Navigating the Brunswick cafe scene can feel like a sport. Everyone's got their go-to, their secret spot, their "you have to try this place".
Well, we're here to cut through the noise to deliver the absolute cream of the crop. From anti-milk coffee cellar doors (yes, it exists) to Japanese cafes that will send you flying back to Tokyo, there are some true charmers proud to call this humble ‘burb home.
Brunswick Cafes At A Glance
- Best Cafes In Brunswick For Coffee
- Best Cafes In Brunswick For Breakfast & Brunch
- Best Japanese Cafes In Brunswick
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We’ve scoured every corner and backstreet to bring you the definitive guide to Brunswick’s best cafes—because life's too short for a bad brew.
Here are the best Brunswick cafes in 2025, according to Urban List:
Best Cafes In Brunswick For Top Tier Coffee
There's something about Brunswick that attracts truly next-level coffee without any of the pretentiousness. You can walk into these cafes and learn from experts in the field who are happy to share their knowledge (and coffee) with you. Here are the Brunswick cafes where you'll find the best coffee:
ONA Coffee
22 Ovens Street, Brunswick
Image: ONA Coffee Brunswick | Supplied
Specialty coffee powerhouse ONA Coffee is best described as a sort of coffee Mecca. On the menu is over 15 coffee variants, along with milk, batch brews and pour overs, with cups ranging from $5 to $25. The team here are actual superstars, taking out places in the World Barista Championship, Australian Latte Art Championship and a slew of other titles. They take their job seriously and will happily offer you any coffee-related guidance you may need.
Also one of the best Brunswick brunch spots, you’ll find brunch classics like smashed avo, zucchini haloumi corn fritters and Turkish eggs on the menu as well as fun creations like green chilli scramble and okonomiyaki waffle. Or, our fave Saturday morning plan is to grab a baked good from Ovens Street Bakery across the road pre- or post- ONA coffee.
Kohi No Deshi & Disciple Roasters
16 Black Street and 18 Black Street, Brunswick
Disciple Roasters and Kohi No Deshi are the perfect neighbouring coffee duo. Disciple is a coffee cellar door which serves exclusively black coffees. This is one for the serious coffee lovers. Owner and coffee expert Marwin Shaw features a selection of 15 premium black coffees at this joint. The belief here is that great coffee is all about the raw product, so the team focuses on excellent coffee production and minimal intervention with the coffee bean.
Next door is Disciple Roasters' newer milk-based sister, Kohi No Deshi. This is where you’ll find all the milky coffee goodness you desire, with plant-based milk options available too. The coffee here is just as premium, and you can select from multiple blends on offer. It’s the yin and yang of coffee in true Brunswick style.
Best Cafes In Brunswick For Breakfast & Brunch
Whether it's a Sunday morning brunch and catch up with friends or a bite to eat while smattering away at your keyboard mid-week, here are the best cafes in Brunswick that serve up finger-lickingly good food next to your coffee.
Lux Foundry
21 Hope Street, Brunswick
Image: Lux Foundry | Supplied
When it comes to a great brekkie and brunch spot in Brunswick, you can’t go past Lux Foundry. Before you even walk inside this bustling warehouse cafe in Brunswick’s back streets, you know it’s going to be one of the most Melbourne cafes you’ve ever been to.
The heritage-listed warehouse was built in 1889, and has been serving hungry Brunswick locals for more than 15 years. With exposed brick, warm pendant lighting and hanging plants, it surely is one highly Instagrammable cafe.
And of course, the meals are just as aesthetic (and also delicious). Think gochuchang and peanut tofu scramble, huevos de patatas and apple crumble hotcakes. The coffee is from Square One Coffee Roasters, and we highly recommend sampling the iced blueberry matcha or their take on the mont blanc.
P.S. Hungry for more? Check out our full rundown of the best breakfasts Melbourne has to offer.
Walrus
312 Sydney Road, Brunswick
If you see a line forming down Sydney Road on a Saturday or Sunday morning, you’ll likely be passing Walrus. This cafe in Brunswick serves up authentic American diner vibes, done right. Order the bottomless filter coffee and get a seat at the bar for the complete diner experience. The specialty espresso coffee is also on point or grab a milkshake if you’re caffeine opposed.
The menu here is as American as they come, with steak and eggs, a Denver omelette, and blueberry pancakes. The pancakes are next level: a hefty three stack of pancakes with warm salty butter between each layer, drizzled with berry compote on top and bursts of berries throughout. Get it with bacon and eggs if your heart so desires.
Wide Open Road
274 Barkly Street, Brunswick
Image: Wide Open Road | Supplied
A favourite of the northern suburbs, Wide Open Road has been slinging specialty coffee since the noughties. Now a nationwide wholesale supplier of coffee beans and with a second venue in Byron Bay, this vibey cafe still has that indie, boutique feel.
Pick up a perfectly rounded espresso blend with 'Bathysphere' an accessible combination of dark chocolate, caramel and fruity notes. For something a little different, go for Menchu’s Horchata, rice horchata with cinnamon, orange, oat milk and a double shot of espresso over ice. If you want to experience Wide Open Road at home, you can even sign up for their coffee subscription.
For Change Cafe Brunswick
6 Florence Street, Brunswick
In an industrial backstreet just off Sydney Rd, at the bottom of the Nightingale Housing Precinct, there’s a tiny cafe doing some pretty interesting things. The name is For Change, it’s a new micro-cafe, hardly more than a hole-in-the-wall really, which spills out onto Florence St via bench seats and old milk crates.
For Change uses a Five Senses blend all day with other varieties for filter coffee. Food-wise, the toasties are unreal, using the freshest sourdough by Oven St Bakery, alongside some of their top-notch pastries.
Of course the best bit about For Change is the mission. After basic staff costs and overheads, all profits go straight to youth homelessness and to feeding the 1 in 8 Australian children who go to school hungry every day, supporting charities such as Eat Up Australia and Launch Housing.
Best Japanese Cafes In Brunswick
Brunswick is proudly home to some of the latest and greatest Japanese cafes Melbourne has to offer (see our full rundown of Melbourne's Japanese cafes here). Whether you're after a next-level strawberry matcha, a classic hojicha latte, or just want to soak up some Japanese decor alongside a cat named Udon, you'll find it at one of these Brunswick cafes:
iMa Asa Yoru & iMa Pantry
1 Duckett Street, Brunswick
Image: iMa Asa Yora | Supplied
Located in the Nightingale Village just off the Brunswick bike path, iMa Asa Yora is a modern all-day eatery serving up traditional Japanese cuisine. The breakfast and brunch dishes revolve around Teishoku—Japanese set meals which include rice, miso soup, a main dish and side dishes.
Just a few doors down is their sister venue iMa Pantry where you can pick up Japanese homemade baked goods, coffee, other drinks and artisanal goods. Try the hojicha, a roasted green tea latte with nutty, lightly smokey flavours and a hint of chocolate alongside a matcha cupcake.
Chooka’s
1 Ballarat Street, Brunswick
Chooka’s is a whimsical Japanese cafe where felines meet homely comfort. The space is sprinkled with subtle cat-themed touches—paw prints on the ‘Open’ sign, cocoa-dusted kitty art floating atop your cappuccino, and even a shy resident cat called Udon.
Drinks range from hojicha lattes and iced strawberry matcha to grapefruit green tea and a playful Kitty Biscoff Latte. There’s good old fashioned espresso-based coffees too. These are the types of drinks best enjoyed with a sweet treat, such as the delicate warabi mochi or black sesame Basque cheesecake.
For something more substantial, the star of the show is the omusubi, with varieties like the intensely savory nori-soy or the wakame-filled ones offering authentic, portable bites. Don’t miss the Yaki-Omusubi (grilled for crispy edges) or the hearty Omurice for something more substantial.
Osoi
Shop 3, 219 Albion Street, Brunswick
Tucked away just off the Brunswick bike path, the guys at Osoi are serving up a stack of different kinds of matchas (more of Melbourne's best matcha over here) as well as coffees and little pastries, making it the perfect lo-fi brunch or catch up spot. They do a take on a Vietnamese iced coffee that is a proper heart-starter and perfect for extreme caffeine lovers.
For the matcha queens out there, the ichigo (strawberry) matcha, mango genmaicha—reminiscent of mango sticky rice—and matcha cloud—a pandan- infused matcha cream levitating atop coconut water—are highly sought-after. Check their Insta for cute events they host like a matcha and crafting dates or lattes and leads outings.
Lunar by Hikari
458 Sydney Road, Brunswick
Image: Lunar By Hikari | Supplied
Specialty coffee, onigiri and killer egg sandos are on the menu at Lunar by Hikari. Just as popular as its sibling venue, Hikari Life, this aesthetic Japanese-inspired cafe is a true Brunswick favourite. Batch brew, cold brew, and a range of Japanese drinks are also on offer. Think premium matcha, sesame latte, and a yuzu spritz which involves cold brew, yuzu syrup and sparkling water (it’s dazzling and delightful).
Perch yourself up on their bench seating to get first-class intel on how they prepare their matcha brew. Or you can even visit for Japanese tapas, donburi, sushi and other dishes when they reopen in the evening.
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