Eggs Benedict perfection. Photo: Kazuri Photography.
There is a new face, team and cafe at 28 Challis Street in Dickson, but Eighty/Twenty cafe owner Pranjal Thodupunuri has been connected to the space for years.
“I was great friends with the manager’s family back when this was Moo and Chick cafe, and I have a lot of history with this location,” she says.
After Moo and Chick, Nicky’s filled the gap for two years, becoming beloved for their coffee and fabulous bagel options. To its regulars, Nicky’s closure seemed sudden, but it had been in the works for months.
“The owners had been planning it for a while; they needed a change. They needed a new journey, a reset,” Pranjal says.
“The transition was slow and thoughtful behind the scenes,”
Pranjal has hospitality experience, but this is her first venture as a cafe owner, and she brings fresh, sunny energy to the role.
Her menu showcases Eighty/Twenty’s well-established offerings. An all‑day menu with a ‘something stunningly delicious, yet nutritious for everyone’ vibe. Think big, generous salad bowls, açai bowls, a burrito bowl, and a gorgeous grilled lime fish, all comfortably alongside risotto, linguine, burgers, eggs benny and French toast.
And yes, great coffee!
You can also go for a sticky chai on soy, a flavoured latte, or choose from a lineup of beguiling smoothies.
But the star of the show is always the açai bowl. It’s the best you’ll find – thick, creamy, and dense, with no added sugar and topped with the seed and nut granola of your dreams.
However, one section of the menu here at Dickson does not appear in any of the other Eighty/Twenty cafes: bagels!
Blueberry Bagel! Photo: Kazuri Photography
“We kept the bagels because customers loved them at Nicky’s and found them harder to source elsewhere,” Pranjel explains.
“Bagels are a bit different – they’re more American. We created our own Eighty/Twenty bagel recipe. It’s taken us a little while because we wanted to make sure our customers like them. We’re getting great feedback, and that makes us really happy.”
Bagel options range from sweet blueberry to several savoury options: chicken, smoked salmon, veggie, and a breakfast bagel.
On the day a group of us come for brunch, I deviate from my regular crunch bowl order. The Chermoula lamb bowl sounds irresistible. It comes out on a bed of beetroot hummus; a tangle of lush, pulled lamb, quinoa, toasted pinenuts, shiny cherry tomatoes and plump currants all tossed up in chermoula: the chimi churri of North Africa. Pungent herbs kissed with earthy spices, acerbic citrus and brought into a delicate paste. It is a taste sensation.
Some of our hot drinks. Photo: Kazuri Photography
We aren’t plate-sharing, but the French toast gets spoken about for days back at the office. And the blueberry bagel, too!
Later in the week, I go back in to grab a breakfast bagel. What a mouthful – it’s massive. A pleasingly chewy bagel holds the weight and substance of wide grilled bacon rashers, tender salty halloumi and two fried eggs with ease. Everything sits on a base of salad and avocado. I especially enjoy the sweet-sour strands of pickled beetroot relish; they balance the rich flavours.
It’s a fresh chapter for this much‑loved corner of Challis Street – and one absolutely worth biting into.
Eighty/Twenty Dickson is located at 28 Challis Street in Dickson. It is open Monday to Saturday from 6 am to 2:30 pm. On Sundays, it opens at 6:30 am. Follow Eighty /Twenty Dickson on Instagram.
