When it comes to food, I am anything but adventurous. To me, there is nothing worse than paying X amount of dollars for a meal and not enjoying it. But, last Thursday I went out on a limb and reaped the rewards. I was out to lunch celebrating my father’s birthday. We decided to go to ‘porgie + Mr Jones,’ a hip café in Hawthorn. My family have raved about their smashed avocado dish for years, and often try to recreate it. I had only been to porgie + Mr Jones once, years ago for a quick coffee and honey joy. I loved the eclectic yet refined décor of the ex violineri workshop but, hadn’t had the chance to return.

Anyway, Thursday was freezing so I inhaled a generously sized hot chocolate on arrival. I then tossed up between poached eggs with a side of roasted tomato and mushrooms or Shakshuka. Poached eggs, tomato and mushroom is my go to order at any café. I figure it is a dish you can’t really stuff up, and breakfast is great any time of day. Shakshuka, however, is something I had never tried before. For those of you like me who have never come across the dish, it consists of two baked eggs with spiced tomato. Porgie + Mr Jones version also includes slow roasted red onion, silver beet and feta. My desire for warmth saw me gravitate towards the ‘spiced tomato’ but I was unsure if I was prepared to venture out of my comfort zone. I quickly trolled the internet for images and information on Shakshuka, hoping that this would help me make my decision.

You may think that I am being a tad dramatic, and I may very well be, but you simply don’t understand the bad luck I have when it comes to food. Typically, my meal is the last to arrive at the table or what does arrive isn’t what I ordered.  Then I will undoubtedly find something wrong with the dish, a hair, a bone or it will simply not be to my liking. This isn’t because I go to bad cafes or restaurants, because I don’t. Bad food luck just seems to follow me. My friends and family think I look for things to complain about. I am fussy I will give them that, but even they cannot deny that more often than not there is something wrong with my meal.

Now, back to the Shakshuka. The waiter had arrived to take our orders and I was still umming after everyone had placed their order. Then my dad said “come on, we’ll both try the Shakshuka.” Not wanting to disagree with the birthday boy I said okay, and was somewhat relieved that this decision had been taken out of my hands. The dish arrived in a timely manner and the presentation was lovely. The dish was served in a shallow, rustic green bowl. Some sort of thin pita bread accompanied it. The dish itself was lovely, to say the least. The tomatoes and egg melted in your mouth. There was a beautiful crumb scatter over the translucent eggs which provide a crunch. The spice was somewhat sweet and the pita was perfect to mop up all the juices. Added bonus, I didn’t find a hair. It was the perfect winters dish and I am desperate to return. At a reasonable $16.50 it was money well spent, especially because it wasn’t my money.

Though this experience was a pleasant surprise, I don’t think it has cured my trepidation towards new foods. It is however, a step in the right direction.