RABBIT in the Moon Cafe. A catchy name that hails from an ancient Chinese folktale about a monkey, otter, jackal and rabbit who decide to practise charity on the day of the full moon, hoping great virtue will earn a great reward.

The monkey gathers fruit from the trees for an old man begging for food, the otter collects fish, while the jackal pilfers a lizard and a pot of milk-curd. Able only to gather grass the rabbit throws himself  on the old man’s fire, saying “eat me”.

Like all good folktales the rabbit survives, and the beggar turns out to be a powerful deity who rewards the self-sacrificing bunny by drawing his likeness on the moon for all to see.

And how does that relate to a North Fremantle cafe?

“It’s about helping other people, and hospitality is about helping people,” one of the very helpful waiters tells me.

The emergence of a cafe in the Northbank enclave has been a while coming — well over 10 years — but this one is worth the wait.

A friend and I met for brunch on a warm Saturday morning and opted for something sweet, for me the kaya waffle ($18) and my mate the coconut mango chia pudding ($16).

Then she saw a glorious, golden mound of eggs benedict ($17) go by and had to have one.

“Eyes bigger than belly,” I thought snippily. But nope, she managed the lot.

“I usually avoid [eggs benedict] because it’s a heart attack on a plate,” she says. “But this wasn’t heavy, the eggs were poached to perfection and the hollandaise sauce lovely and rich.”

My waffles blew me away, almost literally as the popping candy on the mascarpone exploded: “My food is holding a conversation in my head!” I cried. It was so loud my friend could hear it too.

Beautiful to look at with its fan of thinly sliced pear, kaya (coconut jam), and strawberries, and delicious on the tongue, it would have been worth it if my head had been blown off.

My mate’s pudding was of the nursery kind, a massive bowl of creamy banana and mango custard, with a well of chia seeds and a generous scattering of toasted walnuts for crunch. With great service, fantastic food and magnificent coffee this won’t be our last visit to Rabbit in the Moon.

Rabbit in the Moon
2 Doepel Street, North Fremantle
6420 0230
open Wed–Sun breakfast and lunch