Manfredi at Bells, Breakfast

Remember when we went to Bells?  Well after our enormous degustation dinner you wouldn’t think we would be wanting a huge breakfast but it’s amazing what a bit of sea-air in a country setting will do to your appetite.  Breakfast at Bells is served from 8am until 10am.

Outdoor dining on the verandah

Outdoor dining on the verandah

We sat on the verandah where there was plenty of warm sunshine and the smiling and friendly waitress filled our water glasses and brought over the morning’s newspaper.  Ella Fitzgerald music was playing softly in the background and the atmosphere was serene and peaceful.  The tables were set more casually than they had been the night before; gone were the blue water glasses and white paper covered the starched linen tablecloths.

Continental Buffet

Continental Buffet

The continental breakfast is served buffet-style while the hot breakfast is made to order.  The waitress asked us what hot beverage we would like to order and there is an extensive range of loose-leaf Pickwick teas as well as some fine specialty teas available however, Carl wanted to kickstart his day with a more aggressive caffeine shot and ordered a soy cappuccino.

Soy cappuccino

Soy cappuccino

We went inside to peruse the buffet and it was refreshing to see there was nothing sitting in bain-maries.  Hot food always tastes better if not left sitting in a warmer.  Everything is beautifully laid out and instead of being in one long line it is arranged in clusters around the dining room.  I was super-impressed with the amount of organic foods on offer including cereals.

Organic Cereals

Organic Cereals

As well as an impressive organic selection, there is so much available that’s house-made.  There were three varieties of house-made bread, house-made banana bread, bircher muesli and preserves like jams and marmalade.

House-made berry jam

House-made berry jam

I started with the bircher muesli that had plenty of grated apple in it and a pleasant crunch from the toasted hazelnuts.

Bircher Muesli

Bircher Muesli

Carl had the house-made yoghurt with stewed rhubarb that’s grown in the vegetable garden.  He loved the smoothness of the yoghurt and the sweet/tart combination of the rhubarb.

House-made yoghurt with rhubarb compote

House-made yoghurt with rhubarb compote

It would be a crime to leave without experiencing the made-to-order hot breakfast so a had a look through the menu.  All hot dishes are priced at $15.00 which I think is very reasonable for a 5-star boutique resort.   I ordered the grilled mushrooms with parsley puree, poached egg and polenta sourdough.  It was exciting to know the eggs come from the free-range chickens living on the property (there’s about 35 of them), and that the parsley is grown in the herb garden and that the polenta sourdough is made on the premises.

poached eggs

Grilled mushrooms with parsley puree and poached eggs on toasted polenta sourdough $15.00

The poached eggs were perfectly cooked and I loved the parsley puree – I’ll be trying that at home!

Carl was initially disappointed not to see Eggs Benedict on the menu as whenever we are anywhere, that is his preferred option!  However, all was not lost because he ordered the ‘Bells Breakfast’ which is two eggs anyway with smoked bacon, roast tomato, mushroom and herbs.  He chose fried eggs and put them on top of a slice of toasted seeded sourdough and had no complaints.

Bells Breakfast $15.00

Bells Breakfast $15.00

I couldn’t leave without trying the house-made marmalade so it was back up to the buffet again to toast the sourdough and then I slathered it with butter then scooped the marmalade onto the toast.  I love marmalade and this was a winner with plenty of chopped peel and some sweetness along with a hint of bitterness from the rind.

Pots of house-made marmalade

Pots of house-made marmalade

I hate to say it but I think Carl had not only the toasted sourdough with marmalade but also a few pastries!

Cultured butter, house-made sourdough and marmalade

Cultured butter, house-made sourdough and marmalade

After a relaxing read of the paper we were off for a wander around the resort – a gentle stroll after a leisurely breakfast is always a great way to move on from a meal.

Little jars of bircher muesli and yoghurt with rhubarb compote

Little jars of bircher muesli and yoghurt with rhubarb compote

Breakfast at Manfredi at Bells is available for in-house guests seven days a week.

Hotly Spiced and Crew enjoyed breakfast at Manfredi at Bells as guests of Brian and Karina Barry.

Bells at Killcare:  107 The Scenic Road, Killcare Heights NSW 2257

Ph:  61 2 4349 7000

Bells at Killcare

Bells at Killcare

Hotly Spiced and crew stayed as guests of Brian and Karina Barry.

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Comments

  1. I had a friend who always ordered eggs benny when going out for brunch as it was a chore to make for just one person. I’m glad Carl was able to find something else that he could enjoy. Everything looks so great that it’s hard to know where to start. And enjoying it in such wonderful surroundings …. there are piles of snow on the ground, slush in the alleys and more snow in our future. Canada, sometimes I don’t love you so much. 🙂

  2. What fun to eat in a place where so much is “house-made,” which makes the experience that much more unique and interesting. Sounds like a lovely retreat in every way.

  3. What a way to wake up in the morning! In a photo the other day I saw Carl wearing a shirt that said Bells. He did a bit of shopping too?

    I’d love to visit there one day and have dinner AND breakfast too.

  4. Every component of breakfast hete looks superb & very appetizing. It is bedtime over here & now, I am craving that breakfast with the fried egg in it,…deep Sigh.

  5. Oh my gosh, gorgeous! Would love that rhubarb with the house-made banana bread.

  6. Looks like such a peaceful place to enjoy breakfast 🙂

  7. Thats one thing I miss not living in a city, is the variety of food you can eat, in Rotorua organic food is never offered, and free range eggs, well the one place that made the effort offering free range etc went bust. Maybe a trip to Auckland or Wellington should be on the cards for the beginning of this year 🙂

  8. What a beautiful breakfast and a lovely spot in which to enjoy it! For some reason out of all the delicious options the yogurt and muesli really appeals to me the most. Probably because I haven’t been eating as well as I should during the Christmas holidays. It sounds healthy and refreshing. Lovely!

  9. Now that is a brilliant hotel buffet! House made, home grown, even the eggs are from the yard! You can’t get fresher!

  10. I’m not a big breakfast eater (my usual is a bowl of oatmeal with fresh fruit added). But there are plenty of foods offered on this buffet which look very appealing. And so nicely presented, too.

  11. We don’t often do a big breakfast, but it’s so nice every now and then. And I’d certainly take the opportunity to enjoy this! How nice to experience this. And how nice to share it with us so and make us hungry!

  12. So many great options, love all those cereals in the glass jars! Pretty breakfast!

  13. G’day! They say brekkie is the most important meal and with a nickname like FANG, I never miss, true!
    Yours and Carl’s brekkie looks simply delicious and I want to go there now too!
    Cheers! Joanne

  14. Oh how I love a good buffet breakfast but I agree, the hot food is much better made to order. That bircher museli looked very tasty.

  15. I do love a nice breakfast- when someone else makes it for me! This all looks very delicious, and I don’t blame Carl for going back for more 🙂

  16. I love a big breakfast – and I would love all the house made versions – I would have been very happy to have had your eggs too.

  17. Fantastic breakfast. That would have done me for a week of breakfasts. But I would have had to try a little of everything too. Great to see all that organic food.

  18. ooh ultimate indulgence! happy new year!

  19. Now that is my kind of breakfast buffet!! I love the row of different jams and marmalades. Plus your breakfast tartine looks absolutely lovely.

  20. Now, that’s a lovely way to start the day! I’d probably be stuck at the plate of homemade yogurt with rhubarb compote though.

  21. Everything looks wonderful, but I particularly like the looks and creativity of your hot egg dish, Charlie! Like you, I find the parsley puree intriguing and am bookmarking to try that when my parsley recovers from the deep freeze we’re having here!

  22. What a lovely and delicious way to start the day! Everything looks so mouth watering delicious.

  23. Don’t you just love hotel buffet breakfast 🙂 I love how you can get a little bit of everything I’m always one of those people who will get a small bowl of cereal, then followed by eggs, bacon and then maybe some pancakes or naughty things that they have to offer hehe

  24. How nice to see a breakfast that goes beyond the usual – that cereal selection is wonderful!

  25. I love the look of those mushrooms and poached eggs on toast!

  26. I love made to order breakfast, there is something about starting a morning with a fab breakfast, gets you ready for the day! It’s a beautiful place.

  27. What a reasonably priced breakfast at such a lovely resort! I’m so glad you had such beautiful weather too. Marmalade is my favourite too and I would not be able to resist trying some! It looks as if you’ve found a beautiful place to run away for a weekend to particularly after a hectic time of year! Oh how I miss the lovely weather you are having.

  28. Sounds just perfect, Charlie! I’m so glad you and Carl had such a lovely weekend away! xx

  29. What a nice breakfast! I would have been happy just with the continental breakfast items… That stewed rhubarb over yogurt looked so good! The hot breakfasts looked yummy, too. But I am a little too cheap to pay extra when you can get all that with the price of your room! 😉 xo

  30. I’m a breakfast lover and I don’t mind if someone ask me to go for breakfast for dinner. 🙂 This place has very nice breakfast!! It’s made with care and I can see it. Love seeing homemade goodies!

  31. Ah, the elusive hotel that doesn’t serve hot breakfasts out of bain-maries and hot-plates. You don’t see those often. Even a really nice place I stayed at in Stockholm did that and it’s just… *not good* at all! It’s even worse when they make scrambled eggs out of egg powder though. That’s just gross!

  32. Wow, what a great way to start the day!
    A home, we are all huge brunch fans and this buffet looks wonderful and very tempting.
    Love specially the cute Bircher Muesli

  33. Looks like a neat place!

  34. I haven’t been doing rounds in the blogosphere in awhile, but today I thought of dropping by at my favorite blogs just to say hello and to let you know im still around hahah.

    Happy New year to you! I hope 2014 brings more spicy stories and hot food 🙂 to share. See you around!
    Malou

  35. oh just look at all these wonderful options!! Looks like a cool place!

  36. So many great options! The parsley puree with the mushrooms sounds lovely. I hope you do try that at home–and blog about it!

  37. Can wait to have a bit more with coffee tomorrow.

  38. That looks like my kind of place! Eating outside sounds wonderful right now..

    (she looks out the window at the snow on the deck) sigh…

  39. Yes Kilcare is a great spot on the Central Coast, so quiet and out of the way

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