Perth Breakfast & Brunch: Alberta’s, Busselton

It’s a long way to Busselton just to eat a cheese roll, as AC/DC so very nearly sang.

That was the earworm I got to enjoy the entire two and a half hour drive back from Alberta’s, the fascinating new cafe off Busselton’s main drag, which has WA foodies buzzing.

The buzzing has been so loud it drove me to take a day trip from Perth to Busselton to try its fledgling breakfast and morning tea menu and, yes, I’ll get to that cheese roll in a bit.

The reason for the hype is Alberta’s owners: Ben Ing and Kirsty Marchant, the former head chef and head gardener at Noma Copenhagen. Noma is a three-Michelin-starred restaurant that routinely tops the list of the world’s best restaurants, so naturally this pedigree has sent locals — and food writers — into a spin.

If you go into Alberta’s expecting an outpost of Noma you’ll leave bewildered. This is not that.

But if you go for something a local and different, you will find yourself charmed. Mostly.

The fit-out is Scandi-gorgeous and a mix of high-end, including an open flame in the custom kitchen hearth and some beautiful stoneware cups, and homey, like the mismatched vintage crockery.

The menu is hyper-local, changes daily and gets chalked on a blackboard by the doorway. I can’t imagine that process takes a hell of a long time because the menu is small.

On the day of my visit the menu comprises a vegetable or chicken broth, a morning bun, apple tarte tatin, crumble cake, a biscuit and a lime bar. That’s it. I eat, let me be real, most of it.

The broth ($8) might strike some as an unconventional way to start the day but it’s a great little dish, simple enough but with a delightful herby emulsion going on to keep it interesting.

The morning bun ($12) arrives looking a bit like somebody’s lunchbox got deconstructed, with a warm brown roll, a hefty smear of brown butter and slices of a very good manchego cheese from Chambray Cheese, a local cheese factory and sheep dairy.

The ingredients are good: the roll is fresh, the cheese gorgeous and I could eat the butter by itself. Still, put them together and what you’ve got is a high-end cheese roll. It’s a good cheese roll but it is a cheese roll, although you can add truffle for $10 if you’d prefer to make it a $22 cheese and truffle roll.

The apple tarte tatin ($15) comes with vanilla cream and, while it cannot truly be classified as a classic brunch dish, it is a sticky, caramelised delight. A brown butter cookie with homemade Nutella ($6) is similarly perfection, in an almost-undercooked kind of a way that makes it crumbly instead of crispy. The Nutella tastes a bit like Nutella from a jar but that is no criticism.

A flat white ($5) is terrific, as is a pot of Artisan Black tea ($6), the leaves of which, I’m assured, were picked at midnight while the rest of us were tucked up in bed.

Reviews are simplest when they’re a rave or a slam and this is neither. I wanted it to be a rave but could any meal truly justify a five-hour round trip unless it was, say, shared over candlelight with a young Paul Newman?

The day of my visit was only the 13th day of service, which feels relevant. It’s a small operation that’s still evolving but is underpinned by good cooking and respect for quality, local ingredients.

Alberta’s is an interesting, possibly wonderful, addition to Busselton. I may not be revving the car for another day trip in the immediate future but if I found myself in the South West I would absolutely return, if only to see what they do next.

The verdict: 7.5/10

This charming new cafe might have a small, unconventional menu but it knows its way around a sweet treat and is a welcome new addition to Busselton.

Alberta’s

3/55 Queen Street

Busselton

WEB: instagram.com/albertas_busselton

OPEN: Thursday, Friday 7-11.30am. Saturday, Sunday 8-11.30am. Closed Monday, Tuesday.

BOOKINGS: No