Cross Eatery is located in the back streets of Wynyard and if it weren't for the crowds lingering outside, I probably would have missed it. The entrance is lined by enormous glass windows and appears to be located inside a corporate building foyer - airy with a crisp white backdrop.
When entering, you're greeted by a vast display of food.. and queue if you wish to eat in:
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| Salads (from bottom left, clockwise): Tomato & Quinoa; Pickled Baby Eggplant; Raw Zucchini & Marinated Chickpeas; Peaches & Green Beans |
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| Sourdough Sandwiches: Roasted Portobello Mushroom; Aged Jamón Serrano; Maffra Cheddar |
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| Miso Pumpkin |
Everything looked so tempting! I was interested to see beetroot-cured salmon (I've previously seen it at the supermarkets; potential food fad?) on the menu here so I decided to try it out, along with two salads on offer:
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| Beetroot Cured Salmon Gravlax, served with Two Salads (Peaches & Green Beans; Pickled Baby Eggplant) ($16.50) |
I was surprised by how light and healthy the food was - it's a great contrast to the other fast food/cafe lunch food on offer in the area. However, the serving size was rather small (not enough of the good stuff) so I wasn't quite full by the end of it (cue visit to the Central Baking Depot!). The only thing I could fault against this was that there was only a few (2-3) tiny pieces of eggplant skin + minimal flesh in the Pickled Baby Eggplant salad, which to me does not justify the salad name.
My friend raved about their roasted cauliflower salad, which was unfortunately unavailable on the day I went :( so I will need to return another day.
If you seek to eat in, it might be wise to visit outside of peak (lunch) hours, as there is a long queue on weekdays. However, turnover is pretty quick so you may be lucky and get a coveted seat at one of the large wooden communal tables.
