L’affare Newmarket Café are Back into Action with a New Menu

The talented lot at L’affare Newmarket café have done it again, launching back into action with a new, ecclectic menu set to be a crowd pleaser. We talked to Head Chef Luke Adams about what inspired it and how he does it. 

This article was created in partnership with L'affare

L’affare Newmarket café is a little oasis of cool, calm and quiet. They know their coffee and can always be relied upon to produce food that wows you, so we are very excited to hear that they have a new menu, and when we had a look at what was on it we were even more excited. 

The menu is eclectic, with Truffle Scramble, Prawn and Crab Cakes with som tam salad, a L'affare Burrito with kimchi alongside black rice. Head Chef Luke Adams calls it an answer to New Zealand not having our own defined cuisine. He mentions haangi and roast chicken but is optimistic that we haven't yet locked in a national style for our food. The result is a bright, fresh menu that borrows dishes from all over the world but isn't over the top, in Luke's words, it's simple food done well.

Notably, the Corned Pastrami Sandwich is takes 3 or 4 days to make using a traditional Jewish method of making brisket. Luke soaks corned silverside (not brisket) for 24 hours, then dries it for 24 hours, smokes it for 3-4 hours then leaves it overnight, steams it for 4 hours. This twist on the classic effectively it takes four days - and Luke laughs that he does it because the end result is well worth the time.

To make the fried chicken (part of the Fried Chicken and Waffles served with bourbon syrup and sour cream) he soaks the chicken overnight in buttermilk. It's his take on Snoop Dogg's Fried Chicken and Waffles (didn't we tell you this menu is eclectic?!). 

The famous, Snoop Dogg-inspired Fried Chicken and Waffles

The team at L'affare also make all the condiments from scratch: the bourbon syrup, maple cream (which you'll find on the Cornbread French Toast), the aji verde (on the Beetroot & Lentil Salad) and the raw lime relish (on the Rice Bowl). And though they get their bread selection from Il Forno, Luke laughs that if he could, he'd even be burying kimchi to make it the traditional way. It's a labour of love in pursuit of excellent flavour - and he emphasises that L'affare are proud to make everything themselves.

L'affare roaster Saskia roasting a batch of beans

And of course fans will be pleased to know that they still have their excellent coffee (made by rigorously trained baristas) and a selection of counter food that will knock your socks off (notably, Blue Cheese and Honeycomb Scones!). 

We'll stop there because we've made ourselves hungry talking about all that delicious food. Plus, there is such a breadth of flavours that there is something for everyone, every mood. See you there. 

L’affare
laffare.co.nz

L'affare Facebook | L'affare Newmarket Facebook | L'affare Instagram