Coffee and croque madames in a shipping container.

That’s the dead-simple concept for James & Antler, a new James Street cafe by brothers Tze-Huei Choo and Chewie Choo that will open in early October.

Taking over the 65 James Street container space previously occupied by Jamie’s Espresso – and, before that, Pineapple Express – James & Antler will be angled as a grab-and-go spot for Fortitude Valley and New Farm locals.

It takes Mitch & Antler, the brothers’ slick full-service cafe, which opened in Mitchelton in February, and drills down on one of its most popular menu items.

“Chewie came into the Mitchelton cafe one day and grabbed the croque madame off the menu, which is one of our bestsellers,” Tze-Huei says. “He had it takeaway and five minutes later called me, saying, ‘Mate, we need to do a pop-up with this sandwich. It’s so good.’”

The Mitch & Antler croque madame is worth the hype: built on fresh-baked fried sourdough, it comes crammed with mustard leek cream and both manchego and Egmont cheese, and (as is customary with a croque madame) finished with a fried egg. It’s a sandwich big in size and big in taste.

“I was sitting there eating it, and I don’t think I realised quite how good it was,” Chewie says. “You think of it as a cheese toastie, but I’ve never had anything as good as our croque.

“A lot of people are opening burger shops, or sandwich shops. But we said, ‘No, the croque madame is what we specialise in’.

“So, we’re going to do a selection of five or six different croques – five savoury, with two vegetarian sandwiches, and one sweet – with a few other items on the menu.”

Beyond the croque madames, the Choo brothers will serve pastries, a pair of seasonal salads, a rotating soup, and soft serve canned to order using their own canning machine.

“We can put whatever topping you like on there and then can it, so customers can take it down to New Farm Park, say,” Chewie says.

For drinks, there will be specialty coffee from Providore & Co’s Kasa Coffee, including a cold brew that will also be canned on the spot. Otherwise, expect Wild One juices and cake shakes.

The space itself will be little more than the shipping container kiosk rendered in deep green and blush peach hues, and space for 20 diners on open-air tables and benches.

“Yeah, it’s a little [bit intimidating opening] on James Street,” Tze-Huei says.

“But we’re trying to tap into something pretty specific. Time is precious, particularly on weekdays – people don’t have a heap of time to sit down and eat before work.

“So, we planned our menu accordingly, so you can still have a good breakfast and a good tasty meal and coffee, but takeaway.”

James & Antler will open early October at 65 James Street, Fortitude Valley.

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