Once upon a time, West Ryde

Once Upon A Time is a charming little cafe in West Ryde.

When you live in suburbia, new cafes/restaurants opening up like Once Upon a Time are exciting. With a small line of eateries opening up on West Parade in West Ryde, I was eagerly awaiting the opening of Once Upon a time.


As you enter, you will see lots of wooden looking furniture and country-looking furnishings like a giant wooden wheel. I order the big breakfast (top photo, $18) which includes bacon, eggs, chorizo, grilled cherry tomato, mushroom, hash brown and lightly toasted sourdough served in a small pan.

Each component was layered on top of one another which made it a bit hard to eat. However each component was well cooked. The toast was a bit lightly toasted for my liking but is typical of many Asian run cafes. My eating partner comments that the portions seem a bit small but I agree compared to the portions at Element 6. I ordered the daily special of baked eggs ($16, pictured below). It was a delightful small portion of eggs, cherry tomatoes, feta, spinach leaves and cranberry relish, accompanied with lightly toasted toast. I thought the mesh of flavours and textures was beautiful. I agreed with my eating partner that I thought the portion was a tad small and wanted the toast to be toasted for longer but I still enjoyed the meal.

With longer opening hours  (7am to 10pm, except Sunday where they open at 8am) and a new menu with all day breakfast - I have no doubt that Once Upon a Time will be successful in West Ryde. Check it out.

Prices: Roughly $20 per person

Location: 8 West Parade, West Ryde

Summary: Lisa's Rating: 

Food: 7/10 for casual dining
Customer Service: 7/10
Atmosphere: 8/10
Value: 7/10