Lure on Latrobe

We had heard great things about this place from friends and decided to check it out. The coffee was quite small for a dine in scenario and we ended up waiting over an hour for our meals even though the staff assured us it wouldn’t be very long (on several occasions). When we did finally receive our meals there were items listed on the menu that we didn’t receive on our plates and we felt that the size was quite small compared to what we paid. There were other patrons who had not been waiting anywhere near the amount of time we had been waiting and staff offered them their coffees free of charge while we were left to go to the counter and list the things we had ordered as their «System had stopped functioning».

Despite some bad reviews we decided to give Lure on Latrobe book a table to celebrate a significant birthday. Being in retail I am annoyed with those reviews from the occasional person with an agenda that always seem to want to find something wrong, rather than all the good things about a business.
We had a table booked for 9am today for 8 people, unfortunately we were 5 minutes late, herding that many people (aged 85years to 3months) has it’s challenges. We waited for 5 minutes with people in front of us to be told that our booking had been crossed off! «Did we cancel» was the question, no!
What had obviously happened was a large group had come in a few minutes earlier without a booking and said yes to our booking, most businesses would have a procedure for checking bookings you would think? We could wait for 30 minutes and perhaps a table would be available, given the age of some of the party and time considerations we decided not to stand outside in the blustery wind and wait.
What I did like about Lure on Latrobe was the the very nice apologetic young staff member, who didn’t forget to smile, you could not blame her. After some consultation standing outside we decided to go into the Brisbane CBD.
Read my review re The Hilton Atrium, why we have kept away over 20 years is the great cafes around us, most have been great and our reviews is to tell friends. The Hilton was sensational, read our review, what efforts they went to make a special occasion even more special.
The owner has never responded to any social media reviews.

A charming setting in a leafy courtyard at the front of an old Queenslander, it is quite a haven even though it is on busy Latrobe Terrace. The food, coffee and service are reliably good, the staff are lovely. A Paddington gem.

Not really sure what all the hype is about. I had the veggie big breakfast and it was fine nothing special. I did not think the Service was that great either. Maybe it’s worth another chance but there are much better place to have breakfast in paddington.

Best salads I have had in Brisbane. Lure was the perfect shopping pit stop after a marathon shopping day in Paddington. The salad options were so good, it was hard to choose just two, so I went with 3!
Very charming location, great for small groups.
Only complaint is that they close «early» so get there during the proper lunch hour, late lunchers will miss out.

As a local to the area and someone who prides themselves on knowing what’s what in the food world, I was always a little embarrassed to admit I hadn’t gotten around to going to Lure. Lets be frank, people rave about Lure as if it were the next Elvis! I’ve heard tale after tale of long waits to be seated there and being the impatient soul I am, I didn’t want to go wait. So, a girlfriend and I wanted to catch up midweek in Paddington for lunch, she suggested Lure and I agreed.
For some unknown reason, the end of Latrobe Terrace that Lure is on seems a lot more trendy and up market to the opposite end, which I frequent. I felt almost inadequate walking in but once I found a seat in the shade I felt instantly calm. I very much enjoyed the atmosphere, it is what it is, nothing more and nothing less. You are surrounded by shabby, french provincial style furniture with a hint of contemporary pretentiousness embodied in the random additions of art and funky card holders. There are gorgeous plants that bring tranquility in the sunlight and help you ignore the sound of the road, all in all a lovely place to be.
I ordered a pot of Earl Grey tea, was brought out in about ten minutes, which came in a Aladdin’s lamp like teapot accompanied by a tiny glass bottle of milk, which made me almost squeak with glee when I saw it. The tea was lovely, gave me about three cups.
The lunch menu was hearty. Everything on it seems absolutely delicious but plentiful. I was admiring the lady opposite me, who was almost elbow deep in what must have been an ambrosia like Quinoa dish. However, I was in the mood for a light savoury lunch and besides chips, there was nothing that was basic and appealing to me. Fortunately, my friend had the same appetite as I, so we ventured over to the glass display at the counter.
The display case had about seven different sweets to chose from. All looking and sounding as tempting as the other. There was a good variety; muffins, tea cake, cheese cake, flour less chocolate cake, choc orange cake and a gluten free cake. I must admit I was disappointed that there were no savoury pastries, but as soon as I heard the words «Coconut» and «Cheesecake» in the same sentence, I cared for nothing except tasting that cheese cake!
As someone who is obsessed with coconut, it is often hard for me to be satisfied with the ratio of coconut in dishes. This cheesecake however, was packed with the undefinable deliciousness that is coconut! It was creamy and tasted like milky baby coconut. The base was crumbly and dark, nothing like the cheesecake bases we are used to. Needless to say, I loved that cake.
My friend had the same tea as I and the apple tea cake, she described the tea cake as «Soft and not too sweet» and «oh wow this is damn good» so I am assuming it was as good as my cheesecake was.
All in all, tea and cakes are lovely at Lure, for the items we paid less than $ 10 each. As for the infamous breakfast and lunch menu, I haven’t been in the lab yet, but hope to soon.

On a lovely morning, me and Jo headed towards Lure on Latrobe in Paddington, a lovely, rustic outdoor café right off the Old Paddo Post Office bus stop. My first impression was that their sign didn’t look to glamorous, but the place itself was just what I expected — a casual, laid-​back, garden-​y and homey place. Since it was Valentines Day, there were quite a number of people there, but it wasn’t crowded, so we chose a spot right in the center of the café. This may have been a mistake, as there were a lot of flies throughout our meal…
Jo had a skinny latte, and I, a chai latte — which ended up being a bit too sweet for me. We decided to share the Breakkie Burger (18.5) — or «burger» — and the Zucchini and Haloumi Fritters (16.5). The Breakkie burger, with bacon, an egg, tomato, avocado, and aoli, was pretty delicious — neither too salty, nor too oily, and the bread was nicely toasted. There was a generous amount of avocados (better be!), and the proportion of everything was good — I thought it a bit expensive to charge 18.5, even for Brisbane. The Zucchini and Haloumi Fritters turned out to be a bit of a disappointment, as they were bland, and I could barely taste anything — including the zucchini. They were also a bit soggy and looked overcooked. The tomato chili & capsicum relish, along with the jalapeño yogurt — sides to the fritters — were the highlight of the dish. Even then, the dish fell short of what I expected, especially for what I was paying. Alas, my search for a perfect café has again ended in disappointment…
I must mention, though, that their service was friendly. =)

Oh man. I really didn’t need another breakfast place in Paddington. And yet I’ve found one — and one that frankly might be winning my heart over the others.
There’s been quite a few businesses in this spot, but I’m pretty sure Lure is one of the first café’s (which makes bugger all sense as the shady decking out the front was made to be eaten on). If I’m wrong it’s been the first café that’s lured me in (so sorry I couldn’t resist) so I’m right in my mind anyway.
The food is as good as everyone says, the breakfast is OUTSTANDING and the only draw back is that everyone else knows it. If you drive (which, lets face it, we all do) give yourself plenty of time to find a park and be prepared to leg it up a brutal hill in a side street. Don’t be too dismayed by the big line out the door on weekends, it’s inevitable, it’s your fault for sleeping in, and it’s worth it for the food.

The things I love about Lure on Latrobe:
1) Position position position!
2) The breakfast menu
3) The lunch menu
4) The staff
5) The French Toast (oh my goodness, the brioche.)
What I don’t love:
1) Sucks getting a park
2) Sucks when it’s really busy there’s a longer wait for food
So really, the pro’s outweigh the cons by quite a few notches there, it’s definetely one of the better breakfast places to explore in Brisbane, in the beautiful and historic suburb of Paddington.

Lure is another one of those breakfast cafes situated in Paddington. Like many of them, it makes a great tasting breakfast. What sets this place apart is the amazingly serene feeling of this place thanks to its leafy surroundings. Even though you have not entered the day spa, you should instantly feel relaxed when you sit down at one of their dainty tables. Not only that, the service is also really good whenever I come here.
I discovered this place when a friend of mine who lives up the road, decided he would take my friend and I there. Upon entering the place, the waiter was very likable with his little jokes and managed to make us feel very comfortable. The breakfast food was also very well cooked, no overcooked eggs in sight! Lure is also a day spa and the café has done a good job in keeping that relaxing essence you would expect a day spa to have. We left feeling relaxed and very satisfied with our food.
I honestly can’t find a fault with Lure. I like a lot of the cafes in Paddington so it is hard to say if this one is my favourite but if I want somewhere that is relaxing rather than «funky and cool» (like Java lounge for example), I like to go to Lure.

One of my all-​time favourite breakfast joints, Lure is so popular during weekend trade that sometimes a line stretches out onto the footpath and snakes it way towards the guitar shop a few doors up the road.
It’s worth the wait though, especially when you’re a bit under the weather from the night before and in need of the solace that only an A-​grade café breaky can provide. Their muesli, marketed as ‘The Breaky Trifle’, is one of the best I’ve had. But I usually go for their big fried breakfast, with all the usual eggs, bacon, sausages and their delicious signature variant — the inimitable fried potato and feta balls. Like an upmarket hash brown, it’s a sphere of potato with a crispy fried surface, soft fluffy potato mash inside with flecks of melting feta and whispers of secret herbs and spices… I’m getting hungry just writing about it.
The service is also commendable. I’m not sure if he’s still there but the head waiter is/​was a movie star looking guy there with a quaint way of calling your girlfriend ‘darling heart’, but somehow it’s not at all threatening. Weird.

I was desperate by the time I found this café. It was 33 degrees, I’d been walking around for about 2 hours shopping, and, although ladies apparently don’t sweat, I had rivers of what looked like just that, running down my body. Nice.
Needless to say, I was so happy to stumble upon Lure, which provided me with a much-​needed shady sanctuary. I took a seat, kerbside, at a shabbily chic, wrought iron table under a huge umbrella, and seeing my glowing (and I don’t mean radiant) face the waitress immediately brought me a huge bottle of ice cold tap water, while I perused the menu.
I was starving but couldn’t face a huge meal, so I had salmon served on a bed of crisp, garden salad which was lightly dressed with a lovely vinaigrette. Often I find that garden salads are just a bit of limp, old lettuce, with some other seen-​better-​days veg thrown in, but this was delicious — everything was tasty, crunchy and seriously fresh.
And they also happily allowed me to go off-​piste with what I wanted in my fruit smoothie too (a little yoghurt instead of milk, and a different fruit combo than what was on offer)
I could have easily sat there lazing all day — it’s just that kind of place. I felt so comfortable and at home, it was like I was hanging out at a friend’s house. But my credit card was itching to be used in the nearby boutiques.
I can’t rate this highly enough as a relaxing lunch spot (I hear the breakfasts are beyond-​delicious too) — the staff are lovely, nothing is too much trouble and I was happy to pay the slightly above average prices.