citizens all day

I have to confess that my understanding of Australian cuisine doesn’t venture much past Men at Work’s Number 1 track (circa 1983) “Down Under” where Colin Hay sang of a Vegemite sandwich. So the opening of Citizens All Day, a self-professed Australian-inspired cafe, was intriguing. Unfortunately, a quick perusal of the menu did not reveal Aussie specialties featuring witchetty grubs, roasted wombat, meat pies, shark biscuits, or crocodile Dunn Deelightfully well. However, the menu does feature delicious Australian pub food such as chook parmy, fish and chips, avocado toast, flat whites, and, wait, what is this? “The Vegemite Experience.” Sounds promising…

Citizens started in New York City as a breakfast-brunch kinda place. Austin is the third outpost beyond the original in Chelsea and ones in Soho (New York) and Montrose (Houston). But Austin is the first to go all day, hence our Citizens extra appendage. The space is bright, cheery, and comfy, replacing the aisles of Foxtrot with booths and tables. Excited, we jumped in within their first week of opening, a no-no for food reviewing, but things were already running like a well-oiled grease pit with only a few squeaks here and there.

The breakfasts we’ve tried have been darn good. The Bride tried and thoroughly enjoyed the Famous Smashed Avo (avocado tossed with feta, lime, cilantro on top of thick cut multigrain toast and garnished with pickled onion, radish, pumpkin seeds and beetroot hummus; $16.5 + $2.5 for poached egg [but The Bride got fried {I’m referring to eggs here, not mimosas….}]). As she said, “Avacado toast will never change your life, but I would definitely get this again.” I went with the Cheddar Biscuit Brekkie Sandwich (scrambled eggs, cheddar cheese, thick cut bacon, and house-made tomato chutney on a fresh baked cheddar-chive biscuit served with season greens; $16.5) and it was solid. On another visit to break my fast, I gobbled the Blueberry & Coconut Bircher Muesli (overnight coconut milk soaked oats, blueberries and agave topped with blueberry compote, seasonal fruit and toasted almonds; $12.75), and it was delightful and not like anything I had eaten before.

Citizens offers brunches until 4pm upon which the place closes and then reopens at 6pm for the “all day” part. Our first visit was promising. To start things off, I enjoyed the tasty Blueberry Jam Sour (Hendricks or Titos [I Tito’d], Aperol, blueberry, compote, orange bitters, lemon, and egg white; $13) while The Bride imbibed a Golden Hour (whipped orange juice, Tito’s, and Aperol; $14). Both were divine with The Bride describing hers as an Adult Orange Julius [circa 1983 mall culture]). For an appetizer, we devoured the Spicy Shrimp Toast (grilled shrimp, Cajun chili butter, green onion, sourdough; $15). This shrimp-on-the-barbie dish was Deelightful and had me begging for a piece of sopping bread (it was all for research my dear etiquetticians).

For mains, The Bride chose the Harissa Chicken Bowl (grilled Harissa chicken, couscous, roasted vegetables, pomegranate, kale, herbs, medjool dates, pistachio, and balsamic vinaigrette garnished with Greek yogurt, za’atar, and lemon; $17.5) while I braved the Double Brisket Burger (with Vermont cheddar cheese, tomato, lettuce, sweet and spicy pickles, and Citizens special sauce on a Martins seeded potato bun, served with chicken salted fries; $17.25). The Bride adored her bowl, although she would have preferred breast instead of thighs. The brisket burger was, well, Pharr to Midland, a bit skimpy and a bit dry for the Texas locale (go try the competition at Black Gold).

And finally, there’s “The Vegemite Experience” (Vegemite on a cheddar biscuit with butter, with cheese, and with smashed avocado; $8). I half expected a burly larrikin to emerge from the kitchen with rubber gloves, give me a wink, and say, with a thick Aussie accent, “Follow me out back.” Instead, polite staff presented me with a large, quartered biscuit with two quarters adorned with butter and Vegemite, one with cheddar cheese and vegemite, and one with guac and Vegemite. And it’s decent. I wondered about the guac and cheddar versions, but they work really well, the Vegemite adding a dark, tasty shadow to the main flavors.

All in all Citizens All Day is a great addition to the neighborhood. Bright, cheery, and well executed, it’s a great way to wake up to the down under and carry the dinkum vibes through the dinny (or tea) hours.

Citizens All Day; 4818 Burnet Rd, Austin TX, 78756; (512) 243-8836