One Block Back cafe serves up the ultimate peanut butter thickshake
The exterior of this cafe is pretty unassuming. In fact, at first glance, it looks like a place you might go to score drugs. But the offerings inside are much better than any narcotic, writes Anooska Tucker-Evans.
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“Oh my God, it’s like crack,” I exclaim, eyes wide open as I pull the peanut butter caramel thickshake from my lips.
“You’re right, it’s insane,” says my friend after snatching the drink out of my hand and inhaling a big gulp.
It’s like drinking liquid peanut butter and ice cream and, for a PB fiend like myself, it’s better than drugs.
I’m at Moffat Beach’s One Block Back – an unorthodox cafe tucked inside an old tin shed in the backstreets of Sunshine Coast suburbia and the true definition of a hidden gem.
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While from the outside the unassuming metal facade could perhaps pass as a crack den, behind the roller door lies a cool, modern and industrial eatery, delivering the hottest trends in breakfast fare, alongside top-notch coffee and a level of service many cafes could learn from.
Knowledgeable and endearing staff immediately welcome diners with big smiles and a rundown on how the place works: help yourself to water in the fridge, order at the counter and they’ll take care of the rest.
Coffee is a must, with Clandestino beans turned into smooth, uplifting brews; while the old school banana smoothie is an exercise in nostalgia, taking diners back to their childhood when mum, or the local milk bar, would whiz honey, bananas, ice cream and milk in the blender as an after-school treat.
Cold-pressed juices, superfood lattes, tea, a handful of cocktails, and a scattering of beer and wine is also available to accompany the main event – the food.
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The contemporary all-day menu moves from modern classics like smashed avo and acai bowls to the exotic, such as one pan eggs with confit duck and mushroom, baked eggs, goat’s cheese, parmesan polenta and chimichurri. Asian influences are prominent with the likes of karaage chicken bao, nasi goreng and a spicy Korean Buddha bowl, while you’ll also find burgers, fries and toasties.
Serving sizes are enormous, as evident with the pork belly okonomiyaki ($18.90). The Japanese-inspired cabbage pancake arrives golden and crisp around the edges with its centre soft after a drowning of Japanese barbecue sauce and kewpie. It’s then topped with sticky pork belly, which varies from tender and unctuous to requiring slight mastication, a fried egg ($2 extra) and an avalanche of green papaya salad with a tangy dressing designed to cut through the dish’s fattiness. It’s entirely calorific but utterly worth the three hours on the treadmill needed to burn it off.
For the sweet tooths there are lemon and ricotta crepes ($17.90). With a batter so thin it would make any classical French chef proud, the crepes are delicately folded around a light and creamy mixture of ricotta and mascarpone, before a squeeze of lemon juice over the top for freshness.
Shards of pistachio praline and a macadamia crumble of sorts provide garnish for the plate and a crunchy element, while passionfruit and white chocolate ice cream is bursting with so much fruit flavour and bite that the technical error resulting in a slightly icy consistency is easily forgiven.
Sugar fanatics will also find themselves overwhelmed for choice by the cabinets at the counter which boast everything from muffins baked in-house to danishes made by top-notch local bakery Tanglewood, plus a huge variety
of cakes and tarts – many of which are gluten-free or vegan friendly. A top pick is the Portuguese tart, the staff warming it up before bringing it out on a plate with its custardy
centre wobbling like Santa’s belly and the pastry buttery and crisp.
One Block Back may be out of the way, but it's a precious find worth hunting for.
ONE BLOCK BACK
106 Nothling Street, Moffat Beach
0424 762 946
Open 7am-2.30pm
VERDICT - out of 5
Food 4.5
Service 4.5
Ambience 4.5
Value 4.5