fridge or freezer.
Dinner Rush at the Kitchen is located on Iluka Street at the Narrabundah shops. Open Tuesday to Saturday for breakfast and lunch.
Foodgasm 9/10
Value for money 10/10
Service 8/10
FPJ score 27/30
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