the canopy

as you first walk in, the canopy looks like a set from a school play, carved out trees and birds spray painted silver, but there is something charming about the place. smack bang in the middle of the city, opposite the famous hyde park, makes thisplacegreat for people watching if you find yourself sitting under the shady trees outside. i've come here a few times now for breakfast, lunch and dinner and every time it has been a pleasant experience, it's what i like to call "a bit of an all rounder" no matter what time of the day you go, there is always something on the menu you feel like. eggs, sandwiches, pizza, pasta, steak, chicken, veggies. it is not wow food ( you would think it was for the price), but it's decent sized and has a lot of flavour. they usually have great market fish specials and a solid wine list. i guess you could say this is my regular, the restaurant i go to when i want to go out

this review was for april 2016 when we bought a groupon deal for brekky on our visit to sydney. upon arrival, theplacewas quite busy outside where queues of people waiting for their takeaway coffees but quiet inside. service was good and so was food. we were able to get coffee or freshly squeezed juice with our brekky.

the canopy is a relaxedplacethat's very popular on friday nights. the atmosphere is friendly and the staff take the time to chat with customers - without overdoing it either.

we were amazed with the entertainment the canopy has on friday nights - julian the magician. this guy is good, really good. he did some incredible card tricks. we kept wondering "how did he do that?"

we started our meal with a couple of entrees. prosciutto wrapped mozzarella – oven baked with extra olive oil topped with rocket and served with sourdough and we also had sizzling garlic prawns – garlic, chilli, white wine, onion and olive oil served sizzling with sourdough.

2nd time here, 3/5 classic cafe, nothing surprising or eye catching. the food tasted mediocre. the good part about the canopy (positive ratings)= food serving size and the customer service from the waitress and waiters. they were extremely quick, responsive and enthusiastic. kept theplaceclean and tidy. the cons= both times, the food took a while to come out. indeed it was very busy both times visiting but the food should not take that long for its quality. recommend only if you are planning to sit for a long time to talk, chill and possibly having a small meeting.

this is my go-to morning coffeeplacewhen i'm working at this end of town but this is the first time i've been for lunch and its as good as my morning coffee. i had the salmon nicoise, which was really delicious and fresh. other dishes on the table were the prawn linguine and the super impressive club sandwich (yes, food envy). the service was friendly, the only let down is that the meals were a little slow to come out - for a weekday lunch you want to be in and out in under an hour.

located opposite museum station, the canopy restaurant has some delicious cocktail and dinner options. with both indoor and outdoor seating the restaurant can accommodate small or large groups.

for starters we had the chinese five spice calamari which was well seasoned and had a good amount of chili. mains were a difficult choice with a good range of pizzas, pastas and other options such as salmon, steak and confit duck. i was pleasantly surprised by the variation on the menu. we went for the mushroom and asparagus risotto and the atlantic salmon fillet with vegetables. both meals were a generous serving and were presented beautifully. the roast veggies and reduction matched the crispy skin salmon and was extremely filling. the crispy skinned barramundi with garlic prawns and quinoa salad will most certainly be a choice for next time. the mains will set you back about $30 and the pizza and pasta options are in the $20 range. thisplaceis so central, has accommodating staff and with a menu that has something for everyone, it is definitely worth a visit

one of the best spot in the cbd for a restaurant and they obviously capitalize on that, however the food is not always up to standard when you consider the price. when you  talking about coffee they definitely find the right spot but for the price they are charging for a main, like the sirlion, i would expect a bit better, the potatoes side where not that good and the portion of the steak was minimal. again you pay for theplaceand the service was quick and nice, so overall not too bad but not fantastic either.

i think thisplaceis just normal cafe with restaurant price which is obviously overpriced. perhaps the location is the drive of the high price. the confit duck i ordered was really dry and i was not convinced they even really confit it cause it supposed to be melt in your mouth if you do it properly but unfortunately mine was dry and taste a bit bland so i did not enjoy my meal at all. the crispy barramundi from the other table looked good but i am not sure how is the taste

had dinner with a friend using a our deal voucher. we arrived on friday night but unfortunately our booking was not registered in their diary. still, they were happy to accommodate us at a busy time. the food was beautiful! we had two entrees that we shared and then my friend and i had separate mains. we also had a glass of wine as part of the deal. by the time we got our mains, the restaurant had cleared out and we established that it was a popular eating spot for people attending the theatre. all in all, a goodplaceand i will return.

on our travels to museum station we noticed thisplacewas open so decided to stop and have breakfast.. lucky we did stop cause i was satisfied with my meal.. wanted to try something different so chose the dukkah roast pumpkin salad.. fresh, light and poached eggs were cooked to perfection! wasn't sure how a poached egg would go with roast pumpkin but the flavours all round complemented each other... enjoyed the coffee with my breakfast that i had to have another to go!

had breakfast here and the food was average. i love baked eggs but the baked eggs from thisplacewas pretty bland and disappointing, and the poached eggs was alright. nothing spectacular.

the chai latte was lovely but it was overall a mediocre experience, so i don't think i'd revisit anytime soon.

i love this place. so convenient, next to hyde park, and still serving lunch til quite late. food has always been good, i had dinner here one time a few months ago before a show and it was spectacular - my companion had the salmon and was raving about it. had a pizza for a late lunch most recently and was less keen on the pizza, but it was good - just nothing special. ambience is surprisingly good, especially for being so cbd-central. even outside, the tables are nice and solid, and the pavement is so wide that you're back from the road. great with our dog. staff are always friendly and courteous, and bathroom is clean and well appointed. my current favouriteplacein sydney cbd.

greatplaceto hang out with friends for breakfast. loved the menu, lots of options even gluten free available. the coffee is the best and made just how i like it. they also have a coffee cart out the front which is how i found the canopy.
will definitely come back.

thisplacelooked promising, however, as soon as i entered, the service by the main waitress was a little unfriendly.

this improved with others being more generous with their manner.

the decor could be so much more, cleaver design, executed very amateurishly.

the menu was broad and contained nothing innovative except for the truffle poached egg item with mushrooms and spinach.. this could have been very high quality, except they used less than adequate ingredients and a hollandaise sauce that overwhelmed the 'truffle'. the use of a standard muffins added to the inadequacy of the experience.

the coffee was high quality.

the establishment serves alcohol, which generally isn't a good sign for a pimped up cafe.

the same name sake coffee cart outside was very busy and seemed to have many frequent and regular customers. this probably confused me into thinking the main cafe was just as impressive.

wrong.

handy location.

the top line: the canopy is a greatplaceto hang out after work in the city, to catch up with friends or to have a family dinner. we loved the casual-fine setting, simple menu, attentive and helpful staff and the meat… we loved the meat here!!! (also hear they do great brunches as well!! so i can’t wait to try brunch there one day)