JULIET ATE HERE | receipt no. 10 — Cam’s Kiosk, Abbotsford Convent
JULIET ATE HERE | receipt no. 10
Cam’s Kiosk, Abbotsford Convent
(An ode to warm light, whipped butter, and a tiramisu with a story)
Adventure Friday took us to Cam’s Kiosk, not the famed pasta night everyone talks about, but a regular Cam’s dinner. We have had breakfast there many times, but dinner had always eluded us. This time we booked early and the only option left was two seats at the bar. Perfect.
The walk through the Abbotsford Convent on a cold winter night feels like heading into nowhere. From the outside Cam’s is unassuming, almost hidden. But the best places do not need to shout. If it is good, people will find it, the stories travel.
Inside, Cam’s glowed against the dark. Light projections danced across the courtyard walls, and through the windows you could see a room alive with art and chatter. Lamps swayed with every chair pulled in excitement. Sam noticed them and laughed, “I love how the lamps shake when people get excited.” Later he added, “the lighting is beautiful.”
The crowd was pure Fitzroy: neutral tones of brown, black, blue, white. We blended right in. Jazz bounced over the murmur of conversation, the kind of room where you instantly want to stay.
At the bar we asked Riley to surprise us with a drink and explained Adventure Friday. He suggested one on the spot: gin, limoncello, simple syrup, mint. We called it The Riley.
The order:
Caraway butter, sourdough
Smoked mackerel, kipfler, sour cream, lemon
Mushroom medley, taleggio, pangrattato
Spaghetti Napoli, buffalo mozzarella, oregano
Orecchiette, pork and fennel, cavolo nero, peas, confit garlic, lemon
Green beans, bagna cauda, parmigiano reggiano
Ramona’s tiramisu
At Cam’s you feel fed. Enough bread to start, and enough left to mop your plate clean, scarpetta. The whipped butter made us talk about recreating it. The mushrooms were so good I declared we should cook them more at home. Sam replied, “Good song request.” The spaghetti Napoli, as promised, was divine. Every plate was emptied, sauces wiped.
When Ramona’s tiramisu arrived, we had to ask who she was. A staff member explained: “Ramona Angelica, she’s an anthropologist. A friend of our old head chef Julie, now at Julie’s. One of the most stylish people you will ever meet. It’s her family recipe.” The tiramisu was rich and thick, more mousse than air. Delicious.
Cam’s feels like friendship stitched into a room: staff who are friends, customers who feel part of it, everyone in on the warmth. It is the kind of place you leave full, not just with food.
Total: $195.03
Nowhere to somewhere: The convent walk, cold air, hidden glow.
Lamps that dance: Swaying with chairs, excitement in the room.
A drink gets a name: The Riley, citrus and mint, born at the bar.
Scarpetta: Plates wiped clean, fed in full.