Brandy Kew

The Verdict

Kew’s brekky grapevine has been working overtime in recent weeks, which is probs why Brandy Kew is heaving at 8am on a school day, just four weeks after opening.

Let’s face it, they couldn’t have picked a better location: there are half a dozen schools within a few hundred metres of the front door, and the morning coffee rush is in full swing: mums and kids stopping by for a cloudy apple juice or a cheeky pre-class brownie, office workers grabbing a caffeine hit from the bottomless filter coffee, a couple of dogs tied up outside, panting in the early morning cold.

Brandy Kew is a new kid on the Kew cafe scene, but it already feels kind of settled, like it’s been there for years (owner Lindsey Innes greets most of her customers by name, a nice touch). Innes and her business partner Eamon Sheahen (Age Of Sale, Boy & Co, Espresso 3121) spent a couple of months renovating the space themselves, and it was worth the wait. The ceilings are practically alpine, and a couple of walls are covered in cascading greenery. Throw in some blonde timber, pastel highlights and soft, golden lighting and you’ve got a smash hit suburban cafe.

“The community around here is awesome,” Innes says. “We’re already getting the same faces dropping by. We wanted to make a comfy space – so no polished concrete.”

The coffee is bloody good (hot, strong and aromatic—the trifecta), and the compact menu doesn’t disappoint either. We can heartily recommend the chilli scrambled, quick becoming a menu necessity these days. This one comes with diced ham hock, chilli oil, sautéed cherry tomatoes, shallots and a dusting of parmesan. Delicious. If you want to step it up for lunch, try the Californian super food salad, or the free-range chicken burger, served with a tangy carrot and kohlrabi slaw.

Family-friendly, warm and bloody tasty. No wonder the grapevine is buzzing.   

Image credit: Brandy Kew