Curator 23, Mount Waverley by Bureaucrat

Son of Tucci kicked off the revival of the sleepy Mount Waverley shopping village. With its contemporary menu and faux industrial decor, suburbanites with hipster yearnings no longer have to journey into inner city suburbs to get their smashed avo and single-origin espresso fix.

Hot on the heels of Son of Tucci is Curator 23. With its crisp white surfaces, pops of bright yellow and a cute little courtyard, it's another wonderful addition to the village. We visited Curator 23 for a weekday lunch and it was filled with a mix of golden oldies, professionals and young families. here's no doubt that the nearby high school kids would wander in for a sneaky coffee between classes - certainly, I would do the same!


The Lawyer chose the seafood pasta, which he loved.  A lovely pile of al dente pasta that had a generous amounts of meaty prawns, scallops and calamari. The dish had an added freshness with the sweet cherry tomatoes and wedge of lime.


I went for a delicious fusion-y plate of slow cooked pork belly with Asian coleslaw. The pork had an amazing crackling, while the meat itself had a beautiful fat-to-meat ration. Tender and flavoursome, this was! The hand-cut chips were also noteworthy - chunky, fluffy and crispy - these were awesome. The slaw was fresh and very zingy to counterbalance the delightful richness of the pork and the stodginess (but in a good way) of the chips. A very hearty serve - this was superb!


I also got a soy chai latte to go.

Verdict

We loved it.

Overall

Really great food here - the menu choices are much more varied and creative than what you'd expect at a suburban cafe.  Service is very friendly and prompt.  I think Curator 23 has yet to reach its first year and it's already a firm favourite among locals.

Find it at

Curator 23
307 Stephensons Road
Mount Waverley VIC 3149
Phone: (03) 9807 4532