Lashings of Bangalow Sweet Pork ham and a to-die-for bechamel sauce make this one to seek out.
There’s a croque craze going on. No, not the ugly-fashionable footwear. We’re talking the ugly-delicious sandwich.
And Mitch & Antler’s croque madame is particularly ugly, particularly delicious. Hence why co-owner Chewie Choo wonders aloud if his sandwich started the trend.
“After we launched it, I think it was about three or four months later that I seemed to start noticing them everywhere,” he says.
Perhaps. Perhaps not. Either way, Mitch & Antler’s variation on the classic French toasted sandwich proved so popular after the cafe’s opening in 2023 that Choo and his brother and co-owner Tze-Huei Choo then built an entire second venue, James & Antler (now sold), around the concept.
The creation of Mitch & Antler
Full-service cafes are hard in 2025. They’re expensive to staff and run, and if you’re going to pass some of that on to the diner, you need to make it worth their while.
“We wanted to do something different to the traditional breakfast menu items,” Chewie says. “Everyone can make, like, an eggs Benedict.”
So, Mitch & Antler’s menu is full of interesting variations on the classics, or the kind of thing you might’ve glimpsed on Instagram. Omurice with wagyu mince and edamame. Korokke with sautéed kale and poached eggs. Brown butter croffles. That kind of thing.
But the star item for the Mitchelton cafe since opening is its croque madame.
Mitch & Antler’s croque madame
You might think the croque madame (basically, a fancy French toastie) is the kind of thing you could make at home. And you’re probably right, but according to the Choos it would be messy and expensive.
“Everyone can do a croque but no one can do the leek bechamel we do,” Tze-Huei says. “And I don’t think most people are crazy enough to buy the amount of manchego cheese that we tend to shave over the top.”
What else goes into this thing? Two slices of Cordelia sourdough baked to Mitch & Antler’s specs, lashings of thick-cut smoked ham from Bangalow Sweet Pork, and Egmont cheese. Then, on top, goes the seeded mustard and leek bechamel, a fried egg, chives and the manchego – the whole thing given a dash of flame before it hits the plate.
Introducing Brisbane’s best hangover cure
On the plate, the croque is a fabulous slice (or two slices) of organised mess.
You might be tempted to tackle this thing with a knife and fork. Don’t bother.
Despite everything going on with this sandwich, it holds together well and the toasted Cordelia sourdough is soft on the inside, meaning you avoid any mouth-shreddings. It would almost be a one-hander but for the wibbly-wobbly fried egg on top.
Our favourite play is to order it takeaway to enjoy on a park bench somewhere nearby.
There’s a lot to love about this sandwich – the perfectly specced bread, the smokey goodness of the chunky ham, that gooey egg. Still, it’s the tangy bechamel that makes it, with the sweetness and texture of the leek and acidity of the mustard.
“It’s a bit like tomato adding acidity to a toasted sandwich,” Tze-Huei says. “That’s the mustard. Then, the leek adds that sweetness.”
It’s a sizeable sanger, but you’ll still destroy this thing within a few minutes, the only signs of its previous existence the yolk and bechamel left on your fingers.
Where to get it
Mitch & Antler’s croque madame is $21. You can get one at 62 Suez Street in Mitchelton. We recommend hitting it on the weekend to make the most of the croque’s truly magical hangover-curing properties.
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Matt Shea is Food and Culture Editor at Brisbane Times. He is a former editor and editor-at-large at Broadsheet Brisbane, and has written for Escape, Qantas Magazine, the Guardian, Jetstar Magazine and SilverKris, among many others.
