Cafe RONTO — Restaurant in New South Wales

It's a mediocre experience at its best. Don't get me wrong, the food was average, maybe, but because of the experience, I felt it was a complete waste of money!

We ordered 4 dishes, and I wanted some glasses to drink water. (The glasses were provided, but after 4 failed attempts, they arrived when we left.) The price was around $ 80 for food for three of us (two adults and a child), as we planned to order drinks later. There is a Sunday surcharge included as well.

Mediocre experience 1: The firat arrived after 20 mins of wait which was the waffle and ice cream for the kid(19.95 plus surhcarge) the waitress ran putting food on the table without even listening ( i was asking for cutlery and water- this was the second follow up) by the team i could find a waitress and get a cutlery off them ( there was no one on floor- and I had to chase them) the icecream I waffles had already flooded!!!! It was useless, as it was just a milkshake with waffles!

The second dish that arrived was the wrap, which was okay. The falafel was not crispy, but we can live with that - it was okay

Third was the worst- I had ordered the Truffle Benedict with poached eggs and mushrooms, which came about 45 minutes after I first ordered, and they came with soft-boiled eggs, so I had to return them for poached eggs.

Take 2: After 10 minutes of waiting, they gave me fish with pork belly (not the same I had ordered) and returned it.

Take 3: after another 15 minutes, I got another round of the order. The quality was pretty bad. The mushrooms were not done, eggs still not poached ( soft boiled) and the bread was drenched in oil, which was pretty bad ( see attached picture)

Overall, we felt Mecca's would have been faster; at least we would have known what we were getting and would have alleviated all the cases,.

BTW, dish 4 - carrot ake (which was in the display) never arrived. Go figure, after all this, and I cancelled the order at the end of our Sunday breakfast fiasco.

There were no apologies, no offer to refund - it's as if they didn't care, and that's the icing on the cake! That prompts me to conduct a review, as the owner is accountable for this business and its service. I genuinely hope (there have been quite a few complaints about service over the last few months) that the owner hears them and makes some changes for the betterment of his own business.

All in all, one of the worst experiences I've had - I wish I had a continental breakfast fast, where I was staying, but I still returned hungry and...

(4.5 stars) You can see the Ottolenghi effect—the championing of vegetables—in the breakfast dishes at Cafe RONTO. True to his time in the UK working under the famous Yottam Ottolenghi, Hungarian-born owner and chef, Gary Ronto, draws from diverse influences to enliven dishes rooted in Middle Eastern and Mediterranean traditions. Turkish eggs ($21) with springy fingers of Turkish toast sit on garlic and dill yoghurt with a double helping of pan-fried leafy greens. The dish is gently flavoured with smoky cumin, chilli butter, dukkah and herb oil, and very easy to enjoy on a hot day.

The same mix of pan-fried kale and spinach nestles under a dusting of Parmesan snow in the truffle Benedict ($21). With braised field mushrooms, shaved asparagus, two free-range poached eggs, and toast under a fluffy lemon Hollandaise accentuated with just the right amount of truffle oil for a savoury umami middle, this plate didn’t need the side of bacon ($4) we added. However the smoky bacon was so beautifully cooked, we scoffed it down regardless.

Baking is another strength of this Umina cafe, which opened back in March 2022. I only had room to try a shared cinnamon scroll ($5)—iced but they also had plain—and it was the best scroll I have had in years. I liked that it employed cinnamon not the more brash cassia as so many over-sweet and heavier scrolls seem to do. It suited well-made 7 Miles ‘The cat’s pyjamas’ coffees—a strong flat white ($5/regular) and a cappuccino ($4.50/regular)—making this a great spot for morning or...

Fair selection of food on the menu and Nice food - well presented, coffee not great though. Too many hard surfaces and sound bouncing off then makes it very noisy, not a pleasant place to sit unfortunately, at least they have some outdoor seating.

Response to Ronto comments :- unfortunately the Coffee was very bitter and not enjoyable for me, I'm no Barista and you'll know better than me but using good Coffee beans is only part of the process, this is only my opinion and I'm certainly not the authority on Coffee.

10.08.2025 My previous experience here was disappointing, but I decided to give it another try. Unfortunately, today's visit was even more frustrating. We ordered two coffees, a bacon and egg roll, and scrambled eggs on Turkish bread. The coffees arrived after about 15-20 minutes, but after waiting for over an hour, there was still no food. We checked with a staff member who apologized and said it was on its way. After another 15 minutes, with still no food, we decided to leave. We weren't the only ones—three other tables were in the same situation and also canceled their orders. What was most disappointing was the complete lack of an apology from the owner or staff when we canceled our food order. To make matters worse, we were still charged for the coffees, despite the incredibly poor service. The service today was disorganized and showed a clear disregard for customers. It's a shame, as this could be a great spot, but the service needs a...