On Tuesdays I make an appearance in the office. If I have to. Under sufferance. Despite the fact that it wastes my time (a 2 hour commute each way) and lowers productivity for the company (at the office I do my hours and no more since I have to commute home). But I was there, anyway.

There is one thing that seems to be common to a lot of people who work in North Sydney... raving about Bourke Street Bakery.

That bakery is not on Bourke Street - in fact there isn't a Bourke Street in North Sydney - and until relatively recently it had been operating out of a hole in the wall in Brett Whitley Place down the street and around the corner. So what gives with the name? Well, 20 years ago there was a little bakery on the corner of Bourke Street and Devonshire Street in Sydney's inner city suburb of Surry Hills. Since then it has become a franchise and "Bourke Street Bakery" is no more located on Bourke Street than Kentucky Fried Chicken (yes, I know that's not its official name any more) is located only in Louisville.

I had tried one of their coffees a couple of years back, and it was good enough. For some reason I haven't tried their pastries which is what the aforementioned reputation is based on. (Possibly because on the days that I don't go to the office I work out for at least an hour per day before work and don't want to undo that for a nice but unnecessary sweet treat.)

I thought of them when deciding on a target for my "in the city" photo op, though. Unfortunately this is a sign that my phojo (photographic mojo) is still a bit off. I used the 40-150, but couldn't get enough distance to keep the image sharp all the way through. Stopping down a bit may have helped but this was already at a relatively sluggish 1/25th of a second. Also I hadn't factored in that there are still butt-ugly concrete barriers in front of the store which are as photogenic as the Berlin Wall. (They're probably left over from when Victoria Cross Metro station was being built behind me.)

Anyway, since they provided me with some sensor fodder today I thought it only fair that I try one of their coffees later that morning. (My usual place makes quite nice, creamy coffees but they have a strange idea of what the word "large" means.) I didn't recognise any of the people as being from the old store. The coffee was... not the worst I've ever had (hey, I'm not in Paris at the moment, after all), but... it was very watery, and not very rich in flavour, and... well, at least it really was a large size, there's that.

I suppose I should at least try one of the pastries next time I'm there to see if the reputation really is deserved, but I can wait.