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Best cafes in Crows Nest

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BREWMANCE leads this Crows Nest list for its latte art coffee and weekday hours from 6:30am. The picks below cover Willoughby Road, Clarke Street and Alexander Street, with breakfast, lunch, dinner and specialty coffee among them. Each one earns its place with a different kind of visit.

Quick picks in Crows Nest

  • Best for a weekday coffee with latte art: BREWMANCE, with personalised latte art and an early start.
  • Best for a big breakfast on a budget: Emoji Cafe, where the portions are generous.
  • Best for a long brunch or a date night: Double Cross Dining Room, the only pick open for dinner.
  • Best for a takeaway lunch bowl: SALT & JAM, whose bowls travel well.
  • Best for beans and pour-overs: Only Coffee Project, with guest roasters on the bar.

Best cafes in Crows Nest, ranked

  1. #1BREWMANCE for coffee with latte art

    $$🐕 Dogs outsideOutdoor seating🌳 Hume Street Park Expansion, 1 min walk

    BREWMANCE is the place to order a flat white and a beef bulgogi bowl in the same visit. Its latte art can be personalised with a name or a short message, which is why many regulars ask for it. Weekday hours start at 6:30am, so it covers an early coffee and a lunch in one stop. Dogs can sit outside, and Hume Street Park Expansion is one minute away on foot.

    Best for: Coffee with latte art and a weekday breakfast

  2. #2Emoji Cafe for a big breakfast on a budget

    $🌳 Cahill Playground, 5 min walk

    Emoji Cafe is a small, family-run spot on the Pacific Highway, and the big breakfast and chicken and rice are the plates to order. It sits at the lower end of the price range here, with burgers and wraps for lunch. Doors open at 6:30am on weekdays and 7am on Saturdays. Cahill Playground is a five-minute walk, so a kids' lunch and a play can fit into one trip.

    Best for: Big breakfasts, burgers and wraps

  3. #3Artistry Coffee Craft Co for a slow morning coffee

    $🐕 Dogs outside🌳 Hume Street Park Expansion, 1 min walk

    Artistry Coffee Craft Co is a Clarke Street spot where the coffee does the work. Its house blend and an organic soy matcha latte are the drinks visitors mention most. Order the French toast with berries and ice cream for something sweet, or the cheesy sourdough toastie for something savoury. It closes at 2pm on weekdays and noon on Saturdays, so it suits a weekday morning more than a weekend brunch.

    Best for: Morning coffee and a light breakfast

  4. #4Brew, No? for a takeaway coffee near the Metro

    $🌳 Hume Street Park Expansion, 1 min walk

    Brew, No? is a compact Clarke Street shop that leans toward takeaway, with the Metro across the road. Croissants sit in the cabinet, and the jalapeno and cheese one is the savoury choice. Breakfast burritos are worth ordering early, since they can sell out. The shop pours from more than one roaster and sells beans by the bag.

    Best for: Takeaway coffee and early pastries

  5. #5Double Cross Dining Room for a long brunch or a date night

    $$🐕 Dogs outsideOutdoor seating🌳 Hume Street Park Expansion, 2 min walk

    Double Cross Dining Room is the only pick on this list open for dinner, on Thursday to Saturday until 9pm. Its Wagyu flank steak and eggplant katsu carry the evening menu, while the breakfast plates are more inventive, such as a vegetarian roll with kale and smashed avocado. Staff are attentive, and a kids' menu means a family can sit down here too. It opens at 6am on weekdays and closes at 4pm on Sundays.

    Best for: Long brunch and a date-night dinner

  6. #6SALT & JAM for a bowl you can take away

    $🐕 Dogs outsideOutdoor seating🌳 Hume Street Park Expansion, 1 min walk

    SALT & JAM is the pick for a lunch bowl you can carry out. The vege Buddha bowl holds tofu, kimchi, avocado, bean sprouts and chickpeas, and the Korean-inspired bowl is the other one to try. The kitchen will take a late order, and takeaway packs are sealed to avoid leaks. It opens at 9am on weekdays and at 7am on Saturdays.

    Best for: Healthy lunch bowls to take away

  7. #7Cafe 107 for an early coffee and a muffin

    $🌳 Hume Street Park Expansion, 2 min walk

    Cafe 107 opens at 5am on weekdays and 5:30am on Saturdays, the earliest start on this list. Campos is the house coffee, and the almond flat white is the usual order. Early muffins come out fresh, served on a plate with a pot of tea. Hume Street Park Expansion sits two minutes away, and the entrance is step-free.

    Best for: Early coffee and fresh muffins

  8. #8Only Coffee Project for pour-overs and beans to take home

    $🐕 Dogs outsideOutdoor seating🌳 Hume Street Park Expansion, 2 min walk

    Only Coffee Project on Willoughby Road puts pour-overs at the centre of the menu, with beans from guest roasters. Baristas explain each bean's origin and process, and filter cups arrive in ceramic. Food is a side note here, so this is a coffee stop more than a brunch. Premium filters cost more than a standard coffee, and one visitor paid $23 for a single cup. It is open every day from 6:30am.

    Best for: Pour-overs and beans to take home

Compare best cafes in Crows Nest

The table below compares each cafe's price, brunch, outdoor seating, dogs and weekend opening.

CafePriceBrunchOutdoorDogsWeekendsNearest park
BREWMANCE$$✓✓Outside✓Hume Street Park Expansion, 1 min
Emoji Cafe$✓✗–SatCahill Playground, 5 min
Artistry Coffee Craft Co$✓–OutsideSatHume Street Park Expansion, 1 min
Brew, No?$✓––✓Hume Street Park Expansion, 1 min
Double Cross Dining Room$$✓✓Outside✓Hume Street Park Expansion, 2 min
SALT & JAM$✓✓Outside✓Hume Street Park Expansion, 1 min
Cafe 107$✓––SatHume Street Park Expansion, 2 min
Only Coffee Project$–✓Outside✓Hume Street Park Expansion, 2 min
Eighty Ate$$✓✓Outside✓Ted Mack Civic Park, 5 min
The Nest Cafe$✓✓–SatHume Street Park Expansion, 3 min
Piccolo Me Crows Nest$✓✓–SatCahill Playground, 6 min
Not Bread Alone Restaurant & Cafe$$✓✓Outside✓Hume Street Park Expansion, 2 min
Bean Drinking$$✓✓Outside✓Hume Street Park Expansion, 2 min

How we picked best cafes in Crows Nest

Each cafe is ordered by its overall score, which gives more weight to a high average backed by a large body of evidence. Next, each cafe is tested against this page's facts: brunch, weekend opening, and where tables and dogs sit. What each cafe's own page says about its food and coffee sets the order among the top picks, so the list favours menus that stay consistent from one visit to the next.

Best cafes in Crows Nest: FAQ

Which Crows Nest cafes open before 7am?

Cafe 107 opens at 5am on weekdays and 5:30am on Saturdays, the earliest start here. BREWMANCE, Emoji Cafe and Only Coffee Project all open at 6:30am on weekdays.

Is there a Crows Nest cafe open for dinner?

Double Cross Dining Room is the only cafe on this list open at night, serving dinner from Thursday to Saturday until 9pm.

Which Crows Nest cafes let dogs sit outside?

Dogs are allowed outside at Artistry Coffee Craft Co, Double Cross Dining Room, SALT & JAM and BREWMANCE.

Where can you buy coffee beans in Crows Nest?

Only Coffee Project sells bags from a range of roasters, and Brew, No? keeps some beans on its shelves for takeaway.