Furious 5 – Dello Mano

on March 30, 2012 by Fiona Ryan

Filed in: Brisbane, Restaurant Review

There may be nary a newsagent, supermarket or chemist anywhere in Newstead but if your prepared to give up those practical affectations, there’s a whole plantation of coffee sellers in the area. As a boost to my fitness, my enthusiasm for a decent coffee, secret fandom of Grandmaster Flash and a test of my blogging commitment, I am hoping to post 5 coffee shops in 5 days.

Criteria:
* Walkable from 639 Wickham St, Newstead/Fortitude Valley
* There and back in 30 minutes

Day 5 – Dello Mano

Walking Time:
1762 steps return
36 minutes return including travel, ordering and drinking

On Approach:

In prime position on the the corner of Doggett and Chester Sts with slightly elevated views towards the CBD. It’s was probably a corner store in a former life. You’ll spot the yoga mums gossiping on the corner with prams, kids and dogs in tow.

Inside Vibe:

Confusing. Del Mano produce upmarket brownies with delightfully shiny wrappings that indicate elegance and sophistication. Yet, the interior of the Del Mano cafe is crowded with furniture, cluttered with books, handbills and posters with a shabby chic motif that’s more shabby than chic. You can barely get to the counter to order. The setting certainly doesn’t match the sleek, refined salon I was expecting.

Coffee:
Medium blend, smooth and served at a good temperature. The staff were unsure about what teas they sold and we couldn’t find them listed. In the end, someone worked out that they sold green tea. I was expecting that it would arrive in a pot or at the very least, in a tea infuser so a limp tea bag dangling was a bit of a let down. Medium coffee – $4.

Food:
Small selection of sweet offerings such as the Toasted Coconut Bread w Chocolate Butter $6.50 and the full range of the justifiably coveted Del Mano Brownies.

Service:
Order at counter, service at the table. Staff are friendly but flustered. We had to ask after our Coconut Bread and were told by the owner that he could smell it toasting so it must be on it’s way. A few minutes more and it did arrive but there was quite a gap between coffee delivery and the arrival of the bread. Given less than half the tables were full, I imagine there could be a wait or a few missed orders on a busy day.

Point of Difference:
Go there for the Brownies and the Brownies alone. At $5.50 each, they are 50c cheaper in the shop than they are online. One Brownie goes a long way and would easily feed 4 reasonable people or two little piggies at the end of a dinner party.