Mio Mia Café

I tried the prosciutto pastrami for the first time after reading the reviews of the place. The service was prompt and courteous. The toasted pastrami came with cheese oozing out nicely complementing the fillings. The bread was fresh and crunchy. This must be one of the best pastramis in town. At around 9 for a large sandwich, it’s one of the better quality sandwiches around the area.
I didn’t get to try the coffee but will definitely do next time I’m around! Love the quiet ambience and funky interior design too!

All the Seppos I talk to lament the lack of a decent pastrami sandwich in Sydney. Well, pals from across the pond, on the weekend I found a beauty for you:
Proper pastrami served on a rye bread roll with big slices of salty dill pickle, lashings of rocket and a mustardy-​herb-​mayo-​vinaigrette kinda dressing that I did absolutely no justice to with that terrible description. Damn thing was a revelation, ataste sensation that was over all too quickly. Thought about ordering an immediate second. Looked down at my belly. Thought some more. Then my meeting turned up and the decision was taken out of my hands. He who hesitates is lost.

I wrote this on the day Mio Mia opened … as it happened … on 11/​11/​2011:
«Brand new café. Today. It looks very sweet and has a nice little terraced area to sit in. Gets the morning sun. Staffed by just two people at the moment. They use Genovese coffee (ok that’s from memory, but we think that’s right). The result? Not very strong coffee, but definitely fresh and kind of nutty tasting, not at all bitter. But these are early days, so we’ll give them a bit of a chance.»
Have they improved? Look, it’s tricky. The people who run Mio Mia are absolutely lovely, really generous and sweet. The food is fresh and you never have to wait to be served (as it’s often rather empty). But the coffee … just a block away from café kings Mecca Espresso … hasn’t really risen to the challenge.
The food, on the other hand, just keeps getting better: they now have salad options where you can effectively design your own salad: lovely big servings and very fresh. The sandwich selection has also expanded.
There is an unpretentious conscientiousness about the people who work here. They’re not too hip, they’re a bit serious, and they’ve very lovely people. Bloody great use of a loading dock.

Just popped in for a quick bite to eat before heading to the Powerhouse Museum — I had only 30min and was in a dilemma — Food or Coffee?! They don’t have enough time to make both! I opted for a Pastrami Panini with Pickles and Mustard and it hit the spot! My friend had a Boccocini Panini that looked good but I was pretty stoked to find some half decent Pastrami in Sydney! Will definitely be coming back.

Having just opened a couple of weeks ago, I should probably be lenient on Mio Mia, just until it settles in. What used to be a loading dock on Harris Street has now been turned into a chic looking espresso bar, with room for a few tables and about 20 people. They’ve decided to go with the books painted on the wall interior, something I haven’t seen for a few years but it seems to work well enough — there wouldn’t be any room for actual books anyway.
The coffee itself (skim flat white ($ 3) for me) was a little burnt and not as nice as some of the other coffee houses in the area but the bonus of this place is that it stays open past 4pm, something that other cafés seem to not believe in doing, which is quite annoying when you work weird hours like I do and you need a caffeine hit at regular intervals. As a result, this place may be getting plenty of my business!