Copo Cafe and Diner, Drummoyne

Copo Cafe and Diner is a charming restaurant in Drummoyne which is nearby the Bay Run. It's popular for its breakfasts but Copo Cafe and Diner is also open for dinner Thurs-Saturday for dinner so I drop by to check it out.

Copo Cafe and Diner has a South American flavour and dinner is intended to be shared in a group with share plates. I sip on a sneaky cocktail while I look at the menu and the artwork on the wall (is it unfinished?)

What a beautiful dish! I ordered the King Fish Cerviche ($22, above) which cured lemon King fish with capers, chilli. It tasted very fresh and light on the stomach. I think this is a very generous portion of King fish for $22 and is easily shared. It was probably missing a bit more lemon to bring the tang and zest that you normally expect in a cerviche.

For carb lovers, you should order the Cassava Chips with Avo ($14). Cassava is similar to potato but is native to South America. These chips were more like thick, crunchy fingers. They are probably twice as thick as your normal chips. The crunchy cassava coating is hard to resist so I eat a few of these.

When the Haloumi arrived, I had a slight food gasm. How gorgeous does this look? It's absolutely food porn.  The grilled haloumi ($16, above) was perfectly dressed with balsamic vinegar and the fig, asparagus and trimmings balanced out that cheesey taste. I love this dish, so simple but so tasty. It's my favourite of the night.

If you love a good pancake-like fritter then you should check out the Zucchini Fritters ($16). They taste very simple and homely. 

I also recommend ordering the Grilled Beef with puree of Cassava ($20, above). It's a dish that hit the spot as it was a cold night and the grilled meat in the puree of Cassava was very much comfort food. The meat was cooked medium and the puree was a lighter texture than potato. My friend said this was her favourite dish of the night.

If you have any stomach room, I tried the churros which resembled donut balls with a chocolate sauce (with a tinge of orange). It was delicious but I was very full by the end of the night!

Highlights: The food is lovely and homely. It's nice to share food with your friends. I loved the haloumi and it was my favourite although my friends were divided with one vote to the King Fish and the other on the Grilled beef with the Cassava. You can't lose if you get all three though.

Suggested Improvements: The staff were very friendly but service was slower. So I suggest you may have to take the Asian restaurant approach and flag down staff rather than waiting for them to come to you.

Price: $40 per person

Location: 135 Victoria Rd, Drummoyne

Opening Hours: 7am to 5pm Monday to Thursday. 7am to 10pm Thursday to Sunday

Summary: Lisa's Rating: Check it out if you want a nice restaurant for a casual dinner

Food: 8/10 for casual dining 

Customer Service: 6/10

Atmosphere: 7/10
Value: 8/10

Weekendfoodescapes dined as guests of Zomato. All words, photos and opinions are my own