The Food Project: Health Freak Café Ellenbrook

Back in December, before the Christmas madness took hold, I was invited to the opening day event for Health Freak Café in Ellenbrook. As you may know, I’m a huge fan of Health Freak so I was super excited to come along and check out the latest addition to their family.

Now Ellenbrook isn’t normally my first choice when I’m looking to head out for brekky or lunch, but at only 20km from the CBD it’s a rapidly growing suburb with lots of families, so it’s the perfect spot for a healthy café. It also happens to be where one of my best friends lives, so this was just the excuse I needed to pop out for a late brekky with her and her two young girls.

We were met with a friendly greeting as we walked in the door that was characteristic of our experience here – the staff were all welcoming, approachable, helpful and excited to be part of the venue, which was really refreshing to see. The space was nice and big, combining the signature Health Freak orange accents with lots of black, pops of greenery and huge windows that ensured it was light, bright and welcoming.

There was lots happening on opening day, and it was great to see so many people come out to support the local community during the event. From face painting and an awesome play area for the kids (Ellenbrook has the largest Little Freaks play area to date, with games, toys, books and huge chalk boards), to giveaways and games with the hit 292 crew, with support from Rok Kombucha, 24/ Power Fitness Ellenbrook and Brazil Fitness Apparel, the atmosphere was buzzing.

I ordered a fresh coconut ice tea, which had Rooibos tea poured over coconut water with orange and mint. The tea flavour was a bit stronger than I was expecting, but the coconut was delicious. As we made it to the café just in time to choose from the breakfast menu, I decided to go with the vegan pumpkin spiced pancakes with salted caramel sauce. First up, I have to say that pumpkin spice is such an underrated flavour! These were super tasty, especially the little pieces of cooked apple that were packed with flavour. The pancakes were not only vegan but also gluten and refined-sugar free, and really tasty considering they clocked in at under 400 calories! They did taste healthier than traditional pancakes, but were the perfect way to treat myself without a calorie binge, and they left me feeling full but not bloated or weighed down.

Image via Health Freak Cafe on Instagram

My friend ordered a coffee, which was met with approval, and a protein breakfast burger. The burger looked great – a gluten free bun loaded with seeds sandwiched an organic lean beef patty, smashed avocado, bacon, fried egg, haloumi, sliced tomato, roasted capsicum sauce and salad greens – and hit the spot for a burger craving. Again, it was a much healthier version of the typical takeaway food many people are used to – think less grease and more nutritional value!

My friend’s daughter was unfortunately not super keen on the matcha pancakes with organic homemade Nutella sauce and Cocowhip from the Little Freaks menu (but to be fair I’m not a fan of match either so I don’t blame her!) but was happy colouring away in the brand new colouring books brought to our table by the super friendly staff.

The dessert cabinet looked amazing, so I grabbed a piece of raw Snickers cake to takeaway for dessert. It was nutty and tasty, but could have done with a bit more chocolate. My friend told me the raw peanut butter cup she got was a standout, so I’ll have to try one of them next time!

All up it was a fantastic morning out – we left feeling full and satisfied, knowing we had made a healthy choice to set ourselves up for the day. The opening day atmosphere was brilliant, the venue looked great, and most importantly the staff were wonderful; I look forward to going back to see how they are all getting along and feel confident that the service will be just as good a few months on.

With breakfast, lunch and even dinner on select nights, and everything from steak to smoothie bowls, coffee, juice and guilt free desserts, Health Freak Café Ellenbrook has something for everyone – vegans, vegetarians and gluten free included!

A massive thank you to Bek for inviting me and to the Ellenbrook crew for making this such a successful event.

The final verdict: This is healthy food that makes you happy. With wonderful staff, a funky fitout and loads of space for the kids to play, Health Freak Cafe is the perfect addition to Ellenbrook’s main street.

Health Freak Cafe Ellenbrook

Protein Breakfast Burger

Little Freaks play area

Matcha pancakes

Raw cakes and slices

Fresh coconut iced tea

Protein breakfast burger

Greenery

Health Freak Cafe meenu

Health Freak Café Ellenbrook – 42 Main Street, Ellenbrook

Open 7 days a week, from 8am to 4pm, (8:30pm on Thurs/Fri)

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*I was invited to the opening day in exchange for my review. All opinions are my own. (I somehow lost half my photos from this day so have used a Health Freak Cafe photo of the pumpkin spiced pancakes for illustration purposes.)