Lunch Hour: Exchange Coffee
In this edition of Lunch Hour, we travel to East End hot spot Exchange to grab its famous Wallace sandwich.
There are a few, inherently South Australian, East End delicacies.
Seeing Rundle Street shut off in the midst of Mad March. A pint and some hot chippies – when you can snag a table – outside at the Ex. Buying a pair of Django & Juliette boots on sale for half price at Miss Gladys Sym Choon.
But for the foodie minded East End goers, the Wallace sandwich at Exchange tops all.
And if you don’t regularly frequent to Ebenezer’s Exchange, let me explain some lore.
When Exchange founder and former owner Tom Roden was revamping the menu in the cafe’s early days – it opened in 2013 – he wanted to add a sandwich to the list of options.
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At the time, he asked a group of uni dental students who had become Exchange regulars for help in naming the soon-to-be prodigy.
They joked and said they should name it after a member of their friendship group.
“So, the sandwich became the Wallace, and the rest is history,” Tom told us in June 2023.
When Tom sold the Vardon business to PJ Tebyanian last year, we grilled Tom on whether this meant the Wallace would cease to exist.
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His response was: “I’ve made this hyperbolic statement in the past: it’s like if Exchange were to stop making Wallaces, it would be akin to Apple stopping selling iPhones, right?”
“It’s the iconic sandwich, and it would be mad to no longer offer the Wallace. So, the Wallace, will remain, I’m sure,” he says.
Look at the sandwich! This picture: Claudia Dichiera.
On top of its history, the sandwich is also a banging Lunch Hour feed.
The Wallace has avocado, chipotle aioli, roasted peppers, tomato, mojo verde with a choice of pancetta, halloumi or mushrooms.
I always opt for the pancetta, but how thoughtful to consider our vego and vegan friends.
It’s served on a large roll, which is a very important factor for me when dining out (I hate when I leave hungry after a paid meal).
I’d like to say I’m quite strict with my sandwich recs but this for me is a go-to.
What’s your favourite CBD Lunch Hour spot? Let me know.
Exchange Coffee is located at 12/18 Vardon Avenue, Adelaide and is open from Monday to Friday from 7am until 4pm, then Saturday and Sunday from 8am until 4pm.
Connect with the business on Instagram for more.