Stacked Diner

3 November 2019

STACKED DINER

60B Kloof Street, Cape Town

When one is in the late morning limbo between breakfast and lunch when so many places no longer serve breakfast and it’s too early for lunch, finding a spot that serves an all-day breakfast takes a bit of googling but they’re out there even on a Sunday, which is why we came to Stacked Diner today. It was my third visit and the wife’s first.

The natural light from the big windows promotes a cheerful brightness to the modern, colourful diner interior on a cloudy day, reflecting in the unmistakable  joie de vivre of the patrons in a mix of groups of mates, families and close personal friends.

The wife was dead set on brunch and I was keen on lunch, so she ordered the crispy hash stack of 4 hash browns, 2 poached eggs, rocket and sour cream (R60) and added bacon and avocado for an additional R44. 

My choice was the veggie burger, with chipotle tomato relish (R52) and added haloumi fries (R40.)

It was a good veggie burger with a vegetable patty that didn’t pretend to be meat, either in texture of flavour, with the shortcoming of a lack of seasoning. The burger needed that chipotle relish. The crumbed, deep fried haloumi batons were excellent.

The wife also thought that her dish was a bit bland, especially the otherwise well-made hash browns, though the eggs were poached to order, the bacon crisp, and the avo unctuous. It was a good portion, 

though with perhaps one or two too many hash browns, once one added the bacon and avo.

It wasn’t the heaviest of breakfasts and we still had a yearning for a sweet touch with our final coffee. My choice was the 3 stack flapjack dish with pear poached in cranberry juice and with a vanilla custard,

while the wife, ever a fan of the chocolate, ordered the 3-stack chunky monkey, with banana and walnuts.

We tasted one flapjack of each other’s dish and concluded that we liked our own choices the best, except that the wife gave me the walnuts on her plate. The flapjacks were light and fluffy and the toppings not overly sweet. I preferred the soft, juicy, slightly tart slices of pear as better with the flapjack than the chocolate version. On the whole, though, I’d say each choice is good, depending on your taste.

The coffee is by Deluxe, not our favourite roastery because there’s a touch too much acidity in it.

The service was excellent and friendly and the main course meals came out from the kitchen at speed. The manager / owner is hands-on and continuously moves around the room to check on things, always a good sign.

The bill, for the food, one single espresso and three flat whites, came to R400,00, which is pretty reasonable for Cape Town.

If you’re looking for cosy and intimate, and slightly quirky, Stacked Diner is not the place for you. If you’re looking for an updated retro feel, plus good diner food and good service when you’re in the Kloof Street area and feel peckish, I’d say Stacked could be the joint for you.