It is always a delight to visit Hopes and Beans – Payneham’s (fairly new) restaurant and café, which serves some of the most delicious burgers and refreshing drinks. The owner is super friendly and made sure that everything that came out to our table was well cooked and satisfied our (extremely hungry) tummies, and boy, did the dishes deliver!

Adelaide Food Central was kindly invited back to Hopes and Beans and try their newest additions on the lunch menu. All food and drink was provided to the team free of charge.

The look of the restaurant is extremely open and inviting, with rustic furniture, mismatched chairs that provide each table with its own unique character, a little kiddie play area with ample toys, and a generally well-spaced dining area that can cater up to 20 people. The restaurant always smells amazing, as fresh food is being made in the kitchen (which is situated in the backroom, behind the counter).

Upon glancing through their menu, we instantly noticed that there was a small but tasteful variety of burgers and dishes that are available for their breakfast and lunch services.

The roasted baby potatoes with rosemary were an excellent dish to enjoy as an appetizer. The serve was small but enjoyable enough to be shared with 2-3 people, especially if ordering a burger as a meal (those burgers can really fill you up by themselves!). The potatoes weren’t overly oily but could’ve fared slightly better with less seasoning of salt.

The stuffed Portobello mushroom was the winner of today’s feast at Hopes and Beans. With a generously sized roasted Portobello mushroom that was stuffed with feta, walnuts, and parsley, and drizzled with a balsamic vinegar glaze, the flavours in this dish worked extremely well with each other. The saltiness from the feta counterbalanced with the sweetness brought about by the balsamic vinegar. Also, these flavours did not overpower the juiciness of the mushrooms, thereby letting us enjoy all the ingredients by themselves as well as when mixed together.

Served on the side of the Portobello mushroom was the side salad of the day – a mix of orange, fennel, red onion with snow pea tendrils & orange vinaigrette. I love how fresh and juicy the oranges were and how well they complemented in flavour with the juice of the red onion. The greens were, as always, extremely fresh and tasted delicious both with and without the vinaigrette.  While the two were separate dishes, they tasted absolutely divine when served together.

Next up was the Burger 190. This is a burger that is served with a semi-brioche burger bun, a patty with a mix of pork and beef, served with bacon, cheese, fried egg, caramelized onion, tomatoes, lettuce, and topped with homemade relish and aioli. This was another favourite among the dishes that we were served today. It’s a burger that you could enjoy either for breakfast or for lunch – it’s got all the best ingredients in it that makes it juicy and delectable. The patty was so tender and was cooked to the perfect consistency. The caramelized onion seemed to bring out the sweetness that was subtly placed within the brioche bun and it was one of the more manageable burgers, where all the contents of the burger could be enjoyed without a sloppy mess in the process.

After this, we were treated to the Superfood burger, which was made using a burger bun that was seasoned with turmeric (hence, the yellow appearance). This was the ultimate vegan-friendly burger that was packed with the healthiest of vegetables, such as kale pakora (kale that was deep-fried with a crispy outer layer), chunky sweet potato, spinach, and oven baked beetroot on dahl. Not being a massive fan of kale, I didn’t have much, but my partner-in crime found the kale to be delicious and well seasoned. The brioche bun had a subtle spicy taste, which worked well with the sweetness of the sweet potato, spinach and beetroot.

Finally, we had the Mushroom Burger which comes in a custom made spinach burger bun. Another vegan burger that is full of bright colours. The portobello mushroom is thick and juicy, and has the same diameter as the bun. The burger is also vegan friendly with plenty of natural sweetness from the caramelised onion, roasted pumpkin, roasted capsicum and house made relish. This burger still tasted good even though we were full!

Overall, I found my experience of lunching at Hopes and Beans ever so enjoyable and even better than my last visit there (which was pretty amazing back then, too). With the best service provided by the owner, the scrumptious tastings of food and drink, and a truly homely and inviting atmosphere in the heart of a lovely suburb like Payneham, you can be guaranteed with a memorable and fantastic dining service at Hopes and Beans.

Words by Fatema Sitabkhan

WHERE: 190 Payneham Rd, Evandale