Mr Brownstone, Ashburton by Bureaucrat

The Ashburton shopping strip has a nice village-y vibe to it.  I like how there are quite a lot of shops that are doing well along High Street Road (almost a rarity these days with the monolithic shopping centres taking business away from local shops), and it gives me warm and fuzzy inside when I see lots of locals out and about and supporting these local businesses.  High Street Road seems to be predominately visited by golden oldies who've lived in the area since black and white television first came to Australia and a burgeoning population of young families raising their kiddies in middle suburbia.

Once in a while, I like having a wander around Ashburton.  I particularly like fossicking around the collection of op shops, local bakeries and, boy, I used to really like the Cheesecake Shop when it was there (sadly, in recent times it had closed).  A few weekends ago, we found ourselves here and spotted a cafe that was new to us - a rather dapper looking Mr Brownstone.  The top hat caught my eye, as did the sort of hole-in-the-wall coffee counter it had.  Located right opposite the train station, it seemed that Mr Brownstone had picked a strategic location to hawk its caffeinated wares.

With a few tables out front, inside has a few more tables, but the place isn't big and seems to be geared towards the takeaway crowd.  The usual drinks are on offer, as are a few food items. My soy chai was reasonable - a good depth of flavour, frothy foam and a reasonable garnish of cinnamon.  

The Lawyer opted for a latte.

And, as I hadn't had breakfast, I got a ham and cheese croissant.  Nicely toasted, good amount of gooey cheese and ham.  It was reasonable for a local neighbourhood cafe, but nothing particularly memorable about it. 

Verdict

Food – 7

Ambiance – 7

Service – 7

Price – 7

Overall

A nice local cafe.  If I lived near by, it'd probably be my local coffee shop.  Certainly, it seems popular among the locals who were coming in to get their caffeine fix - many of them seemed to be regulars.

Address

Mr Brownstone

1a Welfare Parade

Ashburton 3147

Telephone: 9885 3030