The Elevation & Gelato Messina, Parramatta

My original intention was to visit XS Espresso but upon arrival, I realised the Parramatta branch only served coffee and limited baked goods so I ended up walking down the road to The Elevation for brunch.

Outside of Cafe

Inside, the industrial/Scandi theme reigns supreme with pale wood and black metal, along with choice decor items including terrariums (one of the larger ones spans the length of the base kitchen cabinets!).

Inside Cafe

I ordered their Belgium dark hot chocolate, which was dusted in a floral pattern that matched their teaspoon:

Belgium Dark Hot Chocolate (R: $3.5; L: $4)

Interestingly, they serve onsen eggs (i.e. softly cooked eggs in flavourful soy broth), which I loved from KIN by US, so I was interested to see if they met expectations (FYI, they did!).

Ultimate Breakfast ($19) - Grilled Bacon, Grilled Chorizo,
Roasted Tomato, Confit Mushroom, Deep Fried Potato Gems,
and Eggs with Sourdough or Rye Toast;
Choice of Egg : Poached, Fried, Scrambled, Onsen
(this plate looks familiar... à la Kmart?)

This was most definitely the ultimate breakfast - cooked fresh to order, it most certainly didn't skimp on the serving portion - and satisfied my greasy food craving.

Food: ✰✰✰✰
Service: ✰✰✰
Atmosphere: ✰✰✰✰
Overall: ✰✰✰✰
Summary: Quiet Asian-fusion cafe

Gelato Messina

Outside Gelato Messina

Afterwards, I dropped by Gelato Messina, located next to XS Espresso, and tried their limited edition mango pancake cone, which I thought was disappointing given the (high) standards of Gelato Messina:

Mango Pancake Choc Top ($8) - White Chocolate Lined
Cone filled with Vanilla Cream, Mango Jellies and
Mango Sherbet Gelato dipped in Yellow White Chocolate
and sprinkled with Crispy Crepes

The choc top was sickly sweet and the flavours didn't quite resemble a typical mango pancake so I didn't finish it. I personally prefer ice cream over sorbet so this dessert probably wasn't the best choice for me. Their usual gelato range is pretty good with the few additional flavours that they promote each month and I usually stick to something jam-packed with chocolate and nuts. Better luck next time.

There is minimal seating outside the cafe, next to the road. Otherwise, You can walk down the road towards Parramatta River and sit in the nearby park area.

Food: ✰✰✰✰
Service: ✰✰✰
Atmosphere: ✰✰✰
Overall: ✰✰✰ 1/2
Summary: Unique gelato flavours