So what's your favourite... Cafe?

Why the attack on mechanics?

Funny how you’ve blown in here straight away defending your precious Tilleys.

It’s interesting that several other people have expressed the opinion that the service there is rather crap.

Does everyone else need to have run a cafe to express an opinion on the (woeful) level of customer service provided by one?

West_Kambah_4eva, its great to see that CIT is teaching mechanics to use computers these days, maybe if Tilleys is not your thing you should stay in West Kambah for your “mug o chinos”.
When you open a cafe, keep it open for 20+ and serve thousands of people every week , then log back on and give us a valid opinion.

The Italian Bakery at Southlands – next to where Bruno’s has just moved in. Reasonable coffee, _great_ bakery stuff, good service, and *cheap*. They also do truffles…

Double Shot at Deakin Shops is great- friendly staff, great coffees (with proper crema..thank god!) and delicious yummies like savoury breakfast muffins..mmm

Cafe Jem at Narrabundah Shops (the sunny side)

mmmmmm free wireless internet… wish there were more cafes that had that…

In fact, if Esen had that, it would be perfect. I can just imagine ordering my smoothie and checking email while I wait for my friends to get there for eggs bene (or florentine, for me).

I do like Starbucks.

Have to admit im a Frap girl… Gimme Starbucks anyday so I can walk around the City in peace.

Anywhere else have great, prob better Frappacino’s ???

I would like to say thanks for the compliment! I always thought I was good looking, but having that third party assessment has really made my day!

I’m at Tosolini’s at least three mornings a week and some arvo’s for a wine. My order is remembered in the morning and the afternoon so I really can’t complain!

be-enticed is near the cash converters on the main road.

loui’s – only place in canberra for coffee.

that said, tossers is always good (dunno wot you people on about, service always – well usually – ok)

never liked gus’s, bland and slow; talking about service AND menu!

and i also second sfolgia’s at dickson. mmmmmm….

must say, though, i find the cafe culture in canberra has lessened in the past decade – used to while away many wonderful hours in any number of cafes but loui’s is only open in silly (work) hours and tossers has lost some charm. gods too far away now and i always found the prices as rich as the desserts. still hunting for a great breakfast that doesn’t cost as much as lunch.

the coffe place near where the boardroom used to be in belcos does ok coffee… they don’t burn it and it sits in that perfect temperature range that yanks would say was cold.

where is it ?

Belconnen??? you could always go for be-enticed, good coffee, quick service, they even open the door for you if their quick enough.

dfat have a pretty good staff cafe.

tuesday is sushi day.

Personally I’m spending a lot of time at The Front in Lyneham.

The coffee is erratic at best and there’s no food but there is art, and atmosphere, and a dog who will ask you to throw sticks for it, and free wireless internet.

Oh and friendly service, and the clientelle is largely made up of the editors of indie news outlets.

Queen Vic, you must be one of the beautiful people that warrant recognition/acknowledgement by Tosser’s waiters. I’ll admit to having a soft spot for their eggs bennedict, but polite and friendly the staff aint (well to me anyway)

When I’m in the office I’m in Kingston – which, despite first appearences actually dosn’t have that much to offer by way of cafes – in the sense that just because you’ve got an esspresso machine on an arrangement with a coffee distributor and a two hour ‘how to’ lesson, dosn’t make you a ‘cafe’ … anyway, given that in my view most coofee served in Kingston is on a similar level (ie. not that flash), I go for The Kingston Grind, simply because they have table service that’s quick, efficient and they dont have a problem with you simply wanting black coffee and a glass of water (instead of ordering some mediocre dish as offered by every other sh@t hole in Green Square). If I want to eat somthing, its the Silo – book or go early if you want a table. Coffee is passable, the short order dishes are interesting if nothing else and they usually have at least one decent wine by the glass.

I have found service at tosolini’s to be exceedingly slow and the food was either too bland or too salty. A few of my friends have had similar indpendant instances.

I can’t believe no one has suggested Tosolini’s in Bailey’s Corner. They have FANTASTIC staff who always greet you with a smile and a hello, great coffee and some nice wines for after hours… try the antipasto plate – you will be there forever!

bonfire makes me thirsty and anxious for a smoke.

any place that makes me stand at a counter and order, then wait for it to be poured into a cup and handed to me, in exchange for 4 or 5 dollsars is NOT a cafe.

a cafe is a place where you can sit down, have your order taken, light up a cool refreshing laramie and read proust, while your bean is steamed and cajoled into releasing its essence, then carried to your table by a waitron.

The service i had a Cream on my one visit there was crap. There was no way they could even blame a busy cafe, cause it wasnt.

“…the comment was, on balance, informative enough to justify publication…”

Thanks johnboy, you know, you get a bad rap, but I know you’re really just a chilled out entertainer

Cafe Danman every saturday morning – awesome bacon egg and hashbrown muffin stacks with the best lavazza gold this side of Ngunnawal – always quiet and intimate – pet friendly and no loud obnoxious patrons.

Oh and I always seem to meet people I know there 🙂

What about Far From The Madding Crowd in Woden – yummy breakfasts mon-fri and sunday.

It’s a moderation filter.

In this case the over worked and not at all paid admin made a decision that the comment was, on balance, informative enough to justify publication while too much trouble to clean up.

Constant work goes into making you lot’s foul mouthed, occasionally gibbering, and incompetently linking comments somewhat comprehensible.

~trying to get a fucking order in and pick up coffees ~ Tilley’s – wake the fuck up

What happened to the swear jar ?

I think Essen’s always good value. Bite to Eat at Chifley is great. Sakeena’s at Coolo – not glamerous, Coffee alright, but homecooked deserty things terrific – and say hello to lovely always-smiling Maria. Short Black at Deakin ok

Bah, if you’re going to Queanbeyan ignore the Central. The megameals used to be pretty good but, alas, no more. No, go a few doors down to the Star Q deli, next to the noodle place. They do excellent coffee, a decent steak, some kickarse pizzas and a rather nice house red.

Yes Silo, their tarts taste like cardboard.

Can’t believe nobody’s mentioned Silo.

It’s fairly small and always crowded but has a cool atmosphere, good coffee, and the best bread and cheese ever eaten in Canberra. I’ve never been a cafe-dweller but love the genuine gourmet products that Silo offers.

And the Lebanese place in Yarralumla is pretty cool – the pides are awesome and it’s nice and spacious, and not too busy.

But in Civic, I quite like Cream – I’m a bit sick of Essen and Gus’, and feel I ought to avoid Milk and Honey because of the way they used to underpay their illegal immigrant staff. Antigo is another option but it’s a fair way away and is nothing special.

Cafe Esen does great smoothies and I love the all day brekky. And if they’re too busy, Gus’ is nice too.

Although these days, I’m more likely to go to Bite to Eat in Chifley (great hot choc in a bowl) or Bruno’s at Mawson (decadent food!).

I’m not a regular, but I had a kick-crevasse coffee and a decent bread platter at Mecca in Manuka the other week.

Cafe Injoy at Gold Creek is great for kids. The ‘outdoor’ area is enclosed with shadecloth so the kiddies can’t run off, and they have little tables and chairs there too. Plus, they have a little playground. It’s always busy with mothers’ groups on weekday mornings.

Does anyone know a good cafe to take kids to in Belconnen?

If I’m at work (Deakin Offices), then either Bees & Co at Yarralumla or the Hughes bakery get my vote. Both make excellent coffee, although it can be hard to get a seat amongst the upper-crust crowd at Bees.

In the city, Milk & Honey do great coffee and fantastic desserts. Good location as well, and I find you get less sneers from the staff than you do at Essen.

If you’re in Dickson- try Sfoglia- the coffee is pretty good and so are the foccacias and cakes, and the guys that run it are very friendly.

Think Cafe Essen is hugely overrated and Gus’ a bit sad these days- so looking forward to trying out Cream.
Tilleys – I still like, but not for food and not Sundays at all!

I like Tilleys coffee and always try to take a token lesbian when going on weekends. Send the lesbian to order and they always manage to find the priority service queue.

Tilleys has some fantastic but unfortunately some ‘Gen Y’ rude and sullen staff, you wait up to 20 minutes to order a coffee at the bar, the music is often way too loud for conversation, it’s packed to the gills on a Sunday, and I can’t BELIEVE people pay those prices for food, Tilleys don’t WANT to serve food, that can be the only reason their breakfasts cost more than Stephanie’s in Melbourne – where you get table service and a starched white tablecloth!
That said, Tilleys has fantastic booths, the coffee is OK (though not what it used to be) and parking is free (and plentiful if you reckon you have permission from God to park in the Mormon carpark nearby).

“A Bite to Eat” wins my tick too.

Gods at the ANU is great, the staff are great. Coffee is excellent, Judy is lovely…

Where is Cream you say , where ever you want it to be  no in all seriousness it is located in the new Canberra centre North Quarter across the road from that horrid Gus’s café, next to the new Sammy’s kitchen

Where is Cream?

Tillys is way over rated, especially for the crap service, how can they have so many staff and yet you still need to go to the bar to order!

So true!

…………but yes the VIP opening is tomorrow night

Has been open for a month , and I have not left the place , staff is very attentive, food range is enormous, coffee is great , and the key is the owner is there every day from open to close

CREAM … 10/10

I didn’t think the official opening was til tomorrow night 😉

d’ya reckon the staff at tilleys get told by paulie to not smile else their pay will be docked…or that they are underpaid and stressed out (due to the crap serving system) and that’s why they never smile? it’s the eternal question for me.

CREAM … 10/10

Ralph is partial to the odd Chai and Soyaccino ;-P

well there you go, ‘sucks anal passage’ is allowable under the new censorship provisions installed here.

I also second A Bite to Eat.

i like hansel and gretels opposite belco cop shop.

gus’s is great.

tilleys sucks arse, and i totally agree with west kambah 4 eva on the reasons it sucks arse.

there is a cafe in green square i used to brunch at on occasion and quite liked the hotcakes with golden syrup. until i got ther real early one sunday am and they still had the deliveries at the door – including a plastic bakery rack of hotcakes direct from tip top or whoever makes the crumpets en masse.

two hotcakes for 8 bucks or whatever suddenly seemed a little excessive.

Also, Dobinson’s doesnt even deserve a mention, so I didn’t, and Coggin’s in Braddon has the best scrambled eggs in Canberra. I have researched this extensively. The. Best.

i just plain love Gus’.

Essen is a great café, it has good coffee and they know how to serve an affogato. They also have unquestionably the best cakes in Canberra. The food is well presented and cheap.

Gus’ also has good coffee and food, and the atmosphere is the same as Essen (ie cordial and fun) because it’s the same damn place. However there is a sharp divide with the cocaine lovin ladies and Gucci-lovin gays at Gus’ and the older, fatter, uglier intellectuals at Essen.

Who ever said Tilley’s is overrated is right. Waaaaaaaaaayyyy over rated. The service is non existant because they don’t do fuck all, cause the customer has to do it! I was there last weekend for breakfast and they had 9 staff behind the bar and 2 waiters. There were about 3 of the 9 on coffee. There were about 20 people waiting, very annoyed, trying to get a fucking order in and pick up coffees. It’s a joke. If they had 5 of those people waiting tables then maybe everyone could have relaxed and enjoyed the outdoor seating. I was still waiting for my coffees I’d ordered at the same time as my food when the food came out, I had not even had a chance to go back to the table and tell my friends I’d ordered. Tilley’s – wake the fuck up, people want to relax and talk outside. Your ordering system sucks anal passage. We’ll sit down, YOU COME TO US and take our order, k? That’s what you’re there for, to serve ME. A-kay.

Also, they have a big problems with dogs there, not only are there street dogs that will jump on tables and lick off plates, but wannabe boho losers think its ok to bring their mongoloid shi tzu into the place if they carry it. NO, it brings the filthrag closer to my face, and I don’t want shitstained dogs near me when I’m trying to eat, thanks. Leave your stupid dog at home. The food at Tilley’s is also overrated. Average at best, and very small servings. The quality of the cooking varies WILDLY between servings of the same dish.

Black Swan and the one next to it in Kingston are good, somewhat pricey but serve decent food and coffee. The seating can be annoying sometimes as there is no natural shade and in the summer its sucks if you don’t get an umbrella.

Milk and honey probably has the best food out of any of these, but also pricey. They have a good interior but only limited, skinny area for outdoor sitting, if that’s what you’re after. Nice juices, too.

The Oaks at Weston Park
Bees & Co at Yarralumla Shops

Valentino’s cafe. I like the food and the fact you sit out in Garema Place and watch the world go by.

Cafe Campagna on Northbourne for fantastic, cheap, authentic homecooked Italian food.

Da Cellini’s in Braddon used to be awesome for higher-end Italian cuisine, but they must’ve changed owners recently because the food and service are now utter shite.

Tillys is way over rated, especially for the crap service, how can they have so many staff and yet you still need to go to the bar to order!

I second The Gods at the ANU for consistently good coffee. Nice breakfast as well, featuring Cornucopia spinach bread, free-range eggs and tasty bacon. Mmmmm, bacon.

A Bite To Eat at Chifley shops. Laid back, great food, kid friendly, sunny courtyard, Zierholz on tap.

Central in Queanbo

Following on from Central’s theme of providing a large plate of crap food, I would assume you would just get a huge mug of instant?

i quite like Essen. Tilley’s does a good brekky but quite pricey I think.

We used to go to this place in Manuka for coffee and sticky date but they must have cottoned on and slowly started raising the prices of said consumables.

Whilst not strictly in Canberra, the Central in Queanbo is within striking distance of all Canberrans.

I have yet to have a coffee there though.

Caphs at Manuka and Gus’ in the city. Both have good atmosphere, ok coffee and friendly staff. I also love the breakfast at Melita in Queanbeyan.

Dobinsons, massive amounts of quality ingredients for cheap.

Plus they put cracked pepper on the fries, all class I tells ya.

The Kurrajong, not really a cafe but they do rather good coffee in nice quiet surroundings. A perfect place to read the paper over a coffee in the morning. They also have a great Jazz band every friday arvo.

Injoy at Gold Creek for a lazy weekend brunch/hangover recovery (although it can be very noisy with a pounding head)

Essen for the coffee, all-day-breakfast, and the way I always run into people I know there. The Gods if I want a decent coffee at ANU. Black Pepper is the only good cafe for a weekend breakfast in Belco.