/ Reviews / Cafe
Sunflower
by Stephanie Sherrill
on Monday, April 06, 2009 12:00 AM
Every now and then while out-n-about I stumble across a new find or overlooked venue. My latest find is Sun Flower at the Highstreet Lofts. This outdoor venue known by the local business crowd for great coffee offers a perfect retreat for a laid back Spring evening.
Their classic menu contains all the typical café fare of pastas, salads, Panini's and pizza. It's all reasonably priced, anywhere between 25 to 45RMB. After a long day of shopping on an untypically warm day, my girlfriend and I settled into our chairs and perused the varied drink menu. Although the lychee martini looked quite tempting, it was the creamy frappes (40RMB) that won our vote. The mango frappe, perfectly sweet and artfully served with fresh mango pieces on top, was determined our favorite. We started with the Chicken Caesar Salad (38RMB). The lettuce was fresh, the chicken slices plentiful but the dressing was prepared with a little too much anchovy for our liking, but fine if you like a mild fishy taste.
After beginning with a healthy salad we felt it permissible to splurge with pizzas. We opted for the Roasted Beef (38RMB) and Margarita (28RMB) Pizzas. We are pleased to report that both pizzas were served with a delicious thick crispy crust, were made with quality pizza cheeses, and weren't too greasy. The roasted beef pizza had toppings of beef sausage, olives and mushrooms. Surprisingly the margarita pizza came with cherry tomatoes. But since the tomatoes were ripe and the flavor of the sauce, cheese and crust was tasty, we didn't mind.
At the conclusion of our meal we contemplated our days shopping successes while enjoying Hazelnut Lattes (25RMB). One sip of the lattes made it crystal clear to us why their local reputation for fine coffees was already well established.
The Bottom Line: Sunflower serves up good, inexpensive food in a street side outdoor venue.
