It was a Saturday morning when I rose early, had a facial appointment, ran some errands and returned home at noon. To find Mr NQN fast asleep like a baby. The poor thing works terribly hard but I did think that rousing him at noon seemed a reasonable hour. “Wake up, it’s sunny and gorgeous today!” I exclaimed.
“Mmhummpummh” he muffled into his pillow.
An hour later we were driving across the bridge along with half of Sydney winding our way down Military Road into Sydney Road in Manly and then making our way to the promenade on the beach. The Pantry is situated in the old beach house and information centre and it is smack bang on the beach. As far as locations go, there really isn’t much better.
Reservations aren’t taken for breakfast but they are for lunch and dinner and it is open all afternoon. Service from our first waitress is on the cold side only reaching the warmth of a smile once or twice which seems unusual for Manly where service is usually very warm and friendly. Another waitress is friendlier and there seem to be plenty of waitstaff floating around but none to take our order.
Iced coffee $4
The astonishing thing about this place, and I hope it doesn’t change, is the prices. Considering the view which is rather priceless and you can practically smell the salt water on the surfers paddling out onto the waves, the prices are incredibly reasonable. We didn’t try Laporello’s iced coffee but he assures us that it was good and worth a repeat visit for.
Nduja $10
Nduja is that very popular now Calabrian spreadable sausage in a casing. We ask the first waitress to check that this is their nduja whereas we’ve mostly had the traditional nduja which spreads like pate or rillettes. This is a salami similar to the one I had at La Piadina made by Quattro Stelle and is the hard or piccante version without olive oil added to give it that spreadable consistency. The nduja piccante salami is very thinly sliced and very dry and spicy although not what I was craving for which is the spreadable nduja.
Pickled octopus $9
They had just sold out of their last order of the arancini balls so we go for the pickled octopus. Served cold and tender it evokes memories of Mediterranean holidays and beachside meals. It’s just the right side of vinegary and has a great texture without a hint of rubberiness.
Angus beef burger, onion jam, coleslaw & chips $18
The Angus beef burger comes out on a large soft bun with a juicy beef patty and sweet caramelised onion jam. The small side of coleslaw is also on the sweet side and yet the soft bun and juicy patty make this burger very satisfying. The chips are golden cooked French fries that are well salted.
Tagliatelle with calamari, chilli, butter & pangritata $22
The egg tagliatelle comes with a generous amount of tender calamari rings, a little chilli butter and a sprinkling of cheese and pangritata breadcrumbs. A squeeze of lemon and this is a good dish with lots of fresh flavours.
Zucchini flowers- Beer battered with pesto $12
Amaya and Tuulikki liked the serve of four stuffed zucchini flowers although we didn’t try any of this or their salad. This is a massive serve and very good given the price (in fact they wonder if they’ve accidentally got a double serve but the bill showed a single serve).
Grilled vine ripened tomato, bocconcini, basil pesto, olive tapenade, crostini $18
Banoffee pie $14
We dither over the chocolate fondue for two but Mr NQN is quite full as is everyone else. So we take the recommendation of the waitress and try the Bannoffee pie which is always a favourite. Also bananas are like gold nowadays so we try and sneak in banana wherever we can get it. This bannoffee pie is very tall and comes as a narrow slice with a thick biscuit layer, an inch of thick caramel, a thin layer of bananas and a serve of whipped cream. Each component was quite good but there was a bit too much caramel for the banana and cream. Still we did finish it off!
The promising sunny morning has morphed into a greyish, chilly afternoon now that the sun has retired behind the clouds. We look around and see that there are displays of food, fruit and vegetables and we ask whether they can be purchased. The dry and jarred goods can be purchased any time but the fresh vegetables and fruit can only be purchased on week days as they tend to use them all up over the busy weekends.
So tell me Dear Reader, do you get the urge to go out when it is sunny? And where do you head first?
The Pantry
Ocean Promenade, North Steyne, Manly, NSW (at the main beach end of the corso)
Tel: +61 (02)9977 0566
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51 Comments | Add your own
Hey NQN, that Banoffee pie looks good
but I see how much caramel there was – how does it compare to the Sopra one? That’s one of my favourites!
Clearly I need to go find some breakfast as the burger and banoffee pie are looking like a good start the day option
at the moment!
Love this post, but have not heard of most of the foods that you posted. Not sure I would eat Octopus but you make everything you post sound really appetizing. I love the beach and would love to go every day if I could. I do love sunny days and find wonderful things to do if it is the weekend or a vacation week, like going to a craft fair, or a wonderful drive into the mountains and seeking out waterfalls.
i now obtain my source of bananas from banana bread. bananas are too expensive for me!
Once again, my kind of place. Interesting food, but not overly fussy. Beautiful fried zucchini flowers, ditto for the grilled tomato (nice treatment–I may have to copy that one some day), and the pickled octopus made my mouth water. You do live in food paradise, don’t you?
ahh I love the sunshine!! Anywhere OUTDOORS is generally our destination!
I love a sunny day picnicing at the beach. Or dining with a view of the water.
Your meal looked delicious
perfect sunny day option.
Ever the health fanatic, I’d go for the zucchini flowers and the banoffee pie! When the sun is out, it sure does beckon – anywhere outside.
I believe the attitude of the waitstaff can alter the mood of your dining even if the food is good.I’ll think twice about going back to a restaurant if the waiter/waitress was cold. Maybe that’s just me
Love the sunshine and get depressed when the days are dull and grey!
Like the look of this cafe style menu but don’t like the look of the tagliatelle with calamari rings, what’s with that dish? On the other hand ,stuffed zucchini flowers are always a winner for me.
the burger looks delicious! so generous on the chips. Im in … just got to wait for a humid hot day for a ride on the ferry!
The sunshine does make me want to abandon the indoors (& the chores) & head outdoors to a nice park or to the beach. I was at Bondi Beach enjoying the Sculptures by the Sea when it suddenly became overcast & we got to our car just in time before the rain came pelting down.
What a perfect location….
looks Good, I cannot take my eye off those copper pots and that beef burger and the iced coffee…
Yes I am a bad greedy girl… I want it all….
Hm, the Pantry in your part of the world, and the Pantry in my part of the world are much different! Here, the Pantry, an often two can eat for one coupon, eatery, is much like a fast food diner.
The usual fare is liver & onions, steak & eggs, burgers, fish & chips, meat loaf & mashed potatoes, cake of the day, or pie & ice cream for dessert.
I doubt our Pantry has ever heard of, or know of, bocconcini, tapenade, & creme fraiche!
I see the service standards at Pantry are still sub-par. As a local it disappoints me so for it is a great location. Frustrating too that you can’t sit for coffee – you must eat! Must be doing a good trade if they can afford to turn people away outside dining times…especially during the week when they are NOT busy.
Wish we went here! I forgot about it until the ferry came into Manly and we were only there for Zumbo
Geez – those prices are fairly good. Love the look of the calamari.
I remember hearing about this place quite a few times, and seeing what is on offer, I would very definitely make a detour. I may not be much into hamburgers and chips, but the rest of the menu says ‘yes, please’, especially the beautifully succulent pickled octopus, the calamari pasta and the zucchini flowers! Yum
! I go out in virtually all weathers, especially late in the day, and much prefer a quiet walk in the parkland nearby with the sun on my face, wind in my hair and birdlife trilling just ‘pour moi’ 
!
I always look to going local on sunny days. All in favour of exploring, so long as the exploring is 10 minutes away from home
That sounds like banana flavoured caramel pie. Not a bad thing for caramel lovers!
oh i like the sound of Tagliatelle with calamari, chilli, butter & pangritata!! and the Banoffee pie! YUM!
‘cheese is milk’s leap towards immortality’
I am painting that on the wall of my kitchen.
Here in Lakeland FL, USA, we have to travel over 40 miles to go to the beach. Fl is the only state with a continuous coastline and some of the best beaches in the world.
I can’t believe you have time for facials!
Oh that all looks so delish. I really like the look of the tomato, bocconcini, etc.
As someone who ate an entire can of Nestle Top n Fill over the weekend (seriously, what is wrong with me? I just kept eating spoonfuls…) there can never be too much caramel! Never!
Ooooh, I wonder if anyone will ever use salted caramel in banoffee pie…
The pickled octopus looks amazing – a preparation I have not encountered before. Now I want to try!
oh the food looks fantastic! it’s great beach weather now isnt it
Mmmmmmmmmm this looks amazing – everything, from the zucchini flowers (LOVE!) to the burger and mmmmmmmmmmm the banoffee pie. Makes me wanna make banoffee pie again!
I don’t think I’ve seen calamari pasta so generous in calamari!
I was looking at The Pantry when I was trying to figure out where to have my birthday lunch on the weekend. I’m glad to see a post on it now, I almost went there based solely on the banoffee pie! I’ll have to make sure I go there now!
That octopus looks lovely, and it goes such a pretty colour too. Yumm..
Nice to see such reasonable prices and so close to the water.
Thanks for checking it out for us!
I want those tomatoes. We need a bit of sun in Venice right now.
omg did u both ate all of those?
The tomato plate looks like a very fancy smiley face!
I do like to get out when the sun is shining but generally it’s just for a walk or maybe to the park for a little bit. If we’re up the coast it’s straight to the beach.
where do I go for sun?
Well working here in Saudi Arabia – I just crave some rain!! LOL
Thinking Christmas and home bigtime.
That Banoffee Pie looks good enough to eat- must try that one on the family at Christmas.
My zucchini will be flowing and ginormous when I get home so maybe some of those stuffed flowers too.YUM.
Have a great weekend.
I think I can have that whole bowl of pickled occy to myself!
If it’s sunny and not too hot we head out to our favourite local cafe to sit outside with some nice food but if it’s really hot I like to stay at home in air conditioning!
What a pretty place the pantry looks to be. How funny with Mr NQN, I’m such a morning person I love to be up and about at soon as the sun rises.
Sculpture by the Sea is the best outdoor outing I’ve been in for a while! I love the idea of squid with pasta but serving it as rings is a bit weird, hard to fork up?
Oh yummy, that octopus. I’m there!
When it’s sunny, I would love to gather for a bbq.
Nduja looks awesome, never tried this before!
Mmm! A better looking Iced Coffee than what I had today at a cafe over in Double Bay. >__>;
I can do the burger, not the pickled octopus.
I don’t know how many times I’ve been to Manly, yet I’ve never seen The Pantry…then again, I wasn’t really looking for it, but it would’ve stuck out. I’ve been to the one in Brighton here in Vic though.
Wow, didn’t think it could get better after seeing that hamburger… but those calamari look incredible! Looks like a gorgeous meal for a sunny day
My favourite is heading to Wabi Sabi on Smith St in Melbourne – nothing like fresh sushi and sashimi followed by a spot of shopping in the sunshine!
Look like a delightful day you had. The Nduja looks really interesting
The octopus, pasta & zucchini flowers look delicious & so well priced! The Banoffee Pie looks nice but looks to be a lot more expensive than the savoury items.
Wahhhh I want to try the pickled octopus and the cold cuts. YUM! Oh zucchini fritters too (I’ve only tried once before). So much inspiration from food you are eating… Oh no wonder you have such a wide range of ideas!
The burger looks delicious.
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