Orto Trading Co.

Orto Trading Co. has been on my 'to eat at' places for a very long time but I never made the journey there but finally when my friends suggested we catch up I knew exactly where to go. Orto is the Italian word for 'vegetable garden', which is the main theme to this homey cafe located in Surry Hills. Orto Trading Co. has this green theme running through the cafe, with pot plants scattered around the outdoor seating area, suspended bottles with flowers inside and different assortments of flowers adorning each table. The cafe has 2 sides which has large windows allowing a lot of natural light in (perfect lighting to take pictures :P). You get the sense of being in a greenhouse.

My friends and I arrived around 12:30pm and we were given both the breakfast and lunch menu, which meant we had more to choose from! We chose a table next to the kitchen, where you can see the chefs working hard to cook our meals. Both breakfast and lunch menus are extremely extensive and offer different varieties of combinations and flavours. We ended up ordering the hash (Birkshire ham, tomato, avocado, rocket, lemon, asparagus & poached egg), Southern fried chicken benni (Orto's english muffin and hollandaise) and the wagyu burger (Brioche, pickles, mozzarella, beetroot, tomato and polenta chips).

Mixed berry smoothie | $7.00

Green apple, cucumber, lime & mint | $7.00

The 'Green apple, cucumber, lime & mint' drink that I ordered was very refreshing and it did make me feel very healthy (I'm just making myself feel better for all the junk I have been eating lately :P). It was a little bit sour but this beverage would definitely be suitable for a hot summer day.

Hash. | Birkshire ham, tomato, avocado, rocket, lemon, asparagus & poached egg (gf) | $16.00

Before ordering I was contemplating whether to order the hash or the southern fried chicken benni (pictured below) and I obviously went for the hash which I sort of regret after trying some of my friends chicken benni. The hash was very crunchy and tasted like a premium hashbrown from McDonalds (which I love :P). The overall dish was very fresh and once again I felt very healthy eating this. There wasn't anything spectacular about it but it was surprisingly quite filling and there was a very generous amount of rocket, that I didn't even finish it all.

Southern fried chicken benni. | Orto's english muffin and hollandaise (v options) | $18.00

My friend was nice enough to let me try some of her southern fried chicken benni- I like the innovative twist to the classic eggs benedict. The hollandaise sauce was subtle, it was not too tangy like some hollandaise I have eaten before. The fried chicken had a crispy outer coat and the chicken was tender and juicy. 

Wagyu burger. | Brioche, pickles, mozzarella, beetroot, tomato and polenta chips | $18.00

I also got to try a bit of my friend's wagyu beef- it was a bit chewy but it was packed with flavour! She really enjoyed it but found it hard to eat, she had to deconstruct it :P The polenta chips were not really on my hit list, I think these polenta chips had cheese in it which it made it very overpowering and quite difficult to stomach down.
Overall, I'm very happy that I finally got to dine at Orto Trading Co. Everything from the food, service, ambiance and decor was perfect. The staff were extremely well mannered and constantly checked up on us to make sure everything was ok. Orto Trading Co. is a perfect place to unwind and to hang out with friends. They also open for dinner which I will definitely be back to try!
A big thanks to my good friends, Lisa and Selma for helping me with taking some of the pictures! :)

Happy eating x