Witch's Cauldron

Posted by: Meow 30 | 22 February 2010, 7.30am

I went to witchs cauldron a few months ago and celebrated my mums 50th there. 30 people and the service was excellent. Not only can they accommodate large tables, the wait on food was very good as well considering the size of our group and it was on a saturday night. The scallops for entree was a big hit and the duck was absolutely sensational. Preferred it with the julienne veg instead of the mash they have now but the sauce was amazing. Recommend it to everyone, thanks witchs for making my mums birthday an exceptional night!!!!!!

Food:			Visit: Sun 21 February 2010 Mealtime: dinner
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Posted by: winniepoohs | 18 August 2009, 8.51am

Witch's has the BEST brekkie in Perth..and indeed even Sydney!!!! Have taken oodles of people there and EVERYONE comes away very impressed, returning themselves with their friends! The service is usually top notch and prompt. The prices favour more than comparably with other eateries I've been to too..and that would be more than just a few! Crisp white tablecloths whilst dining alfresco..just great! Whilst brekkie is superb, I do agree that dinner works out pretty pricey for what you get though! Pity!

Food:			Visit: Tue 18 August 2009 Mealtime: breakfast
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Posted by: Restaurantdiner | 13 April 2009, 6.36pm

I used to go to the Witches Cauldron frequently. Then the quality of the food started slipping, and the food coming out was not cooked properly. The final straw was several years ago when I took my girlfriend out to dinner. Her chicken was pink, and my garlic prawns were floury. Over priced and poorly cooked.
I rang them up to tell them that I would no longer be dining at the Witches Cauldron.
There are plenty of other restaurants around Subiaco with better service, better atmosphere, better chefs, better quality food.
I cannot be sure of the date that I last ate there, so I have dated it in late 2005, although that date is wrong.

Food:			Visit: Fri 14 October 2005 Mealtime: dinner
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Posted by: Alba Oz | 5 April 2009, 10.44pm

Poor service!
Food average!
This restaurant is living on its past reputation
Will not be going back.
Spend your money elsewhere.

Food:			Visit: Sun 5 April 2009 Mealtime: dinner
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Posted by: richos trans | 29 December 2008, 4.19pm

Witch's Cauldron is in my opinion not worthy of the prices it dares to charge people for mediocre food from small serves to overcooked seafood to meat that the Hogs Breath Cafe would snub their noses at, if you want to talk the talk try doing the rest.

Food:			Visit: Sat 27 December 2008 Mealtime: dinner
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Posted by: lawa | 17 December 2008, 1.56pm

Food was great, service was average. Atmosphere is very outdated.

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Posted by: pirki | 19 November 2008, 11.50pm

After hearing people go on and on about this place for years we went for dinner with friends, it was amazingly lame. The meal was salty and average; you pay $35-40 for a main and then need to buy salad or veg as well. The service was ordinary and the atmosphere was like a fast food take away place. To top it all off the bill was huge! we wont be going back again.

Food:			Visit: Sat 1 November 2008 Mealtime: dinner
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Posted by: mira1 | 3 November 2008, 10.36pm

I went to the Witch's Cauldron with a group of friends on Halloween night. Thought it would be a fun venue for that night and expected great things from this restaurant, with its reputation and the fact it'd been open since 1970 under the same ownership.

The first thing that hits you when you walk through the doors is the sheer size of the place, seems to be a big old converted house, a vast space of seemingly endless interconnecting rooms of different sizes. From the main entrance to our table was like 'journey to the centre of the earth', through rooms, around booths, various turns left and right, up some stairs until we eventually made it to our table. The next thing that hits you is the very basic and utilitarian and dated decor. Plain white walls, adorned with various amateur looking painting of witches, swirly red patterned carpet, 1980s beige padded chairs with gold trim. The food was just OK, good but very overpriced for what was, in essence, more akin to home-cooked comfort food than fine dining. I agree with the other reviewers that you need to order sides ($9.50 for veg or chips) with the mains. My Szechwan duck ($35.50) appeared with plum jus + 3 or 4 gooseberries. I was also astounded that the 'signature dish' garlic prawns main ($44.50) arrived on a skillet with no accompaniment - no bread, no rice, no warning from the waitstaff. On the plus side, the service was good at the start of the night anyway and the it wasn't too loud, unlike many restaurants in Perth - you could have a pleasant conversation without trying to compete with the background noise. The waitstaff were pleasant and attentive - but as with so many restaurants, as soon as it got busy, they staff seems to disappear. When we needed to order more drinks and then the bill had to go and seek them out.

I am completely mystified that so many people can like this place and that it has the reputation it does. Once again, I totally agree with the other reviewers - if I'm paying $35-50 for mains and also need to order sides at $9.50 each, I expect something special which unfortunately the Witch's Cauldron was unable to deliver.

Food:			Visit: Fri 31 October 2008 Mealtime: dinner
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Posted by: legion | 14 April 2008, 1.08pm

After hearing about the Witch's Cauldron on and off over the years, myself and some friends went there on Sunday night. After looking at the menu and thinking "well maybe the food is really good for the price they are charging" I was rather disappointed. There was lipstick on the "clean" glasses and the service was ok, but they couldn't manage to get all of our meals delivered at the same time and we had to ask were the last one was. The so called "famous" garlic prawns tasted precooked and the portions (aside from the rump steak) were on the small side.

Food:			Visit: Mon 14 April 2008 Mealtime: dinner
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Posted by: Hertz | 8 November 2007, 9.08pm

Unlike the other reviewers, I am only a young chap of 26 and wasn't born when apparently this restaurant was in its prime. However being a frequent diner out with friends, the family and most importantly the girlfriend, I gotta say I've always been very impressed with the overall feel, look and most importantly taste of the restaurant.

I have been there half a dozen times now or so, and not once been let down in one aspect, chilled wine, quick service (sometimes too quick!), fantastic meals, great atmosphere, clean toilets and just a nicely presented restaurant.

Only downfall is it is a little pricey for what you pay, but this isn't McDonalds or KFC, and the Witch's Cauldron can get away with charging a little bit more, as it has spent 30 years building a solid reputation as a quality dining experience.

P.S the garlic prawns are the best!

Food:			Visit: Fri 2 November 2007 Mealtime: dinner
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Posted by: gourmette | 18 February 2007, 2.47am

As a diner who was a regular at Witches 30 years ago when a group of us could hoe into a huge bowl of garlic prawns and bread and not feel we needed to take a mortage out to do it, it is disappointing to say the least to see the restaurant as it is today. The location is fantastic the ambiance promises so much but the food is definately only average. The steak I ordered was well cooked but arrived lukewarm with a very dry dollop of mashed potato and the only other garnish was a hard tomato half which was not even decently seasoned. At the very least for $35 one would expect a small salad garnish or a couple of green beans to dress up the plate. The garlic prawns though aromatic and sizzling are vastly overpriced at $41 a serve and again arrive without even a slice of bread or small serve of rice to soak up the sauce. I am sorry Witches... just because you have had a fabulous reputation for the last 20 years, you need to pick up your game. Faithful customers will only stay faithfull for so long!!

Food:			Visit: Sat 17 February 2007 Mealtime: dinner
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Posted by: Billy24 | 28 January 2007, 10.42am

As a long-time resident of Perth, I have been aware of this restaurant's excellent reputation, particularly the garlic prawns which have almost developed a cult status within the city. We dined in a large group and we enjoyed a nice highly personalised room upstairs which definitely suited the occasion. Upon entry however, we found the air conditioning and ventilation to be a little bit inadequate, which was made even noticeable due to it being an extremely warm evening.

We found the service to be good (not great), and the restaurant staff regularly checked up on our large group to ensure that we were always well looked after. Additionally, the kitchen staff did a good job in ensuring that our meals were not spaced to far apart which was a challenge considering the size of the group.

The general consensus was that the meals were not of the quality one would expect for both the price, ($28-$36 mains) and the reputation of the restaurant. The garlic prawns were reasonable, as were the steaks, but the portion sizes were not large and I would highly recommend ordering entrees and accompaniments to the mains, as the sides provided are either absent or inadequate. I had the dhufish which was quite nice, however a small jacket potato and half a tomato seemed hardly enhanced presentation of the dish. The deserts were well rated by almost all, as was the wine list, which included a good range of both mainstream and less well-known wines.

This terrace restaurant has a unique ambience that suits the menu and is well laid out to provide for groups of up to 20, however noise will be unlikely be a problem if one is seeking a quiet romantic meal. However, upon conclusion of our meal, there was a general feeling that the dining experience did not meet the high expectations of the guests nor the reasonably high prices, with a large portion of the group able to easily identify more favourable recent dining experiences elsewhere.

Food:			Visit: Sat 27 January 2007 Mealtime: dinner
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Posted by: Jo-1321 | 22 December 2006, 10.06am

Wow. After many years of being advised that you 'must' dine at Witches Cauldron, it was such a shame to be so disappointed. Obviously we should've visited in the '80s as it doesn't seem to have moved on from then. We could not fault the service, which was fantastic and the wine list was quite good and reasonably priced. However the quality and presentation of food certainly did not match the price or expectation. If you're looking for a 'gourmet' dining experience, this is not it.

Food:			Visit: Fri 22 December 2006 Mealtime: dinner
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Posted by: PPB | 21 November 2006, 7.12pm

The Witch's Cauldron is a Perth institution and was the first 'grown-up' restaurant I ate at as a child. It was a real treat. They are particularly famous for their garlic prawns.

However, the menu is stuck in a time warp. While I respect that many people love this restaurant because of the passe menu, the actual food and presentation is terrible. The meals are served with tasteless, pappy sauces and the presentation is terrible. It's a bit like eating a frozen meal, the first couple of bites or tolerable but after that, you really have to force yourself to finish it. I know this restaurant still turns over a high number of diners and it shows with the meals looking distinctly production line style.

The mains are $35 plus and for this price you could visit one of Subiaco's or West Perth's other premium restaurants and receive food of an exceptional standard. I know many Perthite's take their visiting interstate guests to the Witch's Cauldron but I would be too ashamed. Perth already suffers from the Dullsville tag without confirming it with lack lustre food from the Witch's Cauldron.

However the service at the Witch's Cauldron is good and the 80's style decor is cosy and different.

Food:			Visit: Sat 28 January 2006 Mealtime: dinner
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