As at Dumbo and Sani,the Yuca menu is by chef Sam Terranova,who plucks ideas from all over to create an exciting multicultural menu.
Japanese eggs are served with fried spam and okonomiyaki garnishes. Rare roast beef comes with house-made artichoke focaccia,bone marrow butter and pistachio tapenade. Mushrooms are cooked with gochujang and eaten with spring onion pancake and kimchi. And handmade crab agnolotti is doused with saffron veloute.
Sweet surrender comes in the form of boozy brioche with dark caramel,honeycomb and chocolate fudge gelato. “We don’t do a classic big breakfast,” says Ghamire. “We’re about interesting flavours and a sophisticated daytime offering.”
“I walked around the neighbourhood and thought there was a place for something different.”
Hospokendra director Raju Ghimire
Espresso and pour-over coffee comes from local roasters Proud Mary and ONA,with single-origin specials sourced from bespoke suppliers.
In a cute touch,striped coffee cups are painted with secret messages that become visible when the last sip is taken. The slow reveal is on-theme for Yuca,another name for the root vegetable cassava.
“The word caught me,” says Ghimire. “It matches us:we want to develop our roots,grow quietly,not too showy,just be a good thing.”
Open Mon-Fri 7am-3pm,Sat-Sun 8am-3pm.