Soda Cafe
Soda Café is owned and operated by Ben Andrijasevich and Bridget LeGrove, who bring with them a proven track record and wealth of experience in the hospitality industry.
Ben spent the last 6 years as Head Chef at the highly acclaimed Balthazar Wine Bar and Restaurant, and now his food style has made a comfortable transition from a relatively fine dining experience to that of a casual, yet upmarket café.
Drawing upon strong influences from his travel throughout Europe, in particular Morocco, Portugal and France, the menu reflects many of his trademark themes. The most obvious of these is his seemingly effortless ability to combine a number of carefully balanced flavours and textures, with the emphasis always on local, well-farmed produce.
Bridget runs front of house operations and leads a team of friendly, efficient and well-informed staff. Her philosophy towards service is a simple one… "It's all about anticipating needs… our customers should want for nothing."
The venue itself has seen some extensive changes since Ben and Bridget joined forces with partners Greg & Fleur Gleeson in December 2005.
The partnership brings with it a fresh and exciting approach to coastal dining, and alongside the consistency comes their ability to exceed the expectations of many.
A couple of years down the track, Soda has gained much recognition for its efforts, taking out the title of ‘Best Cafe” in the 2007 Restaurant & Catering Industry Awards. In addition to this, inclusion in Gourmet Traveller’s Australian Restaurant Guide two years running, further speaks in volumes of this great beachside cafe.
open: everyday from 7am, dinner wednesday to sunday
eatingWA Restaurant Reviews 9 reviews
November 23, 2009
- Food
The food and menu choice is brilliant. Would go so...
- The food and menu choice is brilliant. Would go so far as to say that this is one of the best places north of the CBD and surrounding areas. Went there for a b'day celebration and had the tasting plate (the beetroot arancini were brilliant), the grilled quail with lentils/pears/hazelnuts was just fantastic (even though I disliked the thought of lentils and was just going to push it aside) and the duck breast just delish! Unfortunately their entree menu far out rates the mains in terms of interest, so would recommend going two/three entrees for a decent sized meal - also adds to the flavour experience. Breakfast is okay, lacking some inspiration, but the bacon/egg sourdough toast goes down well after a walk on the beach.
- Service
Service can't be faulted at dinner time, really we...
- Service can't be faulted at dinner time, really well trained staff, very attentive and staff who know their wines. Breakfast is a bit more hectic and it's easy to wait around a long time for service if you're seated outside.
- Ambience
Okay. Interior decorating is cute, even though a b...
- Okay. Interior decorating is cute, even though a bit twee, except there's no where to sit in the restuarant with any level of intimacy. The back is too close to the kitchen (with lots of fluro lighting and the cake fridge) and the front only gets views of the highway! The only let down of the place.
- Overall
Good, we've gone back several times and it's alway...
- Good, we've gone back several times and it's always money well spent (in both senses!)
May 12, 2009
- Food
Food was great! Only one of us had an entree a ve...
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Food was great!
Only one of us had an entree a vegetable parve which said to be very good.
We had chrizo and Herb bread to start.
Three of us had the confit duck which although small was cooked very well, another had Calamari which was huge and tasty. Everything was of high quality.
Dessert was awesome!
two at the table had Churros which were very yummy and I shared the chocolate brownie which was small (really we should have had one each) and the other party had and affogato - Service
Service was almost faultless. My only complaint is...
- Service was almost faultless. My only complaint is they dont leave water on there tables but rather come around and fill up glasses when they look empty or almost.
- Ambience
We sat outside, once the resturant cleared out a l...
- We sat outside, once the resturant cleared out a little we were asked if we wanted to move indoors but since we had dressed for the cool night it was fine but the offer was appreciated. Was lovley sitting and listening to the waves crash on the beach
- Overall
We will come here again, no doubt about it....
- We will come here again, no doubt about it.
March 6, 2009
- Food
My husband and I went last Saturday for diner. We...
- My husband and I went last Saturday for diner. We ordered the Soda Plate for entree and it was delicious. I then had the fish of the day and my husband has the lamb. Both plates where delicious and quite big. After that, we shared the desert tasting plate which was amazingly beautiful and quite big. After all that beautiful food we needed to go for a walk!
- Service
The service was excellent. The staff were attentiv...
- The service was excellent. The staff were attentive but didn't push us although the restaurant was full.
- Ambience
Very good...
- Very good
- Overall
We had heard about Soda but it was our first visit...
- We had heard about Soda but it was our first visit and we will definitively go back and recommend it to our friends.
May 25, 2008
- Food
We dined here with friends 2 weeks ago, and I have...
- We dined here with friends 2 weeks ago, and I have to say I was very disappointed. The food was grossly over priced for what it was and to be honest, we all had trouble choosing something as nothing seemed to stand out. We shared a tasting plate for 4 for entree and although it was quite nice $54 for 4 tiny tastes each was extremely steep! For main 2 of us chose the fish and chips which was just that, some over cooked fish and some average chips with an aoli lime sauce, no salad etc for $28. We were both disappointed. Another guest chose the lamb and was utterly disappointed as it had been recommended to her from the waitress. Some lamb put on top of some pasta, no flavor, no sauce..boring at $32.
- Service
Service was pretty good actually. We did have to a...
- Service was pretty good actually. We did have to ask for our water to be filled twice but our wine glasses were always full (funny that!)
- Ambience
The ambience was great which again was why we were...
- The ambience was great which again was why we were so disappointed. The location right on the coast set a gorgeous focal point and the restaurant was cozy.
- Overall
Overall I was very disappointed. I had been lookin...
- Overall I was very disappointed. I had been looking forward to this for so long for my birthday dinner. The food was very very average and the prices were way over top for what it was. I would not recommend this place. Sorry!
January 5, 2008
- Food
- Service
- Ambience
- Overall
Visited Soda, New Years Day for an anniversary lun...
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Visited Soda, New Years Day for an anniversary lunch (couldnt find anything else open we had not tried).
Weather was hot and humid, but bearable in the open front setting.
I was pleasantly surprised to see a couple of unusual beers on the drinks list, and the wine list seemed less WA centric than most, we ordered a Rymill sparkling Red.
We ordered the tasting plate, followed by smoked duck and a very interesting strawberry, parmesan wafer and lamb (i think) entrees (as mains).
I thought the innovation of the food flavours was excellent; it seems a long time since we tasted anything new and exciting/unusual here in Perth.
Overall Service was friendly and prompt, despite the place being quite full, dishes arrived in under 30mins.
Overall a good experience and one I would recommend to others.
August 27, 2007
- Food
- Service
- Ambience
- Overall
Went to Soda for dinner on Sat night and it was gr...
- Went to Soda for dinner on Sat night and it was great!! A friend that was dining with us was allergic to seafood and the staff were very accommodating. The menu was mainly seafood with a few others thrown in - steak, duck and chicken dish. We started with fresh bread and sausage and then has main courses ( one duck, one calamari and two steak dishes). All the food was cooked perfectly and the side salad of rocket and parmesan was wonderful. We had a Cullens white which was superb!! We finished off the meal with desserts and coffee - I will definitely be going again. The only down side was it was very noisy.
January 22, 2007
- Food
- Service
- Ambience
- Overall
We went for a late Sunday lunch. All started...
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We went for a late Sunday lunch.
All started well. We were there around 3pm for lunch (we liked to take things easy on a Sunday) luckily they were still serving lunch, unlike so many places (particularly in Cott) that close the kitchen around 2pm.
We were greeted by friendly staff and given menus and a glass of water each. We ordered a smoothie each and one swordfish and one lamb. The smoothies arrived and were finished before our meals arrived.
The swordfish was beautiful with asparagus and corn mash. The lamb also came with corn mash and green beans. One ordering we were informed that the fish was served medium rare and was this ok or would we liked it different, we were happy with this. However we were not given a choice with the lamb. The lamb arrived and I would say it was medium rare, this was ok for me but i am sure some people would have preferred a choice.
During our meal we had to asked twice for a refill of our water, was a hot day so maybe a bottle on the table would have been better or keeping a closer eye on customers glasses. We ordered 2 beers part way through the meals. The beer was cold but the glasses they provided had not been chilled so we did not use them. I had ordered a Redback, there was no lemon with this which was a little disappointing as I like it with lemon especially on a hot day.
Overall the meals were good if not a little pricey for the venue. Not really a place I would rave about or advise against.
January 10, 2007
- Food
- Service
- Ambience
- Overall
About 10 of us popped in here for breakfast after...
- About 10 of us popped in here for breakfast after the beach one morning. Nice little cafe right near Mettams Pool. I ordered a bacon and egg sandwich which was delicious (I also didnt get charged for sweet chili sauce on the side which i had requested - which was a nice change!). Everyone seemed to enjoy their breakfast/cakes ordered. The coffee was okay but a little cool. The service was fast and friendly. I recommend this place for breakfast!
September 5, 2006
- Food
- Service
- Ambience
- Overall
My family and I went to this cafe as a present for...
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My family and I went to this cafe as a present for my dad for father’s day. Upon entry we were pleasantly surprised at the funky and up-market decor and we were quickly welcomed and seated by a friendly waitress. We'd brought with us a bottle of d'arenburgs the footbolt shiraz and she quickly opened the bottle but rather than offering a tasting first poured a full glass for my dad and then when i just asked for a taste she poured some wine in the glass, some on the table and some on me, whilst she apologised for the mistake it was her slightly nervous and jerky nature that caused the mistake and i can't help but think if she just calmed down a bit it wouldn't have happened.
After being told the specials for the day (which weren't memorised) we ordered a mezze plate for an entree and several different things for mains. The mezze plate was quick to come out but looked as if someone had just thrown everything together on the plate and then put some fetta on the top, and when you are trying to pick out pieces of bread and you have to shift everything on the plate to get to it it gets a little annoying.
The mains soon arrived and we ordered another bottle or wine to compliment the food, i ordered the confit duck with a potato mash and spiced beetroot and i'm sad to say that the beetroot was the best part of the dish, the duck was overcooked and stringy and the potato mash seemed out of place with the wonderfully spiced beetroot, two others at our table ordered the manna crab linguine and it was also average at best, the crab pieces were so small so as not to be seen and the pasta was dry and difficult to eat because of this, my dad ordered the fish of the day which was nicely done in a lemon butter sauce but again nothing that made you want to come back and eat it again.
Overall this meal was not that spectacular, the service was friendly but a little unprofessional and the ambience was quite good although you couldn't really see out onto the ocean over the wall next to the footpath over the road. If you live close by then this cafe would be fine for a weekly meal with prices for mains not going above $29, however if you have to travel to get to it (as we did) then you are definitely better of staying with favourite closer to home. :p
Contact Information (08) 9448 7472
- Soda Cafe 251 West Coast Drv, North Beach 6020
- (08) 9448 7472
- Visit Website
- View Map
- Modern Australian
- Cafe Dining
- Licensed
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