Disclaimer: I went here in November, half wrote this review and never posted it. So clearly:
a) I am slack and
b) This establishment may have changed or whatever since
Dr Jekyll is quite obviously named after the fictional Dr Henry Jekyll, Robert Louis Stevenson’s fictional character, who is torn between the pressure to be a fine upstanding citizen worthy of his social position and his sinister urges that lurk beneath the surface. But instead of seeing a shrink he makes up a potion and, on occasion, becomes a murderous monster. We can’t be too cross with him though, why without Dr Jekyll, there would be no Harvey Dent, no Bruce Banner. But is the eatery quite so influential?
It’s unclear if it is intentional, but the interior cleverly reflects the character: Bright walls, lots of natural light, a lovely breezy courtyard and an open kitchen where you can see everything cooked before your eyes. Not to mention a massive Jekyll themed mural adorning the walls in the front indoor section. But delve deep into the back room that leads to the facilities and you’ll find the walls are black and sinister (that said the facilities are modern, clean and in no way dingy!)
Light and non-murderous interior
I went with a group of four and was a tiny bit late to meet my friends. So they got in first, advised a table of four was required and had to wait about 15 minutes on a lovely Sunday morning. But it was excellent timing on my part, because the table was ready just as I arrived (thanks girls). It seems to be quite popular, so do expect a wait on the weekends.
Good coffee, not mind blowing. I love those black cups even though they’re everywhere now.
The menu is a little hit and miss it would seem. I had the lovely Veggie Jekyll breakie, which consisted of poached eggs on sourdough, spinach, fetta, asparagus and cherry tomatoes. I have a general aversion to asparagus due to being forced to eat it in my childhood (tough life) but I have discovered as an adult if it’s done nicely then it ain’t that bad. And this was done nicely. I was pretty happy with my breakfast even though it wasn’t particularly huge for the $17.50 price tag
Jess got the natural fruit and nut muesli with vanilla yogurt and apple (10.50) and she wasn’t impressed at all. Apparently it was bland, hardly and fruit and nuts and she’s had better muesli out of a packet. The presentation with all that finely cut apple is just lovely but they also gave her world’s smallest jug of milk and quite the decent sized bowl, so she had to ask for more milk before she even began
Kirsty got the scrambled eggs. Apparently they were lovely but after all the work they did on the bland muesli aesthetics, you think they could have made this look a bit more exciting? Anyway, the main point is that it tasted good. And I believe that a wise prophet once said “and two outta three ain’t bad”. For the more observant among you, I had mentioned we had a party of 4, but poor Shak’s tummy was upset so she just sipped on a tea, very ladylike.
Scrambled eggs that taste good but look meh
I’d probably go back, but definitely get a hot breakfast and stay away from that museli. The atmosphere was good and we stayed around for ages chatting after we’d eaten, and there was no pressure to leave. The courtyard is lovely and it’s cute puppy central around there, so there was an adorable French bulldog for me to swoon over as well. So all in all, pretty good experience for me.
